The new Cotton Catchment Communities CRC has officially taken over the role of the former Cotton CRC, and will be responsible for a wide suite of cotton research programs through to 2012.

Chairman, David Anthony, said research and development had been the backbone of the industry, and the new CCC CRC would continue to pursue those aims and initiatives.

The CRC will have access to around $138 million in cash and kind over the seven years 2005 to 2012 in programs both within and beyond farm boundaries.

As an incorporated company limited by guarantee, the new CRC will be run by a group of seven directors who are independent of its research providers.

The board will be guided by sub-committees and advisory panels, with management comprising a chief executive officer, supported by a chief scientist, an education and extension manager, a company secretary/business manager and a communications unit.

The board will meet six-monthly with 12 representatives of its shareholders and affiliate members.

Mr Anthony described the CCC CRC’s role as a vehicle for demonstrating what can be achieved in environmental husbandry through all segments of the cotton industry and zones in which it operates.

He listed its targeted outcomes as:

• Internationally competitive farming systems based on yield, fibre quality and cost of production
• Best practice sustainability
• Mutually beneficial interaction between industry and regional communities
• High quality cotton preferred by its customers, marketed as a brand rather than a commodity
• An increased reservoir of industry knowledge and skills

It is envisaged initially that farming activities will account for about 35 per cent of research allocations, followed by catchment activities 20 per cent, and adoption 20 per cent. Coordination, cotton products and  community programs would make up the balance. 

The CCC CRC has evolved in scope and scale from the former Australian Cotton CRC, and builds on the collaboration, cooperation and focus that it established under the guidance of its former CEOs, initially Dr Greg Constable, followed by Dr Gary Fitt and finally Guy Roth.