Salinity on backburner : Salt crisis loses weight for farmers struggling with drought

Western Australia's growing salinity crisis is considered by the Western Australian Farmers Federation as one of the biggest threats to the long-term viability of Western Australia's farms. Australian Bureau of Statistics figures confirm that salinity is the biggest problem facing farmers. Research also identified weed infestation as a major issue for drought-stricken farmers battling to survive. Garry English, Western Australian Farmers Federation land management and conservation spokesman, said he found farmers are not interested in the massive salinity threat because of the drought affecting about two-thirds of the State's farms. The Australian Bureau of Statistics report has exposed the impact of clearing on salinity levels in Western Australian rivers. A 1997 survey found that weeds were the most common problem reported by farmers. Australia has around 3,000 weed species and of which 370 have been declared noxious. This article contains one diagram showing land under threat, source: Australian Bureau of Statistics. PLEASE NOTE: We are unable to provide a public view of this newspaper article as the copyright is held by the publisher of The West Australian. If you would like to obtain a copy of this newspaper article for research purposes, please ‘request a copy'. This article is part of the WISALTS (Whittington Interceptor Sustainable Agriculture Land Treatment Society Incorporated) Collection