A framework to monitor sustainability in the grains industry
Authors: Dalal R. C. , Lawrence P. , Doughton J. A. , Walker J. , Shaw R. J. , Lawrence G. , Yule D. , Bourne A. , Duivenvoorden L. , Choy S. , Moloney D. , Turner L. , King C. , Dale A. 
Published: September 2002

Community awareness of the sustainable use of land, water and vegetation
resources is increasing. The sustainable use of these resources is pivotal to
sustainable farming systems. However, techniques for monitoring the
sustainable management of these resources are poorly understood and untested.
We propose a framework to benchmark and monitor resources in the grains
industry.
Eight steps are listed below to achieve these objectives: (i) define industry
issues; (ii) identify the issues through growers, stakeholder and community
consultation; (iii) identify indicators (measurable attributes, properties or
characteristics) of sustainability through consultation with growers,
stakeholders, experts and community members, relating to: crop productivity;
resource maintenance/enhancement; biodiversity; economic viability;
community viability; and institutional structure; (iv) develop and use
selection criteria to select indicators that consider: responsiveness to
change; ease of capture; community acceptance and involvement; interpretation;
measurement error; stability, frequency and cost of measurement; spatial scale
issues; and mapping capability in space and through time. The appropriateness
of indicators can be evaluated using a decision making system such as a
multiobjective decision support system (MO-DSS, a method to assist in decision
making from multiple and conflicting objectives); (v) involve stakeholders and
the community in the definition of goals and setting benchmarking and
monitoring targets for sustainable farming; (vi) take preventive and
corrective/remedial action; (vii) evaluate effectiveness of actions taken;
and (viii) revise indicators as part of a continual improvement principle
designed to achieve best management practice for sustainable farming systems.
The major recommendations are to: (i) implement the framework for resources
(land, water and vegetation, economic, community and institution) benchmarking
and monitoring, and integrate this process with current activities so that
awareness, implementation and evolution of sustainable resource management
practices become normal practice in the grains industry; (ii) empower the
grains industry to take the lead by using relevant sustainability indicators
to benchmark and monitor resources; (iii) adopt a collaborative approach by
involving various industry, community, catchment management and government
agency groups to minimise implementation time. Monitoring programs such as
Waterwatch, Soilcheck, Grasscheck and Topcrop should be utilised; (iv)
encourage the adoption of a decision making system by growers and industry
representatives as a participatory decision and evaluation process.
Widespread use of sustainability indicators would assist in validating and
refining these indicators and evaluating sustainable farming systems. The
indicators could also assist in evaluating best management practices for the
grains industry.