New leader for sustainable agriculture research

Nick Costa has been appointed as the inaugural professor in sustainable agriculture within Murdoch University's School of Environmental Science.

In this role, Professor Costa will provide leadership and focus for research into sustainable systems in agriculture and its increasing overlap with the natural environment in Western Australia.

Professor Costa will play a key role in developing the collaborative venture, Agricultural Research Western Australia.

Professor Costa has worked at Murdoch University's Veterinary and Biomedical School since 1977, and has held appointments such as Head of the then School of Veterinary Biology and Biomedical Science, as well been elected by peers for roles such as Vice President and Honorary Editor of the Nutrition Society of Australia. Professor Costa's major area of expertise is in biochemistry and nutrition, with an emphasis on production animals.

One of the first projects to be tackled in this sustainable agriculture research portfolio is a collaborative project with Dr Andr?-Denis Wright who leads a large team at CSIRO Livestock Industries. The project will characterise the ways in which feed composition determines the amount of methane produced, and the specifi c methanogens in ruminant systems. The aim of this work is to decrease methane production by livestock, which forms a signifi cant contribution to Australia's Kyoto Greenhouse accounting.

Other projects will include the use of gene markers for maternal effi ciency traits in sustainable production systems, a project from the new Beef Genetic Technologies CRC, and the effect of diet formulation on nutrient fl ows in intensive animal production systems.