Landholders across the Northern Tablelands are set to benefit from a new wave of real-time agricultural data, following the announcement of more than $1.7 million in Landcare funding under the NSW Government’s Landcare Enabling Program.
As part of the broader investment, the New England Landcare Network has secured $830,899 to deliver its regional initiative, Towards informed, integrative land and water management – with GLENRAC Inc taking a leading role in on-ground delivery.
At the centre of the project is the development of a new “Farming Forecaster” weather monitoring network, designed to fill what project partners describe as a critical gap in accessible, localised and integrated environmental data for farm businesses and advisory services.
The network will bring together real-time weather and environmental information into a shared system, giving producers more immediate insight to support both day-to-day operational decisions and longer-term land and water management planning.
GLENRAC CEO Kylie Falconer said the funding represents a significant step forward for sustainable agriculture in the region.
“This project is about giving landholders access to the right information at the right time,” Ms Falconer said.
“By improving access to real-time, localised data, we can support better decision-making, strengthen farm resilience, and deliver long-term benefits for both agricultural productivity and the environment.”
Project Manager Eliza James said the initiative would deliver something the region has not previously had access to at scale.
“There is currently no integrated, region-wide system delivering this type of real-time information directly to farmers and advisors,” Ms James said.
“This network will fill that gap by providing a reliable, shared data resource that supports everything from day-to-day farm operations through to long-term land and water management planning.”
The project is expected to combine multiple data sources into a single accessible platform, helping producers respond more quickly to changing weather conditions, seasonal variability and environmental pressures – factors that continue to challenge agricultural communities across the Northern Tablelands.
Stakeholders say the system will also support more informed decision-making around drought preparedness, pasture management, and natural resource planning, with flow-on benefits for both productivity and environmental outcomes.
The initiative aligns with the broader goals of the Landcare Enabling Program, which supports community-led, practical responses to environmental and agricultural challenges across regional NSW.
GLENRAC will work closely with the New England Landcare Network, landholders, industry partners and community stakeholders throughout the rollout to ensure the system is tailored to local needs and remains responsive to conditions on the ground.
The organisation says the investment reinforces the importance of locally driven innovation that draws on both scientific data and on-farm knowledge to build resilience across the agricultural sector.
“This funding reinforces the importance of locally driven projects that combine innovation with on-ground knowledge to strengthen both agricultural productivity and environmental outcomes,” GLENRAC said in a statement.
The Farming Forecaster network is expected to become a key regional tool once established, with further details on rollout timing and participation to be released as the project progresses.