28 August 2020
At the 27 August 2020 Ordinary Meeting, Council endorsed the criteria for an expression of interest based funding round as part of Council’s Australian Government funded exclusion fencing project.
Council was successful in its application for one million dollars through round 1 of the Australian Government’s Communities Combating Pests and Weed Impacts During Drought Program for the project ‘Exclusion fencing for a sustainable sheep and wool industry in the Southern Downs Region of Queensland’. This is in addition to the $700,000 Council secured via round 3 of the Queensland Feral Pest initiative (QFPI3) and the $260,000 since secured through round 2 of the Australian Government’s Communities Combating Pests and Weed Impacts During Drought Program.
Council’s successful round 1 project comprises the following components:
· Increase the subsidy of the funding for cluster fencing received via round 3 of the QFPI3
· Provide a landholder subsidy for exclusion fencing outside the established clusters,
· Upgrade sections of the Darling Downs-Moreton Rabbit Board rabbit fence that forms part of the Karara and Silverdale Clusters to dog height,
· Capacity building activities for landholders,
· Develop a monitoring system to evaluate the social, economic and environmental outcomes of the exclusion fencing in that area, and
· One aerial baiting campaign.
Council will administer the landholder subsidy for exclusion fencing outside the established clusters component of the project via an expression of interest process. Council endorsed the eligibility criteria upon which applications will be assessed at the 27 August Ordinary Meeting.
Councillor for Environmental, Waste, Sustainability and Disaster Management Cameron Gow said, “We anticipate there will be significant interest from landholders in accessing the subsidy, so it is important we have equitable criteria in place by which to allocate the funding”.
The criteria state that to be eligible, applicants must be either currently running sheep, or demonstrate a plan to return to sheep in the future. This strategy is aimed at protecting and enhancing the viability of the sheep and wool industry in the Southern Downs. Sheep and wool production requires more labour inputs than cattle farming and the flow on effects to the local economy from more jobs is significant.
“Wild dogs have seen people move out of sheep and into cattle over the past 10 years, particularly in the Traprock region which is very well suited to sheep and wool production. Increasing the region’s flock generates economic benefits felt across the whole region. It is in everyone’s best interest to see sheep return to the Traprock.
A steering committee was established to guide the project. Chaired by Councillor Gow, it includes Council pest management and economic development officers, local landholders representing Cluster groups, the Southern Downs Region Wild Dog Management Working Group, and Biosecurity Queensland’s State Wild Dog Coordinator. Expressions of interest will be called by Council soon and assessed by the steering committee.
For more information on Council news, visit www.sdrc.qld.gov.au/news. Alternatively, call 1300 MY SDRC (1300 697 372), email mail@sdrc.qld.gov.au, or use the MySDRC app.