Energy, greenhouse gas emissions and irrigated agriculture

On-farm energy efficiency is becoming a significant issue for highly mechanised irrigated agricultural industries due to rising energy costs and concern over greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Energy represents a major cost and one of the fastest growing input costs to primary producers. The Australian cotton growing industry is highly mechanised and heavily reliant on fossil fuels (electricity and diesel). Within highly mechanised farming systems such as those used within the cotton industry, machinery costs can represent 40 – 50% of the cotton farm input costs. Given the major dependence on machinery (direct energy inputs) and rising energy costs, energy use efficiency is an emerging issue for the Australian Cotton Industry. Both previous and current work undertaken by the National Centre for Engineering in Agriculture (NCEA) is studying direct on farm energy use which involves a number of case study cotton farms to understand the contribution of direct energy use to cotton production and greenhouse gas emissions. The results from this work show that energy use varies depending on the cropping enterprise and the farming system and that there are significant opportunities to reduce energy and costs. In comparison the greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) from direct energy use can be similar and in fact greater than the GHGs generated by nitrogen based fertiliser

The use of prevalence as a measure of lice burden: a case study of Lepeophtheirus salmonis on Scottish Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar L., farms

This study investigates the benefits of using prevalence as a summary measure of sea lice infestation on farmed Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar L. Aspects such as sampling effort, the relationship between abundance and prevalence arising from the negative binomial distribution, and how this relationship can be used to indicate the degree of aggregation of lice on a site at a given time point are discussed. As a case study, data were drawn from over 50 commercial Atlantic salmon farms on the west coast of Scotland between 2002 and 2006. Descriptive statistics and formal analysis using a linear modelling technique identified significant variations in sea lice prevalence across year class, region and season. Supporting evidence of a functional relationship between prevalence and abundance of sea lice is provided, which is explained through the negative binomial distribution

The Inclusive Semileptonic Decay Lepton Spectrum from B→Xeν‾B \to X e \overline{\nu}

In this talk, we review the QCD calculation of the lepton spectrum from inclusive semileptonic $B$ decay. We compare this prediction to that of the ACCMM model. This latter work was done in collaboration with Csaba Csaki.Comment: MIT-CTP-2333, uses LATEX. Invited Talk, Presented at WHEPP-3 Workshop in Madras,India, January, 199

Australian spark arrester tests : spark arrester for Fordson Dexta

FORMAL tests on spark arresters are conducted by The Tractor Testing Committee at the Testing Station, Werribee, on behalf of those Companies concerned with tractors, engines or spark arresters who wish to have these equipments tested. The arrester is tested on the engine for which it is especially designed or if this is not convenient, it is tested on an engine having the characteristics and power for which the spark arrester is intended

Tractor testing in Australia. Part 2

AUSTRALIAN test procedures, though differing: in some details, and in some ways going further and telling more about the tractor, conform in essentials to overseas standards. The tests are in four main parts— (a) the physical properties of the tractor; (b) the power of the engine, and its stationary outlets—the belt and the p.t.o; (c) the power on the drawbar when working on a formalised test surface or track; (d) the reliability of the tractor when running under test, and its condition after the test

Australian tractor test report no. 54 : Fiat 615

AUSTRALIAN TRACTOR TEST REPORT No. 54 - FIAT 615 The tractor is designed for working either with mounted implements directly through the three-point linkage or through the drawbar

Australian spark arrester tests

FORMAL tests on spark arresters are conducted by The Tractor Testing Committee at the Testing Station, Werribe, on behalf of those Companies concerned with tractors, engines or spark arresters who wish to have these equipments tested. The arrester is tested on the engine it is specially designed for (as in this instance), or if it is sold for use on any or several engines, it is tested on an engine of the highest power for which the spark arrester is intended

Australian tractor test report no. 53 : Chamberlain Countryman 354

AUSTRALIAN TRACTOR TEST REPORT No. 53 - CHAMBERLAIN COUNTRYMAN 354 THE Chamberlain Countryman 354 is a broad-acres cultivation tractor of 77 drawbar horsepower with 87 h.p. at the P.T.O

Tractor testing in Australia

AUSTRALIA is one of several countries that have set up official tractor testing schemes. These schemes mean testing stations that, while providing a testing service for both the manufacturing industry and the consumer, in effect mainly the farming industries, are independent of either