Cotton and grain growers and spray contractors are being encouraged to take advantage of the most advanced hazardous inversion-sensing technology in the world to help them save time and money.
The WAND (Weather and Networked Data) system is a world-first, Australian-developed weather data system to help minimise spray drift and the damage it causes to food and fibre crops and the environment.
Developed by the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) and CRDC with the support of commercial partner, Goanna Ag, WAND helps growers understand when they can (and cannot) spray by distinguishing a hazardous surface temperature inversion from a non-hazardous one in real-time, as well as provide users an accurate two or 24-hour forecast.
More than 4000 growers and spray contractors have benefited from using WAND since it launched in December 2022, with sixty percent of them reported to have made a change to their spray applications as a result of the technology.
With spray drift impacting a staggering one-in-two cotton growers, costing them each an average of more than $250,000 according to the CRDC Grower Survey 2023, WAND is a proven solution changing the game for growers.
The spraying season is now in full swing and as WAND hits its two-year milestone, all cotton and grain growers and spray contractors are being urged to sign up for the system to deliver an even more effective, whole-of-industry solution.
"WAND has the potential to solve the wicked challenge of spray drift," Jay Jalota, CEO of Goanna Ag, said.
"We encourage all cotton and grain growers and spray contractors to jump online and use the system before all spray applications. It will save you time and money, and eliminate the risk of drift."
Farm manager Steve Klowss said all his staff have the WAND app on their phones and are well-versed in using it, along with his aerial spraying contractors in Mungindi, North West NSW.
Steve manages 'Strathguyle' for Evolution Farming, which has a WAND tower on the property. It's used with a Goanna Ag weather station and in-built weather stations in spray rigs to track wind speed and direction.
"We were all for putting a tower up here because in the 2022-23 season we got drifted about seven times - it was shocking, we thought we would have to plough it out," Steve said.
"We averaged 11.5 bales per hectare for our cotton when others around us were seeing 15 to 17."
The hazardous inversion forecast has made planning spraying jobs and organising staff easier to manage.
"The team can get on the app and check the conditions and the inversion forecast," he said.
"We aim to pull up an hour before a hazardous inversion is forecast to start, so even WAND's two-hour nowcast allows us to potentially mix up half a tank and get it out in plenty of time prior to the forecasted time.
"Using the WAND forecast saves us time, and you know when you can spray for sure, we know what time we can mix up a load and spray in the right conditions."
Steve's spray rig drivers also keep a manual log of conditions taken from WAND, along with the on-board weather data.
"WAND has been really useful. We've been drifted badly in the past, and don't want to do it to others.
"Using WAND has made us more aware. We always knew that there was a risk of inversion any time of the day, but now we have the information at hand to tell us for sure."
Ben Taylor, Culara Farming Director at 'Noonameena' outside Condamine in Queensland, said WAND was not just an individual gain, but a win for the entire community.
"Since the WAND tower has been installed, it's given us peace of mind and offered a blanket of security for us and our staff," Ben said.
"WAND offers black-and-white information, and helps us plan ahead so our productivity goes up.
"WAND is a game changer because it is forecasting hazardous spray conditions, allowing operators to spray at optimal times.
"When you buy expensive chemicals and you're not applying it in the right conditions, it's not a good return on investment because it's at the risk of not landing on your weeds on your property. With access to WAND, we can predict what's going to happen into the future and know when those spray conditions are going to come and can cease spraying when need be.
"Our community is wiser for having something like WAND and this technology supports a better industry as a whole."
WAND's commitment is to reduce the incidence of spray drift. Importantly, the key functionality of WAND - the real-time weather data, the detection of the presence or absence of hazardous inversions, and the 'nowcast' prediction within the coming two hours - is free and will remain free. These are the critical pieces of information required during the spray operation.
There is also a paid subscriber option, which WAND recently introduced. This offers new and additional features including 24-hour hazardous inversion forecasts, long-term searchable history and future enhancements such as text message alerts around hazardous inversion status.
To access WAND, visit the website www.wand.com.au
