Adjunct Professor Ram Dalal AM
Adjunct Professor

Ram Dalal AM

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Background

Professor Ram Dalal is a Professor in the School of Agriculture and Food Science at the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. He has contributed significantly to create awareness in the farming, scientific and general community to the seriousness and insidious nature of soil degradation. As a consequence, restorative practices for sustainable land management were developed and promoted. The international nature of the program was demonstrated by the fact that it was part of the Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Program. It is now nationally recognized by policy makers and politicians that land degradation and sustainable land management are the national and international priorities. These projects have made significant contribution towards these issues.

In the last 30 years Dr Dalal has worked towards sustainable land management systems, nitrogen management and soil carbon dynamics. He was the co-leader of soil carbon program in the CRC for Greenhouse Accounting (199-2006), leader of soil carbon changes following land clearing funded by the Australian Greenhouse Office (1998-2002), reviewer for the IPCC Good Practice Guidance (2006) for the land sector, and leader of the National Soil Carbon Program (2012-2015) and Soil Constraints Initiative - Management of Sodic, Magnesic or Dispersive Soils (2015). He has been a consultant and project research contributor to the International Atomic Energy Agency (2004-2009). Recently, he has led a number of projects on estimating soil carbon stock following land use change from native vegetation to croplands, grazing lands, and management of croplands and grazing lands and rangelands (2009-2015) funded by the Department of Environment and Heritage, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and Department of Agriculture, Commonwealth of Australia. In addition, he has also been involved in estimating nitrous oxide and methane emissions/ uptake from different ecosystems including agriculture, grassland, plantation forestry and estuarine/ mangrove systems (2000 – 2015). He led the National Soil Carbon Program from 2012 to 2015.

Availability

Adjunct Professor Ram Dalal AM is:
Available for supervision

Fields of research

Crop and pasture production Environmental Sciences

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Indian Agricultural Research Institute

Research interests

  • Soil and Land Management

    Soil fertility, soil biology, soil chemistry, soil and water conservation, landscape restoration, soil carbon sequestration in cropping, pasture and forestry systems and nitrogen management in cropping and pasture systems, phosphorus and zinc nutrition, soil constraints including sodicity and salinity

  • Crop and Pasture Production

    Sustainable crop rotations, sustainable pasture production systems, crop and pasture rotations, crop and pasture nutrition, fertiliser use and nutrient use efficiency, water use efficiency

  • Greenhouse Gases Mitigation

    Carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane emissions and uptake in soil-plant systems, carbon sequestration

Research impacts

My research programs created or contributed significantly to create awareness in the rural, scientific and general community in Queensland, nationwide and internationally to the seriousness and insidious nature of land degradation, carbon loss, sustainability indicators and landscape processes that lead among others, to poor soil and land quality, fertility decline and stream and groundwater quality deterioration. For the last 25 years, landscape restoration, soil organic matter management, carbon sequestration and nitrogen management, and site-specific management for soil and subsoil and other constraints and sustainable crop and pasture rotations and vegetation management have been the central research platforms across cropping, rangelands and forestry ecosystems. The international nature of the program is demonstrated by the fact that it was one of only two sites listed from Australia with the International Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Program. The Fertility Restoration Site of this program was frequently visited by national and international scientists.

Policy makers and politicians now nationally recognize that land degradation, carbon loss and landscape degradation processes lead to deteriorating water quality, and that sustainable land, vegetation and water use, and greenhouse gas mitigation and climate change are the state and national priorities. These projects have been pioneer in Australia in these fields and made significant contribution towards resolving these issues, and provided impetus to initiating similar studies in Australia and worldwide.

Search Professor Ram Dalal AM’s works on UQ eSpace

314 works between 1972 and 2025
All (314) Journal Article (267) Book Chapter (12) Conference Publication (31) Book (3) Other Outputs (1)

141 - 160 of 314 works

2015

Conference Publication

Synchrotron-based Infrared-microspectroscopy reveals the impact of land management on carbon storage in soil micro-aggregates

Hernandez-Soriano, M. C., Dalal, R. C., Menzies, N. W, and Kopittke, P. M. (2015). Synchrotron-based Infrared-microspectroscopy reveals the impact of land management on carbon storage in soil micro-aggregates. European Geosciences Union General Assembly 2015, Vienna AUSTRIA, 12-17 April 2015.

