Graziers, government representatives and NQ Dry Tropics met at Turrawulla Station to discuss the detail of the reef regulations that came into force on December 1 and vegetation management laws. Pictured are (from left): Mick Comerford from Exmoor Station, Kari Paton from DNRME in Emerald,  Keri Barden from DNRME in Mackay and Buster O’Loughlin from Exevale Station.

Burdekin graziers first with new reef protection regulations

“Champ” takes his job as overseer at Turrawalla Station in his stride.

Graziers in the Burdekin will be the first required to meet the Queensland Government’s new minimum practice agricultural standards for beef cattle grazing which started on 1 December, 2020.

Under the Reef protection regulations, graziers need to take action to improve land condition and ground cover on areas of grazing land with less than 50 per cent ground cover (measured on 30 September each year).

There are four standard conditions graziers must meet ([wd_hustle id=”55″ type=”slidein”]Click to see pull out box[/wd_hustle]), but it’s up to them what action is taken.

The standard conditions do not mandate stocking rates or a land management plan. It’s also recognised that it may be impractical and cost prohibitive to fully rehabilitate some areas of very degraded land but steps must be taken to prevent these areas from further expanding or getting worse.

The minimum practice agricultural standards for grazing aim to keep soil and nutrients on the property rather than ending up in local waterways.

Burdekin graziers can access a range of programs and support tools including the Grazing Resilience and Sustainable Solutions (GRASS) program which provides one-on-one support to develop and implement a tailor-made action plan for land management.

Senior Grazing Field Officer Josh Nicholls manages the GRASS program for NQ Dry Tropics and can be contacted by email (josh.nicholls@nqdrytropics.com.au) or phone (0428 790 764)

The action plan provides the latest tools and information to help identify, improve and maintain areas of poor (C), or degraded (D) land condition with a specific focus on improving ground cover and reducing soil loss.

Landholders may also be eligible to apply for incentive funding for works identified in their plan such as small-to-medium scale gully remediation, new watering points and fencing.

The program is funded through the Queensland Government’s Reef Water Quality Program and, in the Burdekin catchment, is delivered by NQ Dry Tropics.

One of the benefits of being involved in recognised accreditation programs and acknowledged practice change project, such as GRASS, is that participants have the option to be considered a lower priority for compliance inspections under the reef protection regulations.

Another program available to eligible graziers is the Queensland Government Farming in Reef Catchments Rebate Scheme through which landholders can get a rebate of up to $1000 to help offset the costs of obtaining professional and agronomic advice about managing nutrient and sediment run-off. Advice must be obtained from an Accredited Agricultural Adviser registered by the Queensland Rural Industry Development Authority.

For more information about the regulations and to order a grazing information pack, visit www.qld.gov.au/ReefRegulations and click on the grazing section or phone 13 QGOV (13 74 68).