Qld's peak agriculture industry bodies form new land management alliance

The coalition that makes up the Land Management Alliance includes: AgForce, Queensland Farmers' Federation, Australian Land Management Group, Southern Queensland Landscapes, and Lock the Gate Alliance.

The LMA's main objective is to see a more broadly based certification system embedded in every-day land management.

Recently, the LMA welcomed the biodiversity-carbon pilot trials as a stepping-stone for the new initiative.

AgForce CEO Michael Guerin said the alliance brings a sustainability approach that considers every aspect of land management.

"Our new LMA has endorsed ten key principles for the design and operation of a stewardship certification system - with particular focus on landholder participation and the credibility of the certification," Mr Guerin said.

"We want to engage landholders in a broad-based, meaningful way via a stewardship system that is outcome rather than practice based and reward them for well-managed landscapes."

Australian Land Management Group CEO Tony Gleeson said he believed stewardship should deliver continuous improvement across the economic, environmental, and social spectrums.

"What we're proposing is a voluntary, whole-of-farm, landscape linked certification system that isn't restricted to particular ecological features such as biodiversity, or water quality, or whatever," Mr Gleeson said.

"A system that is operated by an independent entity outside of government and industry, and whose standards and certification are provided on an open, competitive basis by accredited trainers and auditors."

QFF CEO Dr Georgina Davis said the LMA was sending a clear message to policy makers that most landholders are focussed on sustainable and profitable production.

"Many landholders have made significant progress to proactively change their existing land management practices, but some need help making the transition," Dr Davis said.

"By investing in capacity building through extension and education programs we'll help landholders understand regenerative farming, as well as discover ways to profit through conservation."

Lock the Gate Alliance co-ordinator Rick Humphries said it was important that any stewardship program thoroughly addressed the complete range of environmental impacts relevant to an individual landholder's situation.

"If stewardship programs only focus on specific, narrow issues, they will by definition only attract a relatively small number of landholders," Mr Humphries said.

"If we want to maximize the number of landholders involved in such a scheme it must be able to handle a much broader range of environmental impacts in order to increase productivity and profitability."

Southern Queensland Landscapes chief executive Paul McDonald supported those claims by stating that the work done by NRM organisations so far had not reached enough landholders.

"For around 20 years, NRM groups have worked with landholders to help them balance profitable production and environmental needs; however, this work has reached less than 20 per cent of land managers," Mr McDonald said.

"If we're going to make a greater impact, we need to work with the other 80 per cent and consider new ideas and approaches that can become the next steps on the journey for landholders."