About 100 agricultural plant species, including horticultural crops and pastures, have been assessed for the Western Australian rangelands.
It is part of a streamlined process for assessing the environmental risks of bringing non-indigenous agricultural plants onto pastoral properties to boost the productivity of WA pastoral businesses.
The new process will improve the confidence of pastoralists wanting to diversify and boost the overall sustainability of the rangelands.
The introduction of agricultural plants which are not native to WA require a weed risk assessment as part of the pastoral diversification permit process.
A standardised methodology has been developed to assess the environmental weed risk of a species for the Kimberley, Pilbara, Gascoyne and Goldfields.
The updated process provides more clarity, transparency and scientific rigor for pastoralists, regulators and the broader community.
The publication 'Environmental weed risk assessment protocol for growing non-indigenous plants in the Western Australian rangelands' is available from the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development's website at www.agric.wa.gov.au/enviro-weed-assessments
As stated by Agriculture and Food Minister Alannah MacTiernan:
"Introducing new plant species can offer more pasture options for grazing livestock and increase the productivity of pastoral businesses.
"Pastoralists can now access more information on the most productive plants and strategies to manage any unintended environmental risk.
"Most importantly for industry, about 100 agricultural species have been re-assessed for the WA rangelands with the results available on the Department's website."
