Protected Areas

There is a long history of agricultural teaching and research on the Hawkesbury campus, and the Hawkesbury farm has always played a key role in these activities. Today the farm operates on commercial terms, growing beef cattle.  These activities are blended into the teaching framework and offer students an opportunity to observe sustainable farming practices.

These practices include:

• Commercial animal production supported by pastures and fodder crops irrigated by recycled water and river water.
• Sustainable grazing practices
  • Land management to address environmental risks (pest management, bush fire mitigation), and maintain active stewardship of the broader campus lands.
• Support for research such as undertaken by Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment (opens in a new window) (e.g. carbon cycling), and the School of Science (opens in a new window) (e.g. nutrient offsets in stormwater). More information about research can be seen at these Living Labs:
  • CO₂ Concrete
  • Wetland Monitoring
• Liaising with industry to ensure best practice agriculture is demonstrated for our students. More information about industry engagement can be seen at these Living Labs:
  • IoT Precision Agriculture