As predicted in Agmates articles over the last 3 months the QLD government moved yesterday to declare the tropical pasture Gamba grass a class 2 weed.
Following on from Western Australia’s lead Gamba Grass is now a Class 2 weed in Queensland following the announcement of The Minister for Primary Industries and Fisheries, The Honourable Tim Mulherin State member for Mackay (pictured left) issued yesterday.
Click here to read the Minsters press release on the governments’ web site.
John Rains General Manager Southedge Seeds Mareeba North Queensland writes:
I believe this is the tip of the iceberg with Buffel, Panicums and Stylos next on the Eco hit list. It is a must for the industry peak bodies to get off their bums and take a worthwhile fight up to these alternative people. The Grazing and Seed Industry needs to get together to formalize and document a Code of Practice for the use of imported production plants.
This is a victory for nonsense, a defeat for commonsense. It was an ‘Rent a Crowd’ exercise. I commend the Minister for taking a balanced view.
Having said that I consider the Northern grazing industry has every right to request a recommendation for a replacement grass that will give the same production and have the same attributes as Gamba.
While these ‘Ecoclowns” have been putting time, effort and money into bad Gamba grass they have overlooked, probably conveniently, the really bad, useless, invasive environmental weeds that are around. This whole Gamba debacle was started by one researcher from Darwin.
Not only have they curtailed the use of a highly productive pasture plant but potentially a very valuable one. One thing conveniently overlooked by these ‘Ecoclowns’ is Gamba can sequestrate over 200 mt of Carbon per ha from the atmosphere and produce massive quantities of Cellulose at the same time that will eventually be used for renewable Biofuel. It can do this without growing and maintenance costs.
Gamba is extremely drought tolerant. It produces its own Ammonium Nitrogen.
Southedge Seeds was the only seed company to put its hand up and fight for the right of the Northern grazing industry to utilize and plant this valuable plant.
From my company’s point of view, sales volume and turnover of Gamba is insignificant. Not having Gamba sales will not make any difference to our business. I feel saddened for the northern Graziers who will be denied the use of this great plant. Many of these graziers are Aussie battlers not the big glamour pastoral companies.
However much these environmentalists bleat the Australian native grass and legume species are not up to the job of giving the production required for viable grazing enterprises in Northern Australia.
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Update 04.04.08 @ 12.40pm
And now the pressure is ramped up on the NT Government to ban Gamba Grass. Click here to see the CRC media release.
Extract from the CRC media release:
“The decision today by the Queensland Government to officially declare African Gamba grass a weed is a correct and courageous decision…
Dr McFadyen said that the fact that almost 200 scientists recently signed a declaration calling for the grass to be banned sends a clear wake-up message to the NT Government to pay attention to the evidence about the long-term risk this species poses to the natural environment and to other valuable assets.”
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Have your say!
Are peak farming lobby groups AgForce, NT Cattlemen Assoc, Graziers and the Seed Industry doing enough to protect Graziers against these Anti-farming environmental groups?
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Tags: Gamba Grass, Northern Australia
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