August 28, 2018
AgForce has hit back at a State Government media statement on Tuesday which said mulga pushing claims were “myths”.
General President Grant Maudsley said the statement was misleading.
The farming lobby group said the State Government’s vegetation management laws had made it more complicated and difficult for farmers to feed their animals during drought.
“The tightening of the fodder harvesting code and the removal of the thinning code have meant more red tape for farmers to navigate and made it more difficult to grow grass to feed livestock,” Mr Maudsley said.
“The area that farmers can harvest each time for fodder has been limited and may only last a few days or a week or two, while the width of the mulga strips farmers can push has reduced significantly.
“This means farmers have to notify much more frequently and keep a lot more photographic evidence of what they are doing and when.
“The Queensland Government’s mapping continues to be wildly inaccurate, complex and constantly changing, meaning farmers can’t plan with any certainty or confidence.
“The new regulatory hoops farmers have to jump through are just not practical and workable on the ground.
“The whole process is much more time-consuming and complicated at a time when drought-stricken farmers are working around the clock just to keep their stock alive.
“While the Minister issues misleading media releases from his office in downtown Brisbane, the reality facing farmers trying to manage their land and look after their livestock in western Queensland is vastly different.”
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On Thursday, Agriculture Minister David Littleproud has called for the State Government to clear up the confusion around its land clearing laws or face a possible Federal Senate Inquiry into vegetation management laws
“Farmers in western Queensland have pushed mulga to use as a feed source for stock during drought for generations,” Mr Littleproud said.
“Now they tell me they’ve had a third of that feed source cut during this drought by the Queensland Labor Government.
“Losing that much input would hurt any business in any industry.
“Queensland Minister Anthony Lynham tells me this is incorrect and I take him at face value.
“If this is the case, then I ask him to take Jackie Trad the real architect of these laws and Premier Palaszczuk to go out and sit at farmers’ kitchen tables and explain it to them.
“Tell them they’ve nothing to fear from feeding mulga scrub to their stock. Talk to them face-to-face.
“If Queensland farmers can continue to farm the way they have for generations then fantastic, tell them about it.
“If the Queensland Government doesn’t go and clear up the confusion, the Federal Senate could possibly set up an inquiry into Queensland’s vegetation laws.
“I’d much prefer that didn’t need to happen.”
- Related article: MP Targets Mulga ‘Myth’
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