With the recent defeat of the Palaszczuk Government’s proposed tougher vegetation management laws, now is a good time for producers to take stock of their property mapping.
The defeat of the laws has meant that proposed new ‘high value regrowth’ restrictions and the extension of Category R vegetation (regrowth watercourse areas) won’t go ahead for now.
However, the Palaszczuk Government has indicated they will try to introduce these changes again if they are re-elected.
So it’s now more important than ever to ensure you have a Property Map of Assessable Vegetation (PMAV). Don’t ever rely on the government’s regulated vegetation mapping as it is not certified, often has errors and isn’t locked in for the future.
Locking in a PMAV with vegetation marked as Category X (white) – non-remnant areas of unregulated vegetation – should ensure future laws on regrowth and Reef watercourses do not affect your individual vegetation management plan.
If Parliament had passed the proposed changes to vegetation management laws last month, some producers without a locked in PMAV would have experienced up to 80 per cent loss of non-remnant areas to the new regrowth and Reef watercourse regulations.
I can’t stress enough how important it is for producers with PMAVs to check all government vegetation mapping annually. The mapping continues to be refined and changes to the remnant mapping could provide additional non-remnant (white) areas for you to lock in.
For producers who have converted a property to freehold, it is also important to check whether changes may have resulted in the removal of Category C (regrowth, light blue areas), leaving additional non-remnant areas to consider locking in.
I know of one producer who locked in vegetation under a PMAV in 2012 over what was then leasehold land, with the property subsequently converted to freehold this year.
The 2013 changes meant regulated regrowth was removed but the Palaszczuk government’s proposed changes would have reinstated a majority of that regrowth and added in new Category R vegetation.
This highlights why it is so important to constantly review your property map and include an annual vegetation management plan as part of your business plan.
For a small fee, AgForce can assist with your whole of property vegetation mapping, PDF maps or digital mapping layers. For details go to the AgForce Queensland website or contact AgForce GIS technical officer Noel Brinsmead, in the Brisbane office on 3236 3100.