When a major supermarket announces plans to sell “deforestation-free beef”, you know concerns about land clearing are starting to hit home.
The latest NSW Biodiversity Outlook Report, published earlier this year, shows 50 million trees and 100,000 hectares are lost across the state each year.
The NSW government is reviewing the state’s Biodiversity Conservation Act and the biodiversity offsets scheme, but some farmers are already making money while protecting the environment.
Taking biodiversity to the bank
Greg Rummery is a farmer with properties around Walgett in northern NSW.
As an agronomist, Greg Rummery advises some farmers in his region to apply for Biodiversity Trust payments. (Supplied: Greg Rummery)
He signed a Biodiversity Trust agreement four years ago and receives annual payments of about $22,000 to protect a corridor along the Namoi River on his 1,000-hectare property.
“The riverine corridors are a pretty important part of the landscape in terms of vegetation and vegetation diversity and biodiversity where the water courses are, which are the life and blood of the landscape,” Mr Rummery said.
Also an agronomist, Mr Rummery has been working with other landholders to significantly expand the area under protection in the district.
Mr Rummery signed a Biodiversity Trust agreement four years ago to protect this river corridor. (Supplied: Greg Rummery)
“[They earn] payments that are big enough on an individual basis that would allow perhaps mum and dad to start planning their retirement,” he said.
But Mr Rummery said other factors behind why species were going extinct had to be addressed.
“It’s not all about landholders changing land use,” he said.
“Look at the two biggest culprits and we’ve done nothing about them in the last 30 years … feral cats and foxes.”
Ecologist James Lidsey and conservation officer Jodie Cooper identify species on a property at Sussex Inlet. (Supplied: Colin Elphick/NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust)
In the south of the state, Clare Cannon from Woomargama Station at Holbrook is using what she calls “natural capital” to attract premium prices for her wool.
Rather than selling at wool auctions, she has a contract with the ZQ Merino Fibre Accreditation and Supply Program, which markets to international textile buyers with a focus on high animal welfare and environmental sustainability.
“Depending on the wool price at the time, it can be up to a 30 per cent premium,” she said.
Clare Cannon receives premiums for her wool. (Supplied: Clare Cannon)
They have a third of the property under covenant with the Biodiversity Conservation Trust, protecting critically endangered grassy box woodland that was once widespread with only 5 per cent left in southern Australia.
“It certainly gives our farm and brand a point of difference,” Ms Cannon said.
North of Jerilderie, Owen and Helen Huggins have put 1,600ha into conservation agreements with the Biodiversity Conservation Trust.
“Accreditation leads to some good premium markets towards the top end of the market with our wool and cattle … that adds substantially to the bottom line,” Mr Huggins said.
“It’s a great joy to go out and see really good regeneration … what we’re really seeing is a wonderful return of the best of the native species.”
$7b a year to repair environment
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, about 60 per cent of the continent is owned or managed privately by farmers, mining companies or governments.
The Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists said those groups must play a role in reversing habitat loss and repairing the landscapes they manage.
But addressing the problem could be mind-bogglingly expensive.
The group has estimated the cost of repairing the damage done over the past two centuries at $7.3 billion a year for 30 years.
Jamie Pittock says with work the environment could improve but it will cost $7 billion a year. (ABC Canberra: Michael Black)
Professor Jamie Pittock, ANU scientist and member of the Wentworth Group, said a 10-fold increase in funding was needed.
“All the trends for Australia’s environment unfortunately are negative, and we need urgent action to turn that around,” he said.
Professor Pittock wants to stop land clearing in marginal farming areas, encourage farmers to protect biodiversity and address environmental degradation.
He has called for more funding to be directed towards things like addressing soil acidification and structural decline.
The Wentworth Group of Scientists estimate the cost of reversing the environmental decline in Australia at $7 billion a year. (Supplied: Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists)
‘Locking up’ land flawed policy
Not everyone is on board with the current strategies, including NSW Farmers board member Oscar Pearse.
“There are a number of farmers’ association members who have got pretty good incomes from long-term land management agreements which are commercially based,” he said.
“That said, we have a problem in that non-farming sectors that need offsets and need to buy those biodiversity credits are often getting too cheap a deal.
“They’re calling for it to be cheaper, but we as farmers know how much it costs, how much effort has to go in to maintaining biodiversity.”
Mr Pearse said simply “locking up” land was a flawed policy.
“If you lock it up … it becomes a haven for feral animals and pests and weeds and you end up with a net biodiversity decline,” he said.
