Floods Damage Australian Farms; Extent Of Impact Uncertain -Lobby

Floods Damage Australian Farms; Extent Of Impact Uncertain -Lobby

Widespread flooding in northern New South Wales and Queensland states has damaged some communities, farms and crops, but it’s too early to gauge the full extent of the disaster, Jock Laurie, president of the National Farmers’ Federation lobby group, said.

Farmers in parts of northern New South Wales are suffering the effects of a second flood in as many months, while Queensland farmers are experiencing their third major flood in two years, he said, after heavy rains over the past two weeks.

The region includes some of Australia’s best broadacre agricultural land including the Darling Downs west of Brisbane.

The region hosts large areas sown to nearly mature cotton and sorghum crops, and is a major producer of wheat and beef cattle.

Some communities such as Moree town are mopping up as water starts to recede but others such as Wee Waa town remain completely isolated and yet others including St George, are still bracing for the floods, Laurie said in a statement.

“It will be some time until the full picture of the extent of the damage can be realized, but what we do know is that the damage bill from the floods will extend into the millions.”

Thousands of hectares of cropping and grazing land have been inundated, infrastructure such as fences and roads have been badly damaged, if not completely washed away, and summer crops in many areas have been destroyed, he said.

At this stage, a clear picture on stock losses isn’t available, although some cattle and sheep won’t have survived, he said.