GRASS (Grazing Resilience and Sustainable Solutions)
Camm Agricultural Group CEO Bryce Camm and Cattle and Farm Analyst Emily Schramm. during an inspection of one of the groups Northern properties. The Camm Group has joined the GRASS program and NQ Dry Tropics has written 29 Land Management Plans across five of their properties in Northern and Central clusters within their organisation.
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The GRASS program provides one-on-one support to beef producers in the Burdekin region to deliver tailored land management plans to address land in poor or degraded condition. Participating graziers will be able to access a range of resources and identify actions that lead to improved condition and productivity of poor or degraded land on their properties.
The program has set aside $645,000 in financial incentives to assist landholders for the Burdekin region to implement land management action plans on their properties. The GRASS program will also support graziers to understand the requirements of the new Reef protection regulations and the associated minimum standards for grazing in catchments that flow into the Great Barrier Reef.
The program runs from October 2019 until June 2022 and is accessible to all graziers in the Burdekin who have some land in a poor or degraded condition.
Extension officers from NQ Dry Tropics and DAF will provide support and information to participants. The Queensland Government will acknowledge graziers participating in the GRASS Program as a low priority for compliance visits for the duration of their involvement in this program.
The GRASS program is funded through the Queensland Government Reef Water Quality Program and is delivered by the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF), Burnett Mary Regional Group, Fitzroy Basin Association and NQ Dry Tropics. Extension officers from these groups will provide support and information to participants in each region.
The Queensland Government will acknowledge graziers participating in the GRASS Program as a low priority for compliance visits for the duration of their involvement in this program.
The Queensland Government will acknowledge graziers that achieved accreditation under the former Grazing BMP. These graziers will be considered as a low compliance risk for five years from 1 December 2019. This is to acknowledge that participating GRASS and Grazing BMP accredited landholders are proactively undertaking efforts to reduce nutrient or sediment runoff from their properties and contribute to improved water quality for the Great Barrier Reef.
As part of the acknowledgement process, participating graziers will be asked to provide consent for their name, property address and term of involvement in the project (or Grazing BMP accreditation period) to be included in a register of “low risk properties”.
The register will be provided to the Department of Environment and Science to help prioritise grazing land in poor or degraded condition where action is required.
Provision of this information by landholders is optional and it is not a requirement for participation in the GRASS Program. For more information on the GRASS Program
Shut the gate!
Kirkland Downs graziers Ian Collins and Stacey Kirkwood have every reason to smile after implementing a very simple GRASS plan to great effect. Click to read more.