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- 24 February 2005
Soil Conservation Service
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Mr GEORGE SOURIS (Upper Hunter) [12.50 p.m.]: I move:
That, in view of the success of the Soil Conservation Service over past years, this House calls upon the Government to re-establish the Soil Conservation Service.
At last—having given notice of this motion on 22 May 2003—we have reached the moment of commencing debate on what I believe to be one of the most important environmental issues confronting the Government today. The Soil Conservation Service, arguably, was the most successful conservation agency in the history of New South Wales. The leading practical environmental issues confronting New South Wales—admittedly, from my perspective—are, but not necessarily in order of importance, dryland salinity and soil conservation. Indeed, over a number of years the Soil Conservation Service of New South Wales had built up an enviable reputation as a very practical agency, and one that had direct contact with, and widespread co-operation from, the landholders in whose areas soil conservation rectification works were necessary.
Many, many major soil conservation projects had been undertaken successfully over those years. The principal role of the Soil Conservation Service was the protection of the topsoil. Wind also, but mainly water, was eroding tonnes of topsoil every year. Year after year erosion took place with every downpour. Australia was seriously in danger of having the quality of its topsoil diminished to such an extent that that would ultimately threaten the future of agriculture. One of the very first aspects of government that I became involved with when first elected in 1988 was to do with soil conservation. My electorate of Upper Hunter has an area of more than 40,000 square kilometres, covering the north-west of New South Wales, the Liverpool slopes and plains in particular, and into the Hunter Valley.
The first matter in which I had an involvement was the very last part of a project called the Whitneys Creek project, in the Merriwa area, followed by a project on an adjacent creek, called Butchers Creek, also in the Merriwa area. It was where I drove my first D5 or D6 Caterpillar bulldozer to start the works. It probably took them another day to rectify the very good work that I had done! This positively impacted on me as a newly elected member, and clearly demonstrated just how vital and practical matters to do with soil conservation were. It really came as an eye-opener to me that the Government at that time was able to conduct these works on privately owned property with the full co-operation of the landholder—indeed, with their financial participation, because it was a partial contribution, not a 100 per cent contribution, from the State. But, more importantly, the effort needed to be co-ordinated because obviously not just one person's farm would be the relevant target of a soil conservation project; the projects extended across catchment areas, and certainly across valleys and so on. It was a matter that required considerable co-operation.
I commend the work of the commissioner at the time, Mr Bob Junor, and his deputy, Mr Warwick Watkins, who later became the Soil Conservation Commissioner. It was my pleasure, as Minister for Land and Water Conservation at the time, to appoint Mr Warwick Watkins as the director-general of that department. One of the very first things I did as Minister was reinstate the Soil Conservation Service, which had previously been abolished. I was overwhelmed with the response both from former Soil Conservation Service employees and operatives and also the rural landholding community. Subsequently, that service was abolished once again. This motion continues my campaign to reinstate the Soil Conservation Service. I feel it is important to bring to the notice of this Parliament that we ought to consider once again establishing the Soil Conservation Service of New South Wales.
Mr Steve Whan: It is still there.
Mr GEORGE SOURIS: The expertise is still more or less in place. I mentioned Mr Warwick Watkins. Many soil conservation operatives are still in place out in the regions—most doing slightly different jobs, but nonetheless working within the Department of Land and Water Conservation, which was subsequently renamed. They are ready, willing and able to restart the Soil Conservation Service. The Carr Government, over its period of office, has been doing a lot more than just ignoring soil conservation and abolishing the Soil Conservation Service. Over the years the Government has been gutting the personnel of a number of important land agencies: the Department of Water Resources, and the Department of Conservation and Land Management, which of course have been combined into the Department of Land and Water Conservation. Regional structures have been amalgamated.
Those agencies and the Department of Agriculture and New South Wales Forests—and a number of others—have all suffered significant reductions in their budgets and significant reductions in their employee strength. But, as well, the Carr Government has succumbed to pressure from elsewhere to impose on those vital agencies, and the legislation that supports them, continuing intrusions into their jurisdiction and their authority through the use of, first of all, consultation powers in new legislation, and then ultimately the implementation of concurrence powers. It is those concurrence powers, often with agencies such as the National Parks and Wildlife Service, the Department of the Environment or other agencies including the Department of Planning, which have led, fairly gradually but very directly, to a diminution of the strength of the legislation that underpins the land support agencies, and in particular the department to which my motion refers, and especially the function of soil conservation.
The Government should take a serious look at this whole issue of soil conservation, of re-establishing the service—which, of course, includes not only the personnel but the equipment with which to do the work—and once again embark on a very direct involvement with landholders, along with direct identification and prioritisation of important soil conservation projects that are not proceeding. There has been a stalling of soil conservation projects. Now they are entirely at the initiation of individual landholders, who of course have other competing problems and issues to deal with before turning their minds to those matters. This issue needs the kind of leadership that existed under the Soil Conservation Service.
The co-ordinating role, planning role, mapping and a whole host of issues require a significant level of scientific expertise. Of course, it is unrealistic to expect or imagine that contractors who are out in the field looking for work will be able to co-ordinate the soil conservation effort of New South Wales—just as it is impossible to imagine that any individual landholder could achieve such a thing. It is the role of government to provide that leadership, to achieve the necessary co-ordination across areas, to identify and prioritise, and to assist in the continuation of vital soil conservation projects throughout New South Wales. This is a very important environmental issue—one of the two most important environmental issues confronting the people of New South Wales: dryland salinity and soil conservation. I would like to see a reassertion of these issues and restoration of the predominant role that they should have in the environmental effort of the government of the day.
Pursuant to sessional orders debate interrupted.
[Mr Acting-Speaker (Mr John Mills) left the chair at 1.00 p.m. The House resumed at 2.15 p.m.]
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