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Abstract
Economic losses and costs associated with weeds in dryland cotton production are
important, both for growers and for industry bodies when making decisions about
research priorities and research and development funding. A survey was conducted to
provide information on weed types, control strategies and estimated costs to growers.
We used information from the survey to estimate conventional financial losses due to
weeds, and as a basis for evaluating aggregate economic (society) impacts. An
economic surplus model was used to estimate the aggregate societal impact of weeds
for three production regions in north-eastern Australia. The annual economic costs
associated with weeds were estimated to be $41 million, and the on-farm financial
costs were $25 million. While these are past (sunk) costs, and based on a total
removal of weeds, the approach outlined here can be used to begin evaluating likely
future returns from technologies or management improvements for different
agricultural problems.