| Fed taskforce sees strong water-pricing and GM crops as key to land, water use in Top End |
| The Federal Government’s Northern Development Taskforce will soon call for expressions of interest and ideas for developing land and water in the Top End, reported <>Queensland Country Life (5/7/2007, p.114).
Water-efficiency element: Meeting for the first time in Canberra last week, the taskforce has already commissioned work on the Ord region in Western Australia and the Northern Territory. Taskforce chair and NSW Liberal Senator, Bill Heffernan, said the taskforce will investigate new ways to maximise land and water use in the Ord, with a focus on strong price signals for water which will lead to water efficient infrastructure and high-value crops. Frankenstein-food element: He said the taskforce would urge the Northern Territory and West Australian Governments to "come to terms with GM technology" – believing the use of genetically modified cropping in the north would be the key to its future. "We’ll be presenting those governments with the findings we have on te science of GM and the role it can play in the future of agriculture in the north of Australia," Senator Heffernan said. "We’re not intrested in playing politics with State and Territory Governments. We want a co-operative relationship with the States." Queensland Country Life, 5/7/2007, p. 114 |
