September 11, 2023
A workshop to review the progress of Regional Drought Resilience Planning in the Burnett region was held in Kingaroy last week.
The get-together, led by a team from the University of Southern Queensland, followed a six-month series of one-on-one interviews collecting evidence from producers, regional stakeholders, local councils and other organisations.
Representatives from producer groups, local organisations and other community members attended the meeting at the South Burnett Enterprise Centre.
The long-term aim is to develop a plan, specific to the Burnett, which will help the region better prepare for future droughts.
Dr Robert Mellor, from the Rural Economies Centre of Excellence, said Regional Drought Resilience Planning was a Commonwealth Government-funded initiative occurring in every State and Territory.
These plans would include specific, concrete actions for regions to become more drought resilient.
Dr Mellor said the government’s aim was to move resources from “drought relief” (ie. after the event) to investing in “preparation and resilience” (ie. before droughts occur).
(The Rural Economies Centre of Excellence is a joint initiative of the University of Southern Queensland, University of Queensland, Central Queensland University and James Cook University with funding from the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.)
The planning has a focus on the agricultural sector, but also wants to create “drought-resilient communities” as well as individuals.
This covers everything from infrastructure improvements to the economic effects of drought, and mental health.
“What initiatives will help small businesses to stay open during droughts?” Dr Mellor said.
The planning also hopes to draw on traditional First Nations’ knowledge.
“We will be proceeding towards a draft by the end of the year and hope to have it finalised by late March next year,” Dr Mellor said.
