Paul Nelson

paul.nelson@jcu.edu.au
Professor, Promotional Chair

Projects

13

Publications

140

Awards

0

Contact Details

Soil Scientist

+61 7 4232 1375
paul.nelson@jcu.edu.au
JCU Nguma-bada campus, Cairns
MacGregor Road, Smithfield Qld 4878, Australia

Biography

Paul Nelson is a soil scientist interested in how human management and natural processes influence the sustainability and environmental impacts of agriculture, including productivity, soil condition, water quality and greenhouse gas emissions.

His recently published synthesis 'Sustainable management of soil in tropical agriculture' (2023, in Jayaraman, Dalal & Lal (Eds.) Sustainable Soil Management – Beyond Food Production. Cambridge Scholars Publishing) is available on request.

Research

Research Interests

- Carbon sequestration in agricultural soils, particularly through enhanced rock weathering
- Effects of agricultural management practices on soil biota
- Effects of rangeland management on soil functions
- Modelling soil biogeochemical processes and crop systems

Projects

Carbon dioxide removal through the enhanced weathering of basalt in acidic soils under sugarcane

01 Feb 2025 - 01 Feb 2028

Carbon dioxide removal through the enhanced weathering of basalt in acidic soils under sugarcane

01 Feb 2025 - 01 Feb 2028

Rejuvenating agricultural soils to enhance productivity, resilience and carbon sequestration

15 Oct 2024 - 31 Mar 2028

Improving land condition across Southern Gulf rangelands to build resilience to variable and extreme climate

01 Jul 2024 - 30 Jun 2028

Enhanced weathering for carbon dioxide removal under tropical soil conditions

01 Jul 2024 - 30 Dec 2027

Carbon sequestration via enhanced weathering of basalt applied to dry tropical rangeland

03 Jun 2024 - 02 Jun 2028

Rehabilitating Bare Ground in the Southern Gulf Region to Improve Drought Resilience (Old ID 27902)

20 Jan 2023 - 30 Jun 2024

Optimising mill mud and ash applications for soil improvement and carbon sequestration (Old ID 27540)

01 Apr 2022 - 01 Feb 2026

Improving the quality of water for release from land-based aquaculture in northern Australia (Old ID 26373)

01 Apr 2019 - 31 Mar 2020

Sequestering carbon and improving sugarcane productivity by enhanced weathering of basalt (Old ID 23432)

01 Jun 2017 - 31 May 2026

Activity 2.6 (Banana soil physico-chemical properties) of 'Fusarium wilt Tropical Race 4 Research program (BA14014)' (Old ID 22760)

30 May 2016 - 01 Jun 2020

Strengthening Livelihoods for Food Security Amongst Cocoa and Oil Palm Farming Communities in Papua New Guinea (Old ID 21641)

01 Jul 2014 - 28 Feb 2019

Validation of Greenhouse Gas Reduction Methods in Banana and Mango Tree Crops Across Tropical Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia (Old ID 21116)

01 Jul 2013 - 30 Apr 2017

Teaching

Teaching Interests

Soil matters: it is the most biologically diverse and active part of the earth, where minerals, water, air and living things interact in complex and fascinating ways that are critical for human well-being and ecosystem functioning. Having a good grasp of soil properties and processes is invaluable for graduates in environmental science and management.

Current JCU Research Students

Comprehensive understanding of Hydrological response of typical forest and agricultural catchments over dry-wet and wet-dry change process in Northern Queensland, Australia, through combining high-frequency multi-source Hydrometric, Hydrochemical and Isotopic monitoring

Doctor of Philosophy (Agriculture, Environmental and Related Studies)

Evaluating the impact of proposed development on ecosystem services in the Gilbert River catchment, North-east Queensland, Australia

Doctor of Philosophy (Agriculture, Environmental and Related Studies)

Carbon dioxide removal through the enhanced weathering of basalt in acidic soils

Doctor of Philosophy (Agriculture, Environmental and Related Studies)

Effects of sugarcane mill mud and ash on soil properties and processes including inorganic and organic carbon sequestration

Doctor of Philosophy (Agriculture, Environmental and Related Studies)

Activities

Employment

Senior Lecturer - Professor, James Cook University

2010 - 2025

Lecturer/Senior Lecturer (50%), James Cook University

2004 - 2009

Senior Scientist (50%), Department of Natural Resources and Mines

2004 - 2009

Senior Agronomist, PNG Oil Palm Research Association

2001 - 2003

Research Scientist, CSIRO

1999 - 2001

Research Officer, BSES/CRC Sugar

1997 - 1999

PhD candidate, University of Adelaide

1993 - 1996

Research Officer, INRA

1991 - 1992

Technical Officer, Swedish Uni of Agricultural Sciences

1991 - 1991

Research Officer, Australian Centre for Water Treatment and Water Quality Research

1987 - 1990

Output

Sustainable Management of Soil in Oil Palm Plantings: Proceedings of a Workshop held in Medan, Indonesia, 7–8 November 2013

2015

Webb, Michael J.; Nelson, Paul N.; Bessou, Cécile; Caliman, Jean-Pierre; Sutarta, Edy S. (2015) Sust. Can...

Other Publication ResearchOnline@JCU

Carbon dioxide removal via weathering of sugarcane mill ash under different soil conditions

2024

Green, Hannah; Larsen, Peter; Liu, Yang; Nelson, Paul (2024) 'Carbon dioxide removal via weathering . Applied Geochemistry, 165 . [DOI] ...

Journal Publication Open Access ResearchOnline@JCU

Sugarcane cultivation altered soil nitrogen cycling microbial processes and decreased nitrogen bioavailability in tropical Australia

2024

Rezaei Rashti, Mehran; Nelson, Paul; Lan, Zhongming; Su, Ninghu; Esfandbod, Maryam; Liu, Xiangyu; Go...

Journal Publication Open Access ResearchOnline@JCU

In-field carbon dioxide removal via weathering of crushed basalt applied to acidic tropical agricultural soil

2024

Holden, Fredrick J.; Davies, Kalu; Bird, Michael I.; Hume, Ruby; Green, Hannah; Beerling, David J.; ...

Journal Publication Open Access ResearchOnline@JCU

Long-term effects of gypsum on the chemistry of sodic soils

2023

Green, Hannah; Larsen, Peter; Koci, Jack; Edwards, Will; Nelson, Paul (2023) 'Long-term effects of g. Soil and Tillage Res, 233 . [DOI] ...