It’s a dry argument

Last month Australian farmers asked the prime minister for rain. Then many sowed their crops in the dust on the forecasts of meteorologists. It was a greater power than the government or the Bureau of Meteorology that brought the recent rains, but legislation still has a role to play in “drought-proofing” our continent.

Government support for farmers during the most recent drought, and future droughts, is important, but we still really need a realistic approach to farming in Australia.

Having lived most of his three and a half years in country Victoria, my son still gets very excited about rain. This month, he and his younger brother have joyously given their gumboots a good workout. For them, a lack of water is their reality. And lack of water is a reality in Australia. Not just now, but always. Australians have never really dealt well with this fact.

But for farmers and rural communities, the crisis of drought has been constant. Not for the last nine, but the last 100 odd years.

When I first arrived in rural Victoria, I attended a series of talks on sustainable land management and housing. Water and its availability were regular themes.

On one of those Tuesday nights, a scientist passed on a message that was simple, yet profound.

“Perhaps Australia is always in drought,” he said. He suggested we shouldn’t talk about the Australian climate as having average rainfall, and then years of drought. This approach over the last century had not served us well. He said it is more productive to regard the Australian landscape as being in a constant state of drought, with occasional years of above-average rainfall.

This would mean that instead of just managing the risk of drought, we are directed to farm and plan progressively to yield successful outcomes - even in very dry seasons.

In most parts of Australia, there is simply not enough rain to meet our demands. Our agriculture sector is ploughing away unsustainably, because in the long-term there will always be more dry than wet times.

While we haven’t been living a lie, there is a pretty big half-truth we’re unwilling to deal with. This country does not have enough rainfall to appropriately support many of our farming communities in a sustainable way.

Drought is a part of Australian life. The Bureau of Meteorology says Australia is “drought prone”. It is a gentle way of saying that drought is the most economically costly climatic phenomenon in Australia. The droughts of 1982-83 had a major impact on the national economy.

Farming, and working the land, is a risky business. But in Australia, a commitment to long-term farming along modern agricultural lines is like backing the longest odds in the Melbourne Cup.

The drought issue has existed for decades.

There was renewed focus in May through the drought summit held by the NSW Farmers' Association. The event generated national attention: it would be nice to think it also brought the rain. But, it didn’t. It did attracted comments from John Anderson, and moved John Howard to visit the southwest of NSW to get his Blunnies dusty.

The NSW Farmers' Association should be congratulated. They timed their Emergency Drought Summit in Parkes beautifully. Australia’s collective consciousness was once again reminded that for many Australians struggling in drought-stricken areas is not a once-off, but a cycle.

Still, the government focus is too top heavy. We should not be talking solely about short-term support for our farmers.

In the mud left behind by recent rain we need to start discussing long-term support to change our agricultural industry. An agricultural industry which needs as much propping up as ours does is not providing us with the best value for money - especially considering current trade deficit figures.

Governments must start to seriously examine research on drought-tolerant crops, and what strategies will work best in Australian climates. We must increase funding to agricultural scientists who have been monitoring these issues for years. We need to better link our agriculture with global market demands.

We need solutions that respect the reality of our ongoing drought-stricken situation - not policy rooted in providing financial support for unsustainable agriculture. In essence, we need to be thinking about drought - even when it rains.