Northern Territory Grazier Rashida Khan [pictured] writes:
The recent decision to ban Gamba grass in the NT if it was not on grazing land was met with much excitement from the people who wished to see it banned.
They went on to claim, they had “won the hard fought battle”.
What battle? No one has ever told these people that they must keep the plant! Rather it was vise-versa that those using the plant and managing it would have to get rid of it.
The NT Government considered the agricultural stakeholders concerns and reached a sensible decision which boiled down to, ‘if you’re not using Gamba and don’t value it then do something about it’.
The decision is to divide the NT into two zones, one from Darwin-Katherine-Arnhem where Gamba must be managed and the other was land outside that where Gamba must be removed. Now that there are some Government guidelines in place, tracts of land that are currently not adequately managed, including crown land, aboriginal trust, absentee owned land and national parks must now be held accountable.
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I was disappointed to see Dr Stuart Blanch [pictured] from the WWF quoted in the NT News as saying, “The size of this (managed) zone must be reduced in the years to come”.
The zoning decision has been a positive outcome for all stakeholders and offers a platform from which to move forward, not an excuse to foster a disturbing desire for conflict.
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Throughout the debate, there has been media attention about the danger of gamba fires, the damage it does to wildlife and the environment. What has been largely ignored is the immense benefit it offers to sustainable farmers.
It is a carbon sequestrating, erosion- controlling, self-seeding, hardy, economic, palatable and nutritious pasture plant. When managed correctly Gamba is one of the most important improvements to the Northern cattle industry. Wildlife are also adapting to the presence of Gamba Grass with many animals eating the seeds and leaves.
We are now at a time of change. We can continue to make noise and waste time and paper or we can adapt and see this grass as just another tool to help us sustainably improve northern land management practices.
There is no environmental or economic way of eradicating the plant so it must be understood and utilized. It would now be stupid to let prejudice cloud our judgment and ignore the opportunities offered by this versatile plant.
END
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