Record-setting drought in 80% of Queensland

Queensland drought spreads to an unprecedented 80% of the state

Drought-declared area is now the largest in the beleaguered state’s history as state minister works to tap federal help

the Guardian

7 March, 2014

Almost 80% of Queensland has now been officially declared in drought – the largest area in the state’s history.

Southern parts of the state have been added to the long list of drought-declared areas, pushing up the total land area in drought from 70% to 79% on Friday.

The state agriculture minister, John McVeigh, said the drought has now reached record levels.

“Queensland is a big state and there is usually a drought somewhere, but this is the largest area of Queensland that has ever been drought-declared at one time,” he said on Friday.

The affected regions include 38 council areas, four partially declared shires and 38 separate properties in another seven shires.

Southern areas of Banana, Bundaberg, Cherbourg, the Fraser coast, Gladstone, Goondiwindi and Gympie have been added to the long list of drought-stricken areas.

Moreton Bay, Noosa, North and South Burnett, Southern Downs, Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba and the Western Downs have also been included.

“The wet season in these newly declared shires has been very poor with many areas missing out altogether,” McVeigh said.

Residents in drought-declared areas can apply for financial help through state and federal assistance packages via Centrelink.

McVeigh said he was working with the federal government to make debt restructuring loans available as soon as possible.

The prime Minister, Tony Abbott, last month unveiled a $320m assistance package, which includes increased access to a five-year concessional loan scheme worth $280m, mental health support, and more money for wild dog control.

McVeigh has said he expects the state to get a significant portion of this funding.

The president of AgForce, Ian Burnett, said including parts of the south-east in the drought-declared area was welcome news as more producers could apply for financial assistance.

He urged state and federal governments to make it as easy as possible for those affected to access the funds.

He predicted it would take the industry up to three years to recover even if drought-breaking rain fell in the coming months.

“This drought is one which has hit with great ferocity across an unprecedented area of our pastoral and agricultural land,” Burnett said, adding that graziers had some tough decisions ahead.

Queensland suffers biggest drought on record

Queensland's crippling drought now covers more of the State than any other drought in recorded history.15 more local government areas were declared today.

And in New Zealand ....

Northland areas facing new drought

One corner of New Zealand faces the dreaded “drought” word for the third season in five.

FWplus

undated

While the rest of the country enjoys a good summer for pasture growth, livestock condition and crop yields, low soil moisture and lack of rainfall have gripped Northland’s west coast around Dargaville.

Rainfall through spring and early summer was adequate across the rest of Northland but west coast farmers have watched fronts and showers pass over and around them without benefit.

Lack of soil moisture and pasture covers was worse, perhaps two weeks earlier, than they had been last January, Te Kopuru dairy farmer Terry Brenstrum said.

Milk production had dropped quickly and low pasture cover had to be supplemented by maize silage, green feed maize, and palm kernel.

Pouto Peninsula neighbours on sandy soils, on dairy and beef-cattle farms, were considerably worse off, he said.

National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said in mid-January soil moisture deficits were extreme to dry for Northland’s west coast, including the western Kaipara districts, and for the far north, at Aupouri Peninsula, along with a few patches in coastal Hawke’s Bay and Wairarapa and coastal Canterbury.

However, most of Northland had received less than 15mm of rain so far this year, compared with 50mm-plus historically from January 1-15, NIWA said. Soil moisture levels were up to 50mm below normal for this time of year.

A former tropical depression was headed towards Northland last week but if it didn’t make landfall dairy farmers faced some big decisions – whether to buy feed and keep on milking for the high payout or to cut costs and begin drying off.

Sheep and beef farmers have already started de-stocking.

“We are in drought now, based on rainfall and soil moisture figures,” hill-country farmer John Blackwell, at Windy Hill, 10km east of Dargaville, said.

“We have sold store lambs and sent away bulls as soon as they are ready.

“If you’re going to have a drought, a localised one is better, because store stock prices in the province remain higher,” he said.

The rainfall in spring and early summer was much lower than usual, which meant little hay-making and no fodder reserves, he said.

On the Northland Dairy Development Trust research farm just north of Dargaville, production of 1.5kg per cow per day milksolids is being sustained only with 6kg/cow/day of supplementary feeding, using turnips and palm kernel.

Because of the lack of rain, pre-grazing pasture covers are down to 2100kg per hectare drymatter and the average cover on both farmlets – ryegrass and kikuyu-based pastures – is 1850kg.

Dairy farmers affected by the looming drought have been advised to consider once-a-day milking of cows in poor condition and early culling of poor performers.

Kaipara District is the centre of New Zealand’s kumara-growing industry and spokesman Andre de Bruin said dry conditions promoted good quality, in terms of shape and colour, but reduced yield.

“If you’re going to have a drought, a localised one is better, because store stock prices in the province remain higher.”

Terry Brenstrum

Te Kopuru dairy farmer

“Most crops are well established and because soil moisture levels were low farmers spent longer irrigating the seedlings,” he said.

Kaipara growers used water carts for a month or more to help plant establishment, often with water pumped from drainage channels.

However, those channels were dry now and their walls were cracking and susceptible to collapse, de Bruin said.

Northland Rural Support Trust co-ordinator Julie Jonker is collating information on conditions in localised areas of the west coast and far north and is sending it to the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI).

The trust’s relief efforts would be limited by what money remained in its account from last year’s province-wide drought, she said.

“People who are stressed should contact the RST, because we have five skilled recovery facilitators available.”

MPI personnel would be attending a Northland Agricultural Forum meeting this week to discuss regional responses to climatic changes, Jonker said.

Farmers of NZ Rep Talks About How Another Drought Will Effect Northland's Farmers

This video includes 2 short interviews which aired on Radio New Zealand's Midday Rural News on Friday, November 8th, 2013. First, Dairy Farmer of Dargaville, Bill Guest, who is the Operations Director for Farmers of New Zealand, talks about Northland's deficit of rain and the impact another drought will have on the farming community, plus more. Then a Queensland cattle farmer says she may resort to shooting stock on drought-stricken National Park grasslands, as a deadline looms for removing them.