if crops fail 5 years in a row, isn't that nature's way of saying "get off this land, you silly fool, cuz you don't know how to use it?"

if the rivers run dry, doesn't that mean irrigators are over using?

there are many examples of agribusiness being greedy, toward the land, and from society when the land doesn't doesn't meet their targets. well, climate is changing, this particular lurk is drying up.

demos
Yes thats true and likewise as country girl has pointed out there are many examples of unfair conditions for the smaller struggling farmer too.
Dont you get it? The farmers are the food bowl of this country.
They keep your family fed. They carry a ungrateful nation.
They get screwed left right and center then done over by their country being flooded with cheap importants.
Start putting the blame where it really belongs- The Australian Government.
Of course they should NOT pay for water they dont get.

Goddess- We support your stand on leaving the work to about one third of the nation.
Your correct. I am not sure however which political party we would look at to give farmers a fair go.
Certainly NOT the Nationals and labour seem to be unable to think outsie the square they live in.
Countrygirl We have watched your thread and read your comments without invloving ourselves.
We are impressed and we have some people looking to establish some new ideas into Australian Farming.
Do you have a web site or email address they could contact you on.?

Well done Countrygirl!

Firstly,I will endeavour to contact those that have requested it.Thank you for your comments.

DEMOS,I understand your view, but think that it is too simplistic.This is a drought that is out of the ordinary, particularly for the farmers and townspeople of southern NSW.Exceptional Circumstances support kicks in only once we experience a 1 in 25 year drought– its not just given away.This area started to receive EC support 4 years ago (so I was originally mistaken– they’ve been in severe drought for 6 years now),which should demonstrate the severity and unusualness of the situation.

I don’t take issue with those farmers who fail simply because they fail to plan for the fluctuations of their business.Coming from a decent start,most farmers should have no trouble in handling two bad years in a row.They will then need a run of sufficiently good seasons/prices to get them back to their starting point,but these sort of fluctuations are normal and can be prepared for.If you don’t prepare for the inevitable,then tough.I don’t see the need for society to support bad business.

When things get very hard though,is when the season starts out looking reasonable (if not great).You then have to spend a significant amount of money to sow,fertilise and spray (usually broadacre knockdown with sowing,but if things look ok for long enough,then you may have to fork out for expensive selective herbicides as well).Much of the annual cost falls into a small window of time,and unfortunately is no guarantee that the rain will continue.A few lucky areas of NSW (I cant comment as well on the rest of the country) are blessed with heavy black soils,which while prone to compaction,can if they have enough rain during fallow,hold enough moisture to see a crop through without an incrop rain (so long as the weather isn’t too warm or wind too harsh).Most aren’t though,and do require reasonable rain within the growing season.The problem is that you can spend most of your money and have the crop looking good,then lose it towards the end.That’s what really hurts,particularly when it happens several years in a row.

"I am fed up with dole bludgers and non-workers getting away with this crap."
"In a so-called civilised world we all have to earn our place.
I am so sick of copping a tax bill to subsidise this scum."

My, my Goddess! You are emotional today aren't you :-)

Whilst I fully agree that there are people who don't make much effort to look for work and should be leaned on by the powers that be, I believe you've fallen into the trap of thinking there is a job for everybody, no matter their circumstances.
Don't think for a moment that ageism isn't rampant. Employers demand young people when they can get them. Don't think sexism doesn't exist, especially when coupled to age. What's an inexperienced 50 year old woman going to do in the current economic situation when she doesn't have a degree in IT or sales? What if her looks are shot and she doesn't have the finances to do anything about it? The same goes for middle aged men.

And it's not all about age either. Some time ago, I cared for a young woman who was bright and intelligent until she lost her job. Centerlink forced her to jump through the various hoops in order for her to pick up a grossly unsupportive income of under $200 a week. Eventually, she was offered a job with the RSPCA. Being fondly passionate about animals, she couldn't handle working with dogs and cats whose only outlook was to be put down at the end of the week. It so traumatised her that she quit and was promptly breached by Centerlink. A tenant contractor found her by accident in her appartment, no electricity, no phone, no gas. She'd cut herself and was severely dehydrated.

Goddess, does this person sound like a bludger? Scum? I take great exception to someone speaking about people that way without having first hand knowledge of those people's situations first hand. My bet is that you're not a social worker or carer. If you are, then you're burned out and should quit immediately.

Aime,
I did not mean to generalise about social security.
The system is in place for the very people about whom you speak and your case probably deserved a better go than she got.
I am talking about professional dole bludgers not honest people.
Your views on ageism are very real out there and are the reason I am self employed.
One case I knew about got pregnant to get the dole while living with the kid's father who was fully employed.
When centrelink caught her out she suddenly developed debilitating back pain (not)
I get cranky because I work so hard and pay so many tax dollars so people like this can get away with rorting the system.

Well I'm farming, and last year was a real wake up for me.
How different people handled a similar situation, was quite
amazing to observe.

I really don't think that throwing ever more fertiliser
subsidies etc at farmers, is the solution.

There is lots of really innovative stuff happening in farming,
including ways to deal with drought. But alot of farmers are
old timers, wanting to do things as they have for 50 years.
They ignore that the world is changing, at their peril.
Sorry, but thats the reality of it. If they have had 5 failed
crops, its well overdue that they looked at new farming models.

IMHO alot of farmland will be bought by super funds, then leased
back to farmers. Thats not a bad thing, it gives younger,
dynamic farmers with new ideas a chance to have a go, not just
older, set in their ways types, who happen to own alot of land.

Govts could do heaps, but not in terms of subsidies. Make it
easier for meatworks to import seasonal labour, as Aussies
don't want the jobs, for instance. Meatworks will be seasonal
as long as we have seasonal climate, thats the reality.

Meantime, those farmers who are too old to change their ways,
well its time they put up their feet and went fishing :)