Goondiwindi

Located in Queensland’s south, our Goondiwindi Hub covers the northern basin. This region has considerable extension and research capability through the University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba, the University of Sydney campus in Narrabri, government departments, and an overarching natural resource management body, which works collaboratively with local Landcare groups.

The Goondiwindi Hub provides the opportunity for local communities, business, industries and governments to understand key vulnerabilities of the region in detail, offering information and knowledge to support the community to identify targeted solutions for effective adaptation to the impacts of climate change. 

The hub is initially focusing on building resilience in the northern cropping and grazing areas that cover, but are not limited to, the catchments for the Condamine-Balonne, Border Rivers, Namoi and Gwydir.

About the region

The northern basin covers areas of two states (southern Queensland and northern New South Wales) and at least 22 First Nations groups, covering the Warrego, Paroo, Condamine-Balonne, Moonie and Border rivers, and Gwydir and Namoi Catchments.

Stakeholders & collaborators

Key stakeholders located in the region include the Murray–Darling Basin Authority (office in Goondiwindi), and the Murray–Darling Inspector-General of Water Resources (northern basin office).

Key collaborators in the Goondiwindi Regional hub will include: 

• Southern Queensland Landscapes
• Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
• Rural Economies Centre of Excellence at University of Southern Queensland (a state government partnership). 

Regional economy and land use

Land uses in the region range from irrigated cropping zones to extensive grazing, some of which is floodplain grazing. 

Irrigated crops grown include cotton, maize and pulse crops and there are smaller areas of high value horticulture, from stone fruits to wine grapes. 

Dryland cropping includes summer and winter coarse grains and to a lesser extent, pulse crops.

The value of water to the region

The northern basin regions, especially in the Condamine and Border rivers catchments, have significant intensive animal production systems (cattle feedlots, poultry and pigs) that depend on regional grain production and high-quality water. Relative to the southern basin areas, there is a high reliance on water extraction and diversion from cross-land flows outside riverine areas, with extensive use of ‘ring tanks’ or high-walled storage dams.

Unlike the southern basin, connectivity between individual water systems in the northern basin is limited, resulting in variation in market prices and trading activity between systems. All of these catchments are forecast to be affected by climate change, with decreasing total rainfall, an increasing number of high temperature days in summer, a reduction in low temperature days, a narrowing of the frost period, and decreased inflows into catchments. 

There are significant innovation and adaptation ecosystems in the greater region, with state agriculture departments, natural resources management agencies and five natural resources management organisations.