Responding to the release of a state Government discussion paper on the long-term management of strategic cropping land, Queensland Resources Council (QRC) Chief Executive Michael Roche said his members supported the development of environmental licence conditions for land rehabilitation to provide upfront certainty.
“The QRC is pleased that the State Government has taken a first step towards defining highly productive cropping land and we look forward to playing our part in ensuring that positive economic, environmental and social outcomes are achieved,” said Mr Roche.
Mr Roche noted that while only 2.2 per cent of Queensland is currently utilised for crops, less than 0.1 per cent of the state is utilised by mining operations.
“So where an overlap does occur, it’s important that we work together to get the land use balance right.
Article continues below…“Using transparent and scientifically-based criteria to set the bar for land rehabilitation on a case by case basis, there is no reason why the state’s two most important export sectors cannot continue to operate side by side,” he said.
Mr Roche said the QRC was keen to work with landholders and the Government to develop the extensive database that will be necessary to pinpoint the precise location of Queensland’s best cropping land.
This would involve detailed, painstaking work around mapping soil quality, historical productivity, rainfall and evaporation, proximity to skills and infrastructure, the slope of the land and the scale of agricultural operations in an identified region.
