Drought and locusts still with us in 2009
From the February 2009 edition of Agriculture Today.
The State’s primary industries battled a tough year in 2008, again characterised by a relentless drought.
Like our rural and regional areas, I too hope 2009 brings us much better seasonal conditions and relief to those that need it most - our farmers.
The drought has eased, but only slightly across parts of NSW, but warmer temperatures have resulted in increased locust activity.
Latest drought figures show a slight drop in the area affected by drought from 55.3 per cent to 53.3pc. And the area experiencing marginal conditions has dropped from 14.3pc to 9.1pc.
More than a third of the State is now satisfactory (37.6pc - up from 30.2pc).
Last year was one of mixed results for the State’s farmers.
And this remains the case now, with water shortages and locust plagues in the south and better conditions in the north.
Harvest is now complete, with about 9.03 million tonnes coming off the estimated 4.48 million hectares harvested.
This is a significant increase on last year.
Biosecurity lab upgrade a step closer
Work on the $43 million biosecurity upgrade to the Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute (EMAI) laboratory is a step closer with a contract awarded for the principal design architects for the project.
The $2.6 million architectural contract has been awarded to S2F Pty. Ltd.
This upgrade is a significant investment in keeping NSW at the forefront of protecting our plant and animal industries from exotic disease outbreaks.
It includes a plant health precinct and secure facilities for animal health research and testing.
S2F is an Australian company that specialises in laboratory design and has a proven track record in this area.
It has designed many international laboratory facilities for pharmaceutical corporations and food companies, including recent projects in the United States, China and New Zealand.
Australian clients include the University of Queensland, Monash University, Griffith university, Australian National University, CSIRO and The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute.
Construction is expected to commence within the next year.
