A key turf industry body has called on the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Mark Furner to fund a joint partnership to eradicate Red Imported Fire Ants and cited the "crippling costs" growers faced with compliance.
Last week Turf Queensland board members met with Mr Furner to discuss the RIFA issue and to request support for a $435,000 Turf Biosecurity Accreditation Program, but they were told funding was unavailable.
Several days later a turf grower in the Logan area denied his farm was the source of a RIFA infestation at the Oakey army base.
The situation follows a scathing report handed down by a Senate committee last month that recommended the government immediately improve delivery of the eradication program.
TQ board member Hugo Struss said since the issue of the New South Wales Emergency Order in February 2024 which mandated the use of Insect Growth Regulator for all turf crossing the border, the organisation had been "diligently working to address the challenges of this mandate faced by Queensland turf farmers."
"Recognising the crippling costs associated with complying with this mandate, we've embarked on a mission to safeguard the interests of our industry and promote sustainable turf farming practices," he said.
"On April 30 Turf Queensland's board engaged in constructive dialogue with Mr Furner and his advisers at Parliament House and during the meeting we voiced our concerns regarding the long-term viability and environmental impacts of IGR treatment, and the threat of RIFA spreading."
TQ board member Erin Quinlan said Mr Furner was also asked if other government departments could be encouraged to step up their RIFA program efforts.
"Turf Queensland asked Mr Furner to ensure the Department of Transport and Main Roads took responsibility for spraying RIFA nests alongside their roads," she said.
Ms Quinlan said she hoped DAF would investigate the matter.
"When we attended a National Fire Ant Industry and Council Collaboration meeting at Berrinba on March 27, a question was posed why Main Roads was not spraying RIFA nests on their roadsides," she said..
"The response inferred that although they (the meeting presenters) had been trying to work with Main Roads for a year, they were too big to make them comply."
Ms Quinlan said while the agribusiness where she was general manager faced high costs of spraying to prevent RIFA from spreading, they took their compliance responsibilities very seriously.
"We spray on average four times per year across 240 hectares of turf," she said.
"Our annual chemical costs are $80,000 excluding helicopter application costs, these are $3600 plus GST per hour.
"As our turf business is along a main road where there are often RIFA nests, when TMR don't do their bit it does not help."
Ms Quinlan said the business was currently investigating a safe and reliable method of spraying using drone technology in order to reduce costs.
Mr Struss said proactive measures such as the proposed TBAP and collaboration with the National Fire Ant Eradication Program and DAF would equip growers with the knowledge and resources needed to navigate challenges effectively.
"We look forward to an opportunity to work with the DPI and the RIFA Program with full transparency," he said.
Mr Struss said TQ represented 20 per cent of the market with 90 per cent of growers servicing from Townsville to Sydney and as far west as Darwin and Birdsville.
He said the turf industry directly supported approximately 1000 employees and indirectly another 5000 jobs, with a gross value of production for 2022 to 2023 estimate of $116,285,520.
RIFA have caused millions of dollars of damage to rural and urban businesses and communities since being discovered at the Port of Brisbane in 2001 although it is believed they had been in Australia since the 1990s.
TMR were contacted for comment.
The Australian Defence Force were contacted for comment.
The DAF were contacted for comment.
Know more about this issue? Contact Alison Paterson on 0437 861 082.
