Agricultural
16 July, 2021
Out of the weeds, into the future
Natural resource management company Wild Matters has been contracted by the Australian Government to work with stakeholders to co-design a new framework for managing weeds.
Nationally, weeds are estimated to cost over $4 billion per year in control measures and production losses.
A 2019 ABARES survey found agricultural businesses spend an average of $10,551 and 61 days a year on weed management activities.
Assistant Secretary of the Biosecurity Response and Reform branch at the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Josephine Laduzko, said the partnership between Wild Matters and the Australian Government was a chance to rewrite the books on weed years old.
“The landscape of weed management has changed in that time,“ Ms Laduzko said.
“While providing many successes, the WoNS initiative also highlighted what we can do better.
“There are gaps in our information that we need to address, and we also need to move beyond a single species approach.”
Ms Laduzko said this new project seeks to harness previous learnings and provide a framework for improving weed management for the future.
“The department is looking forward to working with Wild Matters to deliver a new national approach to weeds,” she said.
Once finalised, the new package of strategic documents will be presented to the national Environment and Invasives Committee for endorsement as a deliverable of the Australian Weeds Strategy.
