RegenWA’s perspective on the future of farming in our drying climate

For farmers, the uncertainty that comes from more frequent and extreme weather events makes it a lot harder to apply good farm management practices. At the same time, farmers are contending with a wide range of other factors that also reduce the viability of farming, which further constrains their capacity to adapt to the drying climate.

This scenario is already impacting on the availability and price of some food and the capacity of farmers to keep producing the range of food our growing population is accustomed to.

From the perspective of RegenWA, it is evident that we are in a drying climate. The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report quotes “The Southwest of Australia is one of the first places on the planet to see a trend of rainfall reduction, and it is one of the few regions in the world where the bulk of models agree drying will continue”.

It is now up to our government to provide substantial long-term investment to address the urgency of the situation – there are no quick or cheap fixes to ensuring we remain food secure in a drying environment.

Supporting farmers to restore beneficial natural capital on less productive land, investing into green infrastructure to rehydrate the farming landscape, and supporting farmers to adopt more climate friendly practices are some of the measures that can be taken.

While our small corner of the planet has been globally recognised as a global drying hotspot, there is opportunity for innovative West Australian farmers and researchers to lead international research projects. Projects that identify viable future leaning farming practices that are likely to work in other farming landscapes that are on the same drying trajectory.

Keith Pekin CEO, RegenWA

Stuart McAlpine Chair, RegenWA