Potential use of polyacrylamide (PAM) in Australian agriculture to improve off and on-site environmental impacts and infiltration management

Polyacrylamide (PAM) has been sold in the United States since 1995 for reducing\nirrigation-induced erosion and enhancing infiltration. PAM's soil stabilizing and flocculating\nproperties have also substantially improved runoff water quality by reducing sediments, N, ortho\nand total P, COD, pesticides, weed seeds, and microorganisms in runoff. The first series of\npractical field tests of PAM was conducted in the U.S. in 1991. Chemical companies, working\nwith "early adopter" farmers, began farm testing of PAM in 1997 in Australia. Australian farmer\nresults have been mixed because of lack of familiarity with PAM chemical and physical\nattributes, lack of research focused on Australian conditions and a resulting lack of support\ncapability from extension or other public conservation or water management infrastructure.\nPAM has chemical and physical properties that impart a steeper learning curve than most other\ntypical agricultural chemicals. Nonetheless, in Australian tests of PAM, sediment, nutrients, and\npesticide reductions exceeded levels achieved by traditional conservation farming' methods\n(Waters et al., 1999a,b).