Funding essential for pastoral act success

The event, jointly hosted by Rural Media & Communicators SA/NT and the Royal Geographical Society of SA in Adelaide on Friday night, brought together a number of stakeholder representatives. The government was invited but was not present.

In a video at the start of the forum, Primary Industries Minister David Basham said no final decision on the draft bill had been made, with feedback being considered.

Livestock SA president Joe Keynes said the existing Pastoral Land Management and Conservation Act 1989 was failing to meet the needs of those living in the area, particularly when it came to the timing of land condition assessments.

"It needs to be adequately funded, that's key," he said.

Nature Conservation Society of SA president Patrick O'Connor said the draft bill was a government attempt to "cover up" for inadequate resources in the rangelands.

Opposition deputy leader and environment and water spokesperson Susan Close said she also had to take some responsibility as a member of the previous government.

"This is not an area that should be underfunded - it's 40 per cent of (SA)," she said.

Pastoralist and long-serving Pastoral Board member Michael McBride said resources were critical and "an act is only as good as what is put into it".

Following the event, Mr Basham's office did not address Stock Journal's questions relating to the adequacy of funding.

While Dr Close said Labor was waiting to see the final bill to decide how it would vote, she questioned the need for a new act and expressed concern about several proposed changes, including going from 42-year to 100-year leases.

"Why are we effectively giving that land away? One hundred years is as close as we can get to freeholding, without freeholding," she said.

Dr Close also questioned how the draft bill would interact with existing legislation, including the Landscapes SA Act 2019.

Mr O'Connor said the decision to remove conservation from the act title was just one example of a draft bill that "seeks to disenfranchise other people".

"It pushes the pastoral outcomes as a priority over conservation values and all the other avenues that come to play, including traditional owner rights and tourism opportunities," he said.

"The 42-years and 14-year renewal is not by accident - you can't just increase it and hope for the best. The settings as they are now motivate good management."

Mr Keynes said the 100-year lease was "not without precedent" and would provide greater surety in dealings with banks and other institutions.

"The 100 years is not a shut and forget, it's actually enhancing the ability to make a living and the ongoing monitoring will be enhanced as well," he said.

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Concerns about a lack of consultation with Indigenous groups were also raised.

Panellist Joshua Haynes, who serves as SA Native Title Services deputy chair, said traditional owners had little contact on this matter.

"Unfortunately we weren't really consulted in this whole area," he said. "We're not opposed and not fighting agricultural pastoral - we've always been hand-in-hand and are going to remain that way in the future."

But the government said as a pastoral lease holder, the Adnyamathanha Traditional Lands Association had been engaged at each step of the process.

"The state government has undertaken significant consultation, including with native title holders, and we continue to assess submissions before coming to a final position," Mr Basham said.

With tourism playing an increasing role in the region, William Creek Hotel owner and WrightsAir operator Trevor Wright expressed concern the draft bill had little recognition of the industry.

"We're going to see increased revenue and direct employment," he said.

But he said this needed to be catered for with increased maintenance of public access routes and amenities.

Mr Basham said the draft legislation was "aimed at supporting the continued economic growth of the state's pastoral industry, while ensuring the sustainable conservation of the rangelands for future generations".

"Feedback from stakeholders showed clear demand and support for greater flexibility under the bill to allow appropriate alternative land-uses which are complementary to pastoralism and would boost enterprise profitability," he said.