Dealing with salinity in Wheatbelt Valleys - Department of Water

with Salinity in Wheatbelt Valleys Conference
Dealing
Prospects and Practical Options
Processes,
‘NEXT STEP’COMMENTS
A full list of all comments made at the end of Day 3 of the conference.
The Salinity Taskforce has already been appointed to take our views to the government, they should be the ones to
take outcomes of this conference to government.
Publicise options for income diversification that have been successful, to encourage new industries/options.
Let people know what is available and has worked – maybe through CLCs.
Regional groups and sub groups to assist agency/community discussion on what to do at local level.
Salinity Council and Regional groups to work with agencies to support sub-regional and local groups.
Salinity Council, agencies and government to provide leadership and resources to move forward.
Prepare report with final recommendations.
Request – Salinity Council and Task Force to digest and act on the recommendations.
Local communities/farmers will continue with their own projects.
These should be followed up to record success/failures.
Step 1. Shared vision not our own visions.
Step 2. Support given to ideas that look at integrated demonstration projects.
Look at projects potential to achieve the vision and give support.
Small sub-committee or existing State Salinity Committee, Salinity Task Force to formulate a number of principal
tasks that take into account the shared vision of this conference – that is:
Define and enumerate key tasks, such as
• R & D pathways – critical
• Policy directions/recommendations to state government
• Representations to industry/commerce
• Streamlining Project Implementation.
State salinity program should be minimised as a single agency that deals with different aspect of salinity instead of
having many agencies doing parallel work e.g. Agriculture, Water & Rivers Commission, DEP, CALM etc
There should be a single scientific body to assess the individual situation and propose suggestions to solutions.
I would like to see this as a body that farmers can come and say that if my farm is located in such and such place,
what would be my best options of management. This body should assess the parameters involved with the farms
situation and provide recommendation taking into account all aspects of hydrology, environment, ecology, economic
and sustainability aspects.
The shared vision is basically that valley floors be improved. This does not necessarily mean drainage.
It must be conveyed to the task force and to government that the sustainability of all systems imposed on our
landscape be proven not to be harmful to any other part of our landscape. It is our landscape. We have given
farmers the privilege of managing it.
Communicate findings of conference to all members of the wheatbelt community.
Cost out (both financial and environmental) benefits of the different systems.
Salinity task force is appropriate body to progress outcomes of conference. I doubt if any proposed step has not
been included in submissions already sent to them. But in case that is wrong “ask the taskforce to accept further
submissions”.
Clarify the salinity objective ie can we accept that at the gross scale 30% is inevitable.
Promote the management options we have to deal with salinity.
Move forward and start investing in the RID, creative thinking, community innovation that will utilise the huge
resource waiting to be used.
Practical steps to a shared outcome:
Identify corporate sector businesses who are willing to invest in defining the ‘best practice’ steps for saving the valley
floors, then investing in the process of saving them.