Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee, , 7:45:33 to 7:56:37
The committee examines the federal response to the algal bloom in South Australia, including the availability of loans and grants for affected fishers. Discussion focuses on communication between state and federal departments regarding the severity of the bloom.
Topics: Algal bloom, Fisheries, Grants administration
Speakers: Speaker 33, Speaker 12, Speaker 17, Speaker 3, Speaker 29, Speaker 5, Uh The
>> Okay. I think I'm chair at the moment.
So so do I. >> Thank you very much. Um I just wanted to talk about the algal bloom in South Australia. >> Yeah. Excellent. And I know that some of my colleagues have already um asked some questions. So, I've made sure that I've gone through so that we're not doubling up um and and not wasting time um of the witnesses. Um I will cut straight to the chase. Um, has the South Australian government requested that the marine harmful algoloom loan that's being provided through the federal well through federal government funding um be made available sooner.
Um I'm not I think I think I think we're all both um the department and the minister keen to make sure that that loan is available as soon as possible in recognition of the effects of the algoloom on fishes um and aquaculture providers. Um, I'm not sure if there's been any formal representations of that nature.
Senator, though, >> could someone check and then maybe get that back to me on notice? >> What was the question? >> So, whether the state government of South Australia has actually requested that that money be available sooner um because obviously we've got businesses that are going broke as we speak. Um there is no end in sight to the algal bloom despite the premier getting up at the end of January saying it's essentially non-existent which anyone who's who's following at home can see that the York Peninsula has had tens of thousands of fish and rays killed just in the last couple of days. I'm wondering if anyone from the state government of South Australia has requested that funding be made available
quicker. Uh so Senator Sha answers no. There hasn't been any formal representations from the state government that we uh enact the loan sooner than early this year.
>> Okay. Thank you. Um in terms of mitigation strategies across Australia, so we have the algorum in South Australia. Are there are there any things that the federal government is looking at um pumping build water ensuring that boats aren't um inadvertently moving algoloom to other jurisdictions? Has has anyone done any
work on that? >> Probably if it's um in relation to
>> Oh, that would be a question for our bio security colleagues. Okay. Um uh I understand there was some risk assessment being done there, but that will be a question for our high security
colleagues out. Um in terms of what your department, we had a a Senate inquiry um into the algum which which we sort of pulled together um quite quickly. Has your department been directed by government to implement any of the recommendations from the Senate inquiry?
>> Um, you go. >> No, no, that's I was just going to say then uh as the as a result of the the government will respond to the inquiry and that will dictate I guess the department's work in relation to to the recommendations that were made. you haven't been directed by the government to >> um I'm just trying to recollect if there were any specific recommendations that um that were relevant to us.
>> Uh I think >> we've definitely we've definitely been providing input into our uh colleagues in DUA leading the government response in relation to this. But in terms of particular directions, there might well be some uh actions that relate to DHQ that they have commenced implementation of. But that will be a question for DQ.
>> Okay. >> Senator, I I can just say on behalf of the minister that there there hasn't been any direct approach to her in regards to >> okay a request for speeding up any
loans. >> That's helpful. Thank you. Thank you very much for that. Um and and I guess in terms of um is the state government communicating with government departments in terms of what is happening on the ground in South Australia? Are they are there regular communications happening in terms of how dire it is for people?
>> There there is there is regular communication is is how I would characterize it and has been over the course of I guess of the the incidence of the algol bloom
>> when they remembered to tell you months after it had first appeared >> um >> which came out in the Senate inquiry.
>> C certainly there's been regular um engagement and and I guess that kind of um tends to sort of peak and trough a bit as well depending on kind of um the needs of South Australian community and
government. Can I ask if the South Australian government has uh reported to the federal government in a similar vein to what the premier has been providing to media in South Australia that the algoloom is all but non-existent? Is that is that something that's been formally communicated?
>> I wouldn't characterize our interactions with the South Australian Department um in that way. It's it's about um the work that we're it's it's more pragmatic than that. um Senator, it's around kind of the status of the Rick loan for example and information exchange about about um about the program and as we mentioned to Senator Rustin um DQ is the lead department in relation to the algoloom so they're leading um that interaction
and engagement as well. Can I ask what your I guess what you know as um a deputy sec secretary of the department. What's your view on the algab bloom in
South Australia? I >> wouldn't say I've got a view per se. Um I guess kind of similar to my comments um to Senator Rustin. Um we understand that the algul bloom is is I guess changing and moving. Um so the incidence of the bloom is moving. Um, and I'm going to get my South Australian geography for that. Um, probably mixed up here, but from the Gulf of St. Vincent. >> Yep. >> Uh, and its incidence is increasing in
the Spencer Gulf. Um, in terms of federally committed funds, do you have a breakdown of what's being committed to sort of actual fish fisheries industry as opposed to caravan parks um and other businesses?
I >> I think we do have some information on that, Senator, if you just give us um some time to get that together. Yeah, my
understanding is uh financial support for wild catch them some wild catch fishes and aquat chopas to totaled over 21 million of that that's from the kind of uh broader funding amounts that have been provided um joint jointly to uh South Australian
government and federal government >> and how much of that has been acquitted do you know like >> has that been given to
>> yeah we that's right so um So a number of the programs uh which I talked to earlier um are providing assistance uh at the moment and we can talk through kind of what the uptake of some of those grants have been if that's if that's helpful but in terms of the broader aquit um again because uh the the broader funding arrangements are managed by DQ we don't we don't necessarily have that um information to hand but we do can talk you through some information that we have at least in terms of um our understanding of uptake of those grants
that that would be really helpful because I think >> it $21 million and and what's being felt on the ground in South Australia is people aren't seeing the money. So they had a lot of promises and a lot of commitments but they're not actually
seeing >> Yeah. So um the figures that that I have to hand are from u mid mid January >> uh and uh they talked to um in terms of small business grants 113 grants of up to 20,000 >> uh which have been approved for fisheries and aquaculture license holder assistance grants 134 grants of up to 225 uh,000 uh and um we understand that the South Australian government is also assessing 23 applications for industry response and resilience grants and these are the ones that are between 25 and $150,000.
>> Fantastic. Thank you. That is very helpful. Um and just finally in terms of you sort of mentioned some of our beautiful golfs that we have in South Australia and um we do have a magnificent fishing industry and I I'm biased but I like to think some of the best in the world. I guess what is the department doing to showcase that? One of the biggest issues has been um international markets or or one of the fears um of of the various um fisheries in the state. Is the department doing anything specifically to help promote them? Um
>> um well, we'd certainly agree that the South South Australian fisheries is some of the best in the world um along with many fisheries across Australia. Um I I think more broadly the the work that we do um both internationally and domestically is ensuring um that our fisheries um are regulated such that they're operating um to a really high standard and that ensures that the reputation of the fish that comes from those fisheries um um stands up on a global scale and those export markets are available um to our fishers
to access. >> But there's nothing specific you're doing for the South Australian.
>> We don't tend to senator get involved in marketing on behalf of industries. Obviously, we have a lot. There are some industries collect a levy for that purpose. Others do it sort of differently. So, we don't tend to um as a department get involved in that, but obviously a whole range of bodies are there to support that work.
>> Excellent. Thank you. Thank you, chair.