Major progress was made in 2004/2005 on research into the biology, impacts and management of grasses. Data collection on exotic grass biology and impacts is near completion (final measures to be made by December 2005) and analysis is currently underway. Research on exotic grass management will continue into 2007 through research student projects. Research was undertaken on lands managed for defence, conservation and mining to ensure interaction with, and adoption by, stakeholders. Student projects are jointly supervised by stakeholder agencies. As a result, additional resources, including funding, has been provided by stakeholders.

Members of the project team have been invited to present research outcomes at a range of stakeholder meetings, workshops and conferences in the NT and Queensland. Research outcomes on exotic grass impacts in the NT has been widely distributed in Queensland as part of the Ranger training programs. Additional communication of project outcomes was achieved in 2004/5 by completing 1 thesis, publishing 4 referred articles, and presenting 3 conference papers.

A weed risk management (WRM) process is recognised internationally as a useful tool to assist land managers to address the often controversial issue of exotic plant management by providing an objective tool to evaluate the risk of introducing or using exotic plants, and to prioritise weed management actions. In 2004/5, the project made significant progress towards the development of a WRM for northern Australia.

The project, in conjunction with the NT DIPE and the Weeds CRC, hosted a workshop on WRM development for staff from a range of sections of the NT Government. Outcomes included an agreed process for further development and the formation of a Technical Committee and a Steering Committee which represent a range of stakeholder interests. Work is currently underway to host a stakeholder’s workshop to ensure participation and input of stakeholders in WRM development, and a technical workshop to test and refine WRM models for northern Australia. These workshops will be conducted in June and July 2005.

WRM development is undertaken cooperatively between the Weeds CRC, TS-CRC, NT Government and Queensland Government agencies, and workshops are jointly hosted by these organisations. The WRM will draw upon research outputs from this project, as well as research and information databases developed by the Weeds Management CRC.