Soil Water Infiltration Rate
Benchmark Value
Scoring Curve
This curve shows how a field measurement for this indicator would score across all available benchmark forms in this context. The scoring engine uses 11 benchmarks together — the OptimalRange form drives the primary score, while 10 guard(s) constrain the result.
Evidence & Context
An Optimal Range for SWIR in this context is proposed as 50 - 100 mm/hr, with the potential for rates to be even higher, approaching the natural saturation limits for specific soil types under excellent management.
Soil Water Infiltration Rate (SWIR) is the soil's capacity to absorb and transmit water from the surface through the soil profile.
This benchmark defines the optimal soil water infiltration rate range of 50 to 100 mm/hr reflecting excellent soil structure and hydrological function achievable under best management in temperate dry woodlands and native grasslands of Australia.
The optimal range is supported by observed rates in well-structured agricultural soils and studies showing rates up to 115 mm/hr under conservation tillage and full cover.
Sources (3)
Effects of crop and pasture rotations and surface cover on rainfall infiltration on a Kandosol in south-west Queensland - ResearchGate
View SourceHealthy soils and water infiltration in the paddock - Local Land Services - NSW Government
View Source
Comparing infiltration rates in soils managed with conventional and alternative farming methods: A meta-analysis
View SourceSupporting Sources (2)
Additional references from the underlying research that informed this benchmark.
Farming for the future: optimising soil health for a sustainable future in Australian broadacre cropping - Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC)
View SourceSoil Structural Decline - Can the Trend be Reversed? - Agronomy Australia Proceedings
View Source