Mulga and mallee, Australian rangeland tree species that are taken for granted, along with prickly acacia, the introduced weed that's doing its best to choke out Queensland's northern grasslands, could be the key to unlocking a new era of prosperity for the region.
That was the message delivered virtually by renowned economist Professor Ross Garnaut at the 2021 national rangelands conference based at Longreach this week.
Delivering the John Milne Memorial address, Professor Garnaut painted a positive picture of the economic opportunities climate change offered northern Australia, through increased rainfall and plant growth.
He said the increased carbon and biomass that would result would boost development opportunities in the north, by giving rural Australia the chance to participate in the international effort to stop climate change through creating a zero-emissions economy.
"Rural Australia has never had such an opportunity to create jobs, income and experience development," he said. "Let's make sure that we grasp it and use it well."
Because land carbon sequestration could contribute to 37pc of the objectives of reducing emissions by 2pc, what happened in Australia's land sector was crucial to the country's climate change outcomes, Professor Garnaut said.
Australia was by far the best situated of developed countries for land carbon, thanks to our exceptionally large woodlands per capital, that were specially adapted to the climate, and could be a new source of industrial advantage for the country.
Professor Garnaut said there were opportunities to make the 22 million hectares of prickly acacia in north west Queensland an energy resource.
"We want to eradicate it but in the process of doing that we can harvest it for energy, via pyrolysis, using mobile machines," he said. "There are mallee and mulga opportunities too, in more southern areas."
In his confronting speech, Professor Garnaut urged more research into what was possible in the Mitchell grasslands and said there were opportunities for landholders to make diverse plantings of trees east of Longreach and be part of new economic opportunities.
As well as producing biomass as zero-emissions inputs for industry, Professor Garnaut said there were opportunities to combine that with superior wind and solar resources for manufacturing and processing industries, giving new strength to regions that have been in economic decline, and building economic development in new places.
His speech opened the three-day conference, attended by 100 people from northern Australia in person, and virtually by 200 people from as far afield as the United States.
Conference organiser David Phelps said that despite the dual platform, it was achieving what he wanted, giving people across northern Australia the chance to talk about on-ground issues and ways to address them.
"There's lots of discussion around what we want the future of the rangelands to look like and how to get there," he said.
ALSO IN THE NEWS:
Want daily news highlights delivered to your inbox? Sign up to the Queensland Country Life newsletter below.
Sally Gall
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
