A REPORT into the health of the Great Barrier Reef shows Wet Tropics banana growers are leading the way for best practice results in nutrient and soil management.
The Great Barrier Reef Report Card 2015 – Queensland’s first reef water quality annual investment report detailing how $35 million of state funding has been spent improving the resilience of the reef – ranked banana growers as C (or moderate).
“This is really good news and a big tick of approval for our growers,” Australian Banana Growers Council’s Michelle McKinlay said.
“There is always room for improvement and our industry is committed to continuing to work hard towards improved environmental best practice.”
The grazing and sugar cane industries received a “poor” rating but industry groups said progress was being made.
AgForce general president Grant Maudsley said while more work needed to be done, the Reef 2050 Plan annual report showed an enormous amount of progress was being made in a short amount of time.
"Like all Australians, farmers want to ensure the Great Barrier Reef is protected and preserved for generations to come," he said.
This is really good news and a big tick of approval for our growers.
- ABGC Industry Strategy Manager Michelle McKinlay.
"Over the last three years under the Australian Government's Reef Program, more than 7000 farmers have been involved in activities to increase their knowledge about new technologies and improvements to their farming systems.
"It’s disappointing that the Queensland Government is still pouting about the parliament's rejection of their bad vegetation management laws, rather than talking up the many good outcomes being achieved by farmers and other stakeholders."
Canegrowers said numbers and not letters on a report card paint the most up to date picture of what was happening in the Queensland’s cane growing districts.
“We acknowledge the card but we know that this report card is a snapshot in time,” chief executive officer Dan Galligan said.
“We are wary of snapshot reports such as this and the modelling they’re based on. They don’t reflect all of the hard work and positive changes growers have been undertaking on their farms to make the Australian industry a world leader in sustainable sugar production.”
