Walcha Council general manager Jack O’Hara said he fully supports the request by the Member for Northern Tablelands Adam Marshall to the Regional Assistance Advisory committee, to visit the region urgently and assess the worsening drought conditions.
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“We think the committee should come to our area and see the devastating impact the drought in Walcha is having,” he said. “I would like to see our primary producers receive an assistance package similar to the one recently given to primary producers in the Bourke, Brewarrina and Walgett.”
The advisory committee will begin a tour of western NSW regions later this month and Mr Marshall said he’d written to Primary Industries Minister Katrina Hodgkinson last week requesting that they visit the Northern Tablelands to assess the deteriorating situation first-hand.
“Under the new approach from the federal and state governments to drought management, the advisory committee reports to the minister and makes recommendations on a region’s seasonal conditions and programs for farm business, farm family and community support,” Mr Marshall said.
He said the past few months had been a very trying period for primary producers in the region.
“The extreme weather conditions of the past month, the high temperatures along with hot winds have brought on some of the worst conditions farmers in this region have experienced in a long time,” he said.
“Dams and water courses are drying up and graziers buying supplementary feed such hay and cotton seed have been paying premium prices.
“There is a limit to what they can do and are calling out for some support.”
Mr Marshall said he had also spoken with the Northern Tablelands Local Lands Service (LLS), which has been inundated with requests from landholders to graze stock within road and public reserves throughout the region.
“I’m pleased that the LLS is also supporting my request for the advisory committee to visit the Tablelands,” he said.
“Unfortunately, we can’t make it rain but we may be able to ease the burden in some way and this begins with an assessment of the conditions by the Regional Assistance Advisory Committee.”
The Regional Assistance Advisory Committee is an independent committee tasked with providing advice on the vulnerability of rural communities to climate-related downturns, and advice on potential farm business, farm family and community support response programs and initiatives direct to the NSW government.
The committee will also oversee the preparation of the regional seasonal conditions reports that replace the system of State drought declarations. The condition reports will be a more strategic and sophisticated advisory tool that focuses on farm management preparedness and resilience.
Terms of reference for the advisory committee are:
* To provide feedback to the minister on when and where adverse climatic conditions are significantly increasing the vulnerability of rural communities or specific groups within those communities;
* To review existing government programs (state and federal) and provide advice to the minister on suggested changes; and
* To advise on potential farm business, farm family and rural community response programs and initiatives, their relative priority and the timing of their introduction and withdrawal, for consideration by the NSW government.
