FEDERAL Opposition Leader Tony Abbott’s challenge to Queensland’s controversial Wild Rivers legislation comes as graziers look down the barrel of restrictions to their existing good management practices, says AgForce.
AgForce water spokesman Ian Burnett said graziers in Cape York and the channel country in north-west Queensland were calling for a sustainable approach to managing the rivers ear-marked for Wild Rivers status, to recognise their economic and social values, as well as their environmental status.
"Although AgForce acknowledges the need for a sustainable approach to managing iconic rivers, we do not endorse the regulatory-based framework of the Wild Rivers Act as it represents another conservation-based piece of legislation which does not recognise the existing good management of landholders," Mr Burnett said.
"Mr Abbott’s proposed private member’s bill to strike down the Wild Rivers legislation is in recognition of the problems created for indigenous communities on the Cape – but graziers also have real concerns about the security of their enterprises if the current proposed law goes ahead.
"It is ironic that producers are facing regulations over the same management practices which they have had in place for generations – sustainable practices which have preserved the pristine conditions of these rivers."
AgForce joined forces with the Remote Area Planning and Development (RAPAD) board to present a submission to the State Government in December raising concerns about proposed Wild Rivers declarations over the Georgina, Diamantina and Coopers Creek systems in the Lake Eyre Basin.
"Given the controversial nature of the proposed legislation and the timeframes facing graziers with the draft code expect in mid-2010, we are calling on the Minister for Natural Resources Stephen Robertson to give a prompt response to our submission," Mr Burnett said.
Mr Burnett said graziers do not want to see change in how they currently operate their enterprises in relation to the floodplains, and are seeking clarification that Wild Rivers legislation will not undermine the security of Property Maps of Assessable Vegetation (PMAVs).
AgForce presented landholders’ concerns to Premier Anna Bligh at the Barcaldine/Longreach Community Cabinet in November and Mr Burnett said it was encouraging to receive a letter from the Premier in December, confirming the Wild Rivers declaration would not override an existing PMAV.
AgForce has a long-standing policy to oppose Wild Rivers following the introduction of the legislation in 2005. Although AgForce supports the need for a balanced approach toward the management of river systems, the current legislation fails to take into account ecologically sustainable development.
"It is the good management of graziers over many generations which have positioned these rivers to be identified as Wild Rivers, so the emphasis must be on an industry-led sustainable policy approach rather than a regulatory-based framework," Mr Burnett said.
* AgForce is hosting information sessions on the proposed Wild Rivers at Barcaldine on February 1; Tambo on February 2; Isisford on February 3; Yaraka on February 4; and Eromanga on February 5.
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