Farmers Seek Stable Support Amid Drought

0:00From Adelaide, this is your February 26 update. Livestock South Australia chair, Jillian Fonell, says short-term crisis aid for farmers is not enough to keep the industry thriving amid ongoing. Drought. She wants the same level of respect and planning given to mining. Recent heavy rain in the mid-north brought some relief after months without much water, but long-term rainfall is dropping across key farming areas. The research shows the clients of 11 to 33% over seven decades in places like the upper air peninsula with temperatures, rising too. Farmerspace extra strains like poor regional roads, more regulations, worker shortages, old biosecurity setups, and wild weather swings. The mental toll is huge, with constant anxiety from past dry spills like the millennium drought pushing some to their limits. Fonell shares how her own million acre station endured two rainless years, leaving lasting stress that drives young people away from the land.

1:01Farmers are tough, but without better mental health help, tragedies happen. Livestock South Australia, representing 80% of the state's farmland, released a pre-election wish list calling for a new rural finance and resilience agency. This would provide steady support, unlike scattered emergency aid, and South Australia is the only mainland state, without one. Both major parties are responding ahead of the March 21st election. Labor highlights $200 million in drought loans, and $97 million in resilience measures. Liberals promise a $300 million rural fund, plus $1 billion for roads over four years, and focus on mining impacts. This story is made possible by our sponsor. Sally Pillow is a pillow with built-in headphones, lay back, press play, and disappear into what you are listening to. S-O-L-I-SallyPillow.com S-O-L-L-I-SallyPillow.com