A NEW parliamentary inquiry has been set up to look at how governments can help farmers come to grips with climate change.
The House of Representatives primary industries and resources committee will do the inquiry, which will focus on innovation and adaptation at the farm level and how government and research organisations can support this.
Committee chairman, Tasmanian MP Dick Adams, said the time was right to investigate how farmers can better adapt to the challenges of changing climate.
“It’s important for government to identify the changes that are needed for our agriculture industries to adapt to climate change,” he said. “These changes are already occurring on the farm as Australia’s farmers seek new and innovative methods to adapt their farming techniques to changing circumstances.”
“We need to ensure that adaptation to climate change is not just occurring in isolated pockets,” Mr Adams said.
“We need to ensure that innovation is being identified and supported, that new ideas are widely accessible, and that the implications of changes to farming methods for the supply chain and downstream processes are also considered. We must get this right if we are to maintain an internationally competitive Australian agricultural sector.”
Submissions are due by Friday, 20 March 2009, but Mr Adams said the committee would appreciate that submissions be sent as early as possible. The Committee would prefer submissions to be sent electronically to pir.reps@aph.gov.au
