SORELY-NEEDED improvements to SA's Dog Fence have progressed closer to becoming a reality, with the federal government allocating $10 million towards the $25m total repair bill.
While this is a pleasing step, it could mean little if - as the polls widely suggest - Labor claims victory and elects to make changes to the Drought Future Fund.
In my opinion, there's not enough recognition of how important and valuable this piece of infrastructure is.
The vision shown by those who built the early sections of the fence, and again by those who connected it all together is remarkable. It's the type of large-scale project that seems increasingly difficult to get off the ground today.
With 1600 kilometres of the fence more than 100 years old, the need for repairs can hardly be viewed as unexpected. Producers have been warning of increasing dog numbers and lamb losses for years, and the situation became glaringly obvious with the release of BDO EconSearch's report declaring a $25m investment could deliver up to $120.3m in economic benefit.
I would argue that a funding pledge shouldn't have had to wait until the middle of an election campaign, but rather should have been guaranteed in or before the federal budget.
Should it win office, Labor has plenty of reasons to ensure repairs to the Dog Fence happen promptly and properly.
It plans to ban live sheep exports to improve animal welfare outcomes, but I ask - what better way to deliver improved animal welfare outcomes than to keep wild dogs out of sheep-producing areas?
Let's also not forget we are in the middle of a national flock rebuilding phase - which has been further slowed by the drought - making maximising lamb survival rates even more important.
Time is of the essence. It's great that government-funded trappers are once again operational, but the fence is our most important weapon in the fight against wild dogs. The longer parts of the structure are left in a weakened state, the harder it will be to get rid of dogs south of the fence.
Graziers in the pastoral and northern agricultural areas have greatly reduced their flocks and spent thousands on supplementary feed to make it through the drought.
They cannot afford to have their sheep left at the mercy of canine predators any longer.