Synchrotron-based Infrared-microspectroscopy reveals the impact of land management on carbon storage in soil micro-aggregates

2015

Journal Article

Farmer involvement in the development and adoption of improved nutrient management technologies using the Mother–Baby Trial approach in vertisols

Reddy, K. Sammi, Mohanty, M., Rao, D. L. N., Rao, A. Subba, Pandey, M., Singh, M., Dixit, S. K., Dalal, Ram C., Blamey, F. Pax C. and Menzies, N.W. (2015). Farmer involvement in the development and adoption of improved nutrient management technologies using the Mother–Baby Trial approach in vertisols. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, India, Section B Biological Sciences, 85 (1), 51-62. doi: 10.1007/s40011-013-0243-1

Farmer involvement in the development and adoption of improved nutrient management technologies using the Mother–Baby Trial approach in vertisols

2014

Journal Article

The effect of pasture utilization rate on stocks of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen in a semi-arid tropical grassland

Pringle, M. J., Allen, D. E., Phelps, D. G., Bray, S. G., Orton, T. G. and Dalal, R. C. (2014). The effect of pasture utilization rate on stocks of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen in a semi-arid tropical grassland. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 195, 83-90. doi: 10.1016/j.agee.2014.05.013

The effect of pasture utilization rate on stocks of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen in a semi-arid tropical grassland

2014

Journal Article

Spatial prediction of soil organic carbon stock using a linear model of coregionalisation

Orton, T. G., Pringle, M. J., Page, K. L., Dalal, R. C. and Bishop, T. F.A. (2014). Spatial prediction of soil organic carbon stock using a linear model of coregionalisation. Geoderma, 230-231, 119-130. doi: 10.1016/j.geoderma.2014.04.016

Spatial prediction of soil organic carbon stock using a linear model of coregionalisation

2014

Journal Article

Impacts of fire on soil organic carbon stocks in a grazed semi-arid tropical Australian savanna: accounting for landscape variability

Allen, D. E., Bloesch, P. M., Cowley, R. A., Orton, T. G., Payne, J. E. and Dalal, R. C. (2014). Impacts of fire on soil organic carbon stocks in a grazed semi-arid tropical Australian savanna: accounting for landscape variability. Rangeland Journal, 36 (4), 359-369. doi: 10.1071/RJ14044

Impacts of fire on soil organic carbon stocks in a grazed semi-arid tropical Australian savanna: accounting for landscape variability

2014

Journal Article

Temperature sensitivity and carbon release in an acidic soil amended with lime and mulch

Ahmad, Waqar, Singh, Balwant, Dijkstra, Feike A., Dalal, Ram C. and Geelan-Small, Peter (2014). Temperature sensitivity and carbon release in an acidic soil amended with lime and mulch. Geoderma, 214-215, 168-176. doi: 10.1016/j.geoderma.2013.09.014

Temperature sensitivity and carbon release in an acidic soil amended with lime and mulch

2014

Conference Publication

Soil carbon change under exotic pine forests in the sub-tropics remeasured after 14 years - an excerpt from the reforestation in tropical and sub-tropical Australia project

Smith, Tim E., Lewis, Tom, Menzies, Neal W., Dalal, Ram C., Wehr, J. Bernhard, Swift, Scott A., Tindale, Neil, Bryant, Philippa, Verstraten, Luke, McDonald, Janet M., McKenna, Brigid A. and Simpson, John A. (2014). Soil carbon change under exotic pine forests in the sub-tropics remeasured after 14 years - an excerpt from the reforestation in tropical and sub-tropical Australia project. Soil Science 2014: National Soil Science Conference, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 23 - 27 November 2014. Warragul, VIC, Australia: Australian Society of Soil Science Incorporated.

