Andrew Dunbabin on land clearing rights for farmers

As the newly formed Farmers and Landowners Action Group (FLAG) continues to build  support and look for ways to ease regulations that prevent farmers from developing their land as they see fit, another heavy hitter in the agricultural landscape has added his voice.

Andrew Dunbabin is an agricultural accountant and farm business consultant who grew up on the historic sheep property "Bangor", Dunalley. He is currently a director at the agribusiness consulting firm ProAdvice and owns a farm in Bannockburn, Victoria.

He was part of the group that recently lobbied government through Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Lyons MP Carlo Di Falco who put forward a matter of public importance in the Lower House of Tasmanian Parliament last week.

He sat in the gallery while Mr Di Falco called for a reduction in red tape and regulations and in response Business, Industry and Resources Minister Felix Ellis promised to conduct a review.

Mr Dunbabin has written the following opinion piece:

If being in business was not hard enough, growing administrative and compliance restrictions are reaching breaking point.

The latest example of overreach concerns a family farm on the East Coast at Triabunna where an overzealous bureaucracy has impacted a family farm in a material way.

Owners of the farm for over 75 years, new regulations have been imposed which restricts the use of the land by the owners.

Being unaware of the newly implemented restrictions was no defence as this family was dragged into court and treated to harsh treatment “as an example to others”, and a fine of $100,000.

In what other field would new restrictions be placed on an asset you have owned for generations, without being notified or compensated for the new restrictions?

If the Main Roads Department wishes to use some of your land for a new road, or a power line is to traverse your land, proper negotiations are entered into and negotiated compensation is paid.

Here the Forest Practices Authority assesses the “damage”, calculates the penalty (without explaining how), and then takes the farmer to court, and they keep the fine to fund their own activities – conflict perhaps?

In this case offers to correct the inadvertent mistake were brushed aside – looks like FPA wanted the money.

There have been a series of creeping changes that have affected farmers wishing to use their land to grow our food.

In 2020 a foolish new federal minister seeking to curry favour with the Green Lobby listed Eucalyptus Ovata (Black Gums) as endangered in that it was a food source for Swift Parrots. 

A further change in 2025 (this time a compromise between Labour and the Greens) led to a restriction Australia-wide on the way farmers can use their land. 

The headline in The Australian Weekend paper of May 30-31 says it all; “Farming ‘criminalised’ by Green changes”.  The changes mean that farmers are being prosecuted for clearing regrowth weeds and trees on land previously used for pastures – we are not talking ‘old growth’.

These changes to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act prevent farmers from clearing fence lines, building fire breaks and drains and even clearing noxious weeds.

Cattle and other producers are now too frightened to conduct normal farming practices in case they are penalised for breaking rules they don’t know about!

Farmers on King Island have been particularly targeted and several have paid enormous fines.

Trees impact fences (fall over) and the farmer is not allowed to act to prevent this damage caused sometimes by trees on State Reserve land.

The Federal Environment Minister Murray Watt likened the new restrictions to those imposed on miners and property developers, ignoring the fact that farmers care for their land and families continuously use their land to produce food and fibre.

Back in Tasmania these new Federal restrictions overlay FPA restrictions that farmers have been coping with for many years.  Fines and penalties totalling over $2m have been imposed on farmers over recent years.

There is a groundswell of unease at the way these rules are being imposed against basic natural justice.