GRAIN producers keen to grow genetically-modified crops had reason to celebrate this week, with the state government announcing it had reached a deal with the opposition to pass its legislation to lift the GM moratorium on mainland SA.
The agreement helped break a stalemate between the government and The Greens MLC Mark Parnell, who moved successful disallowance motions every time the Liberals introduced regulations lifting the ban.
I can understand why neither side would give up - despite having opposite viewpoints on GM crops, both Primary Industries Minister Tim Whetstone and Mr Parnell are passionate about the issue.
Related reading: GM legislation expected to pass within weeks
But, this passion and determination created a situation that was bordering on the ridiculous, where the ban was lifted and then reinstated several times in a matter of months. What was legal one day could be illegal the next.
Those on both sides of the debate had no clarity about the path forward. For those keen to see the ban scrapped, a positive outcome had remained out of reach, despite appearing tantalisingly close for eight months.
While nothing is certain until the legislation is assented to by the Governor, who would have imagined it would be Labor that proved instrumental in helping break the deadlock? After all, it so passionately supported and maintained the moratorium for 14 years while in government.
As part of the deal, local councils will have six months to apply to maintain the moratorium in their municipalities, with the final decision resting with Mr Whetstone.
What will it mean for farmers with properties across council boundaries?
It'll be very interesting to see how this plays out. Given we couldn't achieve a consensus at a state parliament level, how on earth will we achieve one at each regional council across the state?
I'm left wondering whose opinions will be taken on board during the decision-making process? How will councils evaluate the economic impacts of being GM-free? Will farmers in councils where cropping or broadacre agriculture is less dominant be at a disadvantage? What will it mean for farmers with properties across council boundaries?
Many farmers dislike seeing decisions about what they can and cannot grow on their farms being made not in their paddocks, but in Parliament House. I wonder how these farmers will feel about the power shifting to the local council chambers.
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