Green farmers land $3 billion

Queensland Country Life
Thursday 8/11/2007 Page: 34

• Landcare through CarbonSMART offers $18/tonne/year for carbon.
• Rewards for no-till cropping and rotational grazing may evolve.
• Wind power, environmental stewardship, water quality to attract funds

FARMERS are becoming more resource managers and less primary producers. With markets for carbon, energy and even environmental stewardship opening up, significant benefits are being seen for farmers across the country. The Climate Institute Australia director Mark Wootton said farming had a very good story to tell in the carbon cycle.

"Working with farming organisations and the Conservation Foundation, we have calculated there is $2.93 billion presently out there under various energy, carbon and environmental schemes and there are great opportunities out there for farmers to take advantage of the present global warming issue and be a part of the solution.- Part of the figure is a $300 million a year wind farm revenue, but Mr Wootton, a farmer from Western Victoria, said that in the future it should also be farmers generating the energy themselves, not just taking lease payments from wind companies.

Meanwhile, CarbonSMART is a Landcare program that acts as a carbon broker, linking businesses that want to minimise their emissions with farmers who wish to sequester or set aside carbon through vegetation. Project officer Rob Youl has calculated that in some circumstances farmers can be paid almost as much for managing the land per hectare as for producing a commodity. "Let's look at a high rainfall beef producer in a 1000-1200mm rainfall zone, making $300 per hectare per year.

With the right bush tender or stewardship program and being paid $18 per tonne of carbon in vegetation every year, I reckon that farmer can earn up to $240 per hectare per year from environmental projects," he said. While the concept of receiving payments as a land manager, as opposed to a farmer, may not sit well with most farmers, finally being financially rewarded for good management of the land is something that probably will. After all, farmers started the Landcare movement in the 1980s.

In future, practices such as no-till or low-till and rotational grazing are likely to be recognised through carbon-trading or environmental programs. However, more direct or practical market-based incentives already exist. The Merino Company now offers premiums for carbon-positive wool, environmentally sustainably produced wool or even ethically produced wool.

Mr Youl said farmers were generally very aware of carbon's role in agriculture but were not generally aware of the possibilities. "Landholders have been signing up to the less than beneficial programs such as Greenfleet (where trees are planted to offset emissions without any payment to the grower). These schemes have to go," he said.

As carbon polluting becomes more costly for industry, the payments for farmers' shelter belts or planting projects will increase, according to those at CarbonSMART. "We have major supporters already such as Westpac. Elders and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and given the importance of the issue this is only set to grow and there will be private sector competition in carbon trading as well,"Mr Youl said. Under CarbonSMART, Landcare accredited businesses that are already trying to minimise their carbon emissions buy carbon credits from Landcare, which passes on the payments to accredited farmers, thus acting as a carbon broker.