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Victoria farmers say government leaves them to fight locusts alone
North-west Victoria farmers are frustrated by lack of government support as locust numbers hit 15-year highs, forcing them to bear all control costs themselves.
In brief
North-west Victoria farmers are frustrated by lack of government support as locust numbers hit 15-year highs, forcing them to bear all control costs themselves. Victoria farmers fighting a locust outbreak say the government is not supporting their efforts, unlike South Australia which subsidises spraying, as numbers…
Locusts hatch in huge numbers
Large numbers of locusts hatched across the Mallee in mid-September due to warm and wet weather, creating ideal conditions for the insects to proliferate and travel south.
Jack Lambert sees thousands on his land
Jack Lambert, who farms at Meringur west of Mildura, has seen bands of thousands of locusts hatch and move across his property and local national parks.
Farmers say they're running out of options
Lambert says he is running locusts down everywhere trying to stay on top of them, but worries the town is talking about another plague like the one 10 or 15 years ago.
“We're running them down everywhere trying to stay on top of them. I'm really worried. The talk of town is that we're going to have another plague, as we had 10 or 15 years ago.”
No help from Agriculture Victoria
Despite repeatedly reporting locusts through Agriculture Victoria's surveillance program, Lambert says he has not heard from the department and questions where the action is.
“It seems like they've put a real lot of work into making a show about finding locusts but where's the action?”
Farmers bear all the costs themselves
Lambert says farmers are funding locust control themselves at significant cost. Diesel is not free, time is not free, and it is a labour intensive job requiring constant effort.
“I'm pretty sure everyone is funding it themselves. It's not free. Diesel's not free, time's not free. It's a labour intensive job.”
Government says farmers are responsible
Stephen Dibley, Victoria's chief plant health officer, says the responsibility for treating locusts on private land rests with the landholder or manager, not Agriculture Victoria.
“The responsibility for treatment of locusts is on the landholder or manager, whether that's private or public.”
Locust numbers at 15-year high
According to Agriculture Victoria's surveillance program, locust numbers are at their highest levels in 15 years but are not at plague levels and are not expected to spread beyond the Wimmera and Mallee.
South Australia offers subsidies Victoria does not
South Australia subsidises locust spraying through the Plague Locust Chemical Rebate offering up to thirty five dollars per hectare sprayed.This year the state announced a six point five million dollar package.Victoria offers no such support.
In short
Victoria farmers fighting a locust outbreak say the government is not supporting their efforts, unlike South Australia which subsidises spraying, as numbers reach their highest in 15 years.