Soil carbon change under exotic pine forests in the sub-tropics remeasured after 14 years - an excerpt from the reforestation in tropical and sub-tropical Australia project

2014

Conference Publication

Carbon biochemical fingerprints can outline the dynamics of soil organic matter as a natural capital

Hernandez-Soriano, Maria C., Dalal, Ram, Menzies, Neal and Kopittke, Peter (2014). Carbon biochemical fingerprints can outline the dynamics of soil organic matter as a natural capital. National Soil Science Conference, Melbourne, Australia, 23-27 November 2014. Warragul, VIC, Australia: Australian Society of Soil Science Incorporated.

Carbon biochemical fingerprints can outline the dynamics of soil organic matter as a natural capital

2014

Conference Publication

To evaluate the effect of green waste compost on nitrous oxide emissions from horticulture

Vaughan, S. M., Harper, S. M., Dalal, R. C. and Menzies, N. W. (2014). To evaluate the effect of green waste compost on nitrous oxide emissions from horticulture. Ist international symposium on organic matter management and compost use in horticulture, Adelaide, Australia, 4-7 April 2011. Leuven, Belgium: International Society for Horticultural Science. doi: 10.17660/actahortic.2014.1018.6

To evaluate the effect of green waste compost on nitrous oxide emissions from horticulture

2014

Conference Publication

Strategic tillage impacts on biological attributes of long term no-till soils in northern grain region of Australia

Liu, Hongwei, Rincon-Florez, Vivian, Dang, Yash, Crawford, Mark, Balzer, Anna, Bell, Mike, Ram, Dalal, Costa Carvalhais, Lilia and Schenk, Peer (2014). Strategic tillage impacts on biological attributes of long term no-till soils in northern grain region of Australia. Soil Science 2014: National Soil Science Conference, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 23-27 November, 2014. Warragul, VIC, Australia: Australian Society of Soil Science.

Strategic tillage impacts on biological attributes of long term no-till soils in northern grain region of Australia

2014

Conference Publication

Long‐term impact of land management: understanding carbon build‐up by linking biological functions to dissolved organic carbon fingerprint

Hernandez-Soriano, Maria C., Dalal, Ram C., Menzies, Neal W. and Kopittke, Peter M. (2014). Long‐term impact of land management: understanding carbon build‐up by linking biological functions to dissolved organic carbon fingerprint. 20WCSS: 20th World Congress of Soil Science, Jeju, South Korea, 8-13 June, 2014.

Long‐term impact of land management: understanding carbon build‐up by linking biological functions to dissolved organic carbon fingerprint

2014

Conference Publication

Strategic tillage did not affect soil microbial bioindicators in long-term no-till farming systems in vertosols from Queensland, Australia

Rincon-Florez, Vivian A., Carvalhais, Lilia C., Liu, Hongwei, Dang, Yash, Crawford, Mark, Balzer, Anna, Bell, Mike, Ram, Dalal and Schenk, Peer (2014). Strategic tillage did not affect soil microbial bioindicators in long-term no-till farming systems in vertosols from Queensland, Australia. Soil Science 2014: National Soil Science Conference, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 23-27 November 2014. Warragul, VIC, Australia: Australian Society of Soil Science.

Strategic tillage did not affect soil microbial bioindicators in long-term no-till farming systems in vertosols from Queensland, Australia

2013

Journal Article

What determines soil organic carbon stocks in the grazing lands of north-eastern Australia?

Allen, D. E., Pringle, M. J., Bray, S., Hall, T. J., O'Reagain, P. O., Phelps, D., Cobon, D. H., Bloesch, P. M. and Dalal, R. C. (2013). What determines soil organic carbon stocks in the grazing lands of north-eastern Australia?. Soil Research, 51 (7-8), 695-706. doi: 10.1071/SR13041

What determines soil organic carbon stocks in the grazing lands of north-eastern Australia?

