Farmers are warning that the implications of a turbocharged offsets market must be considered as amendments to the Safeguard Mechanism near completion in Parliament.
National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) Chief Executive Officer Tony Mahar stated that notwithstanding the fact that agriculture was exempted from the Safeguard Mechanism’s criteria, the 215 emitters it captures would be eager for offsets from farmland.
“Offsets from farmland are the ‘net’ in the government’s ‘net zero’ plan. This will potentially escalate land use conflict, with pressure to turn food and fibre producing land into carbon sinks to counter the emissions from other industries,” Mahar said.
According to Mahar, farmers are serious about reacting to climate change, but it must be guaranteed that climate progress does not come at the expense of food security.
“It’s critical that government avoids a mass buy-up of productive farmland – including using the ministerial veto for projects exceeding 30% of a farm if necessary,” Mahar warned.
The NFF said it is concerned that some provisions in the agreement reached between the Australian Government and the Greens may have unintended consequences.
“We do not support any freeze on using the human induced reforestation methodology. We don’t want a scenario where senators rather than scientists are determining carbon market rules. Instead, Government should follow through with implementation of the Chubb Review. We do, however, we support the review of methane measurement,” Mahar stated.
In the face of a growing global population and rising food prices, Mahar warns that Australia must be cautious not to jeopardise its ability to grow food and fibre sustainably.
Mahar highlighted the need to balance delivering carbon offsets and meeting global food and fibre demands.
“Importantly, this also means supporting farmers to make informed business decisions about their participation in carbon markets. That’s why we’re calling for greater investment in on-ground extension services,” he added.
