New funding by the Federal Government will help equip farmers in the Glen Innes region with additional skills and knowledge to improve sustainability and their bottom line.
Member for New England, Barnaby Joyce, said $36,560 is being provided to Glen Innes Natural Resources Advisory Committee (GLENRAC) under Round 3 of the Australian Government’s Smart Farms Small Grants program.
GLENRAC will use the funding to support its Pest Animals in the Spotlight program which will deliver skills, knowledge and capacity to landholders in the Glen Innes region for improved pest animal management.
“This project and other federally-funded initiatives run by GLENRAC such as its Soils in the Spotlight and Ferals in Focus programs, show the desire of people in Glen Innes to farm smarter not harder,” Mr Joyce said.
GLENRAC Chair Ian Lockwood from Deepwater is delighted with the news that GLENRAC has secured new funding for pest animal events.
"Pest animal management is an important issue for GLENRAC members and this funding will enable us to continue to deliver information events to share the latest information and technology on pest animal management and control," Mr Lockwood said. "This project will cover pest animal species that impact on both agricultural production and biodiversity across our landscape."
The Smart Farm grant complemented more than $683,000 in additional Australian Government funding recently announced for Glen Innes under the Communities Combating Pest and Weed Impacts During Drought Program.
“This is yet further delivery for people in Glen Innes and across the greater New England region,” Mr Joyce said.
Agriculture Minister David Littleproud said Australian agriculture had a long history of early adoption of innovation.
“The ingenuity of our farmers never ceases to amaze me,” Minister Littleproud said.
“They have always looked after the land and we are giving them a helping hand through this grants program to adopt best practice natural resource management methods.”
Smart Farm Grants have been given to farming and landcare groups for projects related to sustainable farming education, pest management, improving soil health, agroforestry and more. For more information on the program visit: agriculture.gov.au
• Smart Farms Small Grants is part of the Federal Government’s Smart Farms program – a key initiative of phase two of the National Landcare program
• Smart Farms Small Grants is a $43.5 million grants program (six annual rounds)
• Round 1 funded 77 projects for a total of $4.75 million. These are expected to be completed by April 2020
• Round 2 funded 110 projects for a total of $9.25 million. These are expected to be completed by September 2021
• Round 3 projects must be completed by 30 June 2022
(ENDS)