2013

Journal Article

How useful are MIR predictions of total, particulate, humus, and resistant organic carbon for examining changes in soil carbon stocks in response to different crop management? A case study

Page, K. L., Dalal, R. C. and Dang, Y. P. (2013). How useful are MIR predictions of total, particulate, humus, and resistant organic carbon for examining changes in soil carbon stocks in response to different crop management? A case study. Soil Research, 51 (8), 719-725. doi: 10.1071/SR13064

How useful are MIR predictions of total, particulate, humus, and resistant organic carbon for examining changes in soil carbon stocks in response to different crop management? A case study

2013

Journal Article

Turnover of organic carbon and nitrogen in soil assessed from δ13C and δ15N changes under pasture and cropping practices and estimates of greenhouse gas emissions

Dalal, Ram C., Thornton, Craig M. and Cowie, Bruce A. (2013). Turnover of organic carbon and nitrogen in soil assessed from δ13C and δ15N changes under pasture and cropping practices and estimates of greenhouse gas emissions. Science of the Total Environment, 465, 26-35. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.04.101

Turnover of organic carbon and nitrogen in soil assessed from δ13C and δ15N changes under pasture and cropping practices and estimates of greenhouse gas emissions

2013

Journal Article

Changes in total soil organic carbon stocks and carbon fractions in sugarcane systems as affected by tillage and trash management in Queensland, Australia

Page, K. L., Bell, M. J. and Dalal, R. C. (2013). Changes in total soil organic carbon stocks and carbon fractions in sugarcane systems as affected by tillage and trash management in Queensland, Australia. Soil Research, 51 (7-8), 608-614. doi: 10.1071/SR12255

Changes in total soil organic carbon stocks and carbon fractions in sugarcane systems as affected by tillage and trash management in Queensland, Australia

2013

Journal Article

How important is the quality of organic amendments in relation to mineral N availability in soils?

Mohanty, M., Sinha, Nishant K., Sammi Reddy, K., Chaudhary, R. S., Subba Rao, A., Dalal, R. C. and Menzies, N. W. (2013). How important is the quality of organic amendments in relation to mineral N availability in soils?. Agricultural Research, 2 (2), 99-110. doi: 10.1007/s40003-013-0052-z

How important is the quality of organic amendments in relation to mineral N availability in soils?

2013

Journal Article

Simulation of N2O emissions and mitigation options for rainfed wheat cropping on a Vertosol in the subtropics

Li, Yong, Wang, Weijin, Reeves, Steven and Dalal, Ram C. (2013). Simulation of N2O emissions and mitigation options for rainfed wheat cropping on a Vertosol in the subtropics. Soil Research, 51 (2), 152-166. doi: 10.1071/SR12274

Simulation of N2O emissions and mitigation options for rainfed wheat cropping on a Vertosol in the subtropics

2013

Journal Article

Impacts of conservation tillage on soil quality, including soil-borne crop diseases, with a focus on semi-arid grain cropping systems

Page, Kathryn, Dang, Yash and Dalal, Ram (2013). Impacts of conservation tillage on soil quality, including soil-borne crop diseases, with a focus on semi-arid grain cropping systems. Australasian Plant Pathology, 42 (3), 363-377. doi: 10.1007/s13313-013-0198-y

Impacts of conservation tillage on soil quality, including soil-borne crop diseases, with a focus on semi-arid grain cropping systems

2013

Journal Article

Brave new green world - Consequences of a carbon economy for the conservation of Australian biodiversity

Bradshaw, Corey J. A., Bowman, David M. J. S., Bond, Nick R., Murphy, Brett P., Moore, Andrew D., Fordham, Damien A., Thackway, Richard, Lawes, Michael J., McCallum, Hamish, Gregory, Stephen D., Dalal, Ram C., Boer, Matthias M., Lynch, A. Jasmyn J., Bradstock, Ross A., Brook, Barry W., Henry, Beverley K., Hunt, Leigh P., Fisher, Diana O., Hunter, David, Johnson, Christopher N., Keith, David A., Lefroy, Edward C., Penman, Trent D., Meyer, Wayne S., Thomson, James R., Thornton, Craig M., VanDerWal, Jeremy, Williams, Richard J., Keniger, Lucy and Specht, Alison (2013). Brave new green world - Consequences of a carbon economy for the conservation of Australian biodiversity. Biological Conservation, 161, 71-90. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2013.02.012

Brave new green world - Consequences of a carbon economy for the conservation of Australian biodiversity

Current funding

  • 2024 - 2027
    Role of nitrogen-rich compounds for increasing carbon sequestration in soil
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2024 - 2028
    Enhancing soil health and climate resilience in the Northern Territory
    Climate-Smart Agriculture Program ¿ Capacity Building
    Open grant
  • 2024 - 2027
    Mineral Biosequestration of Organic Carbon in Early Pedogenesis of Tailings
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2022 - 2025
    Phosphorus in soil used for long-term agriculture: Increasing efficiency and food production
    Soil Science Challenge
    Open grant

Past funding

  • 2022 - 2024
    Improving the drought resilience of Queensland cropping soils by removing barriers to the identification and management of soil constraints
    Future Drought Fund: Drought Resilient Soils and Landscapes Grants
    Open grant
  • 2021 - 2023
    Carbon ID: A remote sensing decision support tool to identify the impact of agricultural land management on soil carbon stock
    Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
    Open grant
  • 2020 - 2024
    Breaking critical barriers in soil formation of bauxite residues
    ARC Linkage Projects
    Open grant
  • 2018 - 2022
    Economics of ameliorating soil constraints in the Northern Region: Spatial soil constraint diagnoses in the northern region (Project A)
    Grains Research & Development Corporation
    Open grant

Availability

Adjunct Professor Ram Dalal AM is:
Available for supervision

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Available projects

  • Sustainable and resilient farming systems intensification in the eastern Gangetic plains

    The overall aim of the project is to reduce poverty in the eastern Gangetic plains by improving the productivity, profitability and sustainability of smallholder agriculture.

    The project has four objectives that will lead towards sustainable and resilient farming systems intensification in the EGP:

    1. Understand farmer circumstances with respect to cropping systems, natural and economic resources base, livelihood strategies, and capacity to bear risk and undertake technological innovation.

    2. Develop, with farmers more productive and sustainable technologies that are resilient and profitable for smallholders.

    3. Catalyse, support and evaluate institutional and policy changes that establish an enabling environment for the adoption of high-impact technologies from Objective 2.

    4. Facilitate widespread adoption of sustainable, resilient and more profitable farming systems.

Supervision history

Current supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Understanding the mechanisms of general disease suppressiveness in organic fields

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Peter Kopittke

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Mechanisms driving the persistence of soil organic matter

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Peter Kopittke

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Exploring the influence of long-term land use change on the chemical speciation of C, S and P in SOM fractions isolated using density and physical fractionation

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Brigid McKenna, Dr Tim McLaren, Professor Peter Kopittke

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Understanding the mechanisms of general disease suppressiveness in organic fields

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Peter Kopittke

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Ameliorating soil constraints using inorganic and organic amendments under rainfed conditions

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Bernhard Wehr, Dr Yash Dang

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Dynamics of Soil Organic Matter: Storage, Composition, and Responses to Land Use Change

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Han Weng, Professor Peter Kopittke

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Understanding the mechanisms of general disease suppressiveness in organic fields

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Peter Kopittke

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Dynamics of Soil Organic Matter: Storage, Composition, and Responses to Land Use Change

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Han Weng, Professor Peter Kopittke

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Organic matter decomposition and turnover in rhizobiomes of bauxite residue technosols

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Longbin Huang, Dr Fang You

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Ameliorating soil constraints using inorganic and organic amendments under rainfed conditions

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Bernhard Wehr, Dr Yash Dang

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Understanding the mechanisms of general disease suppressiveness in organic fields

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Peter Kopittke

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Investigating the Impact of Fungal Activity on Soil Carbon Dynamics - Tracing Carbon Fluxes Across Plant-Fungi-Mineral Networks

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Vijaya Singh

Completed supervision

Enquiries

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