A new exemption to allow Victorian agricultural workers to cross the NSW border is leaving some farmers in limbo, according to South Gippsland primary producers Sharon and John Kelly.
The Kellys have 500 cattle on agistment in northern NSW and have been unable to check on their herd of Angus heifers, bulls and weaner calves since their permit was cancelled on August 7.
New rules announced by the NSW government on Tuesday now allow Victorians working in agriculture to cross the border and travel up to 100 kilometres with a permit and without having to self-isolate.
It is unfortunate news for the Kellys who are agisting their cattle at Come By Chance, more than 800 kilometres north of the border.
"We're dealing with live animals and they're unpredictable," Mrs Kelly said.
"Animals don't wait for permits. If something is wrong you need to go and check on them straight away."
Under the permit changes, individuals will have access to a new Highly Specialised Critical Services Permit if they:
- Provide a highly specialised critical agricultural service;
- Are moving and working anywhere within 100km of the NSW/Victorian border, on the NSW side;
- Comply with strict conditions if staying overnight; and,
- Adhere to other safety requirements, including self-isolating when not delivering the critical service.
The cattle were sent from the Kelly's Gippsland farm at Korumburra to northern NSW between April and June to take the pressure off the home block and allow for pasture recovery, a decision they are starting to regret.
After contacting Agriculture Minister Jaclyn Symes and her NSW counterpart, Adam Marshall, Mrs Kelly said bureaucrats needed to reconsider the permit criteria because it did not take into account people who lived outside the border bubble.
"We're concerned about animal welfare because cattle can get themselves into trouble very quickly unless you're keeping a close eye on them," Mrs Kelly said.
"If we all of a sudden had pink eye which causes blindness in a cow, that can spread very quickly throughout the herd and we could end up with a whole heap of blind cattle that can't find their way back to the water."
Mr Kelly said the landowner at NSW, an 82-year-old woman, was keeping an eye on the herd in the short-term but said the cattle needed to be checked before they were brought back into Victoria in the coming months.
"The border permits should be eligible for anyone who has agricultural operations on both sides of the border," he said.
"To state the bleeding obvious, flying through Sydney can't be done because we can't take our horses or dogs all the gear we need.
"They need a country-centric permit rather than a city-centric permit which allows us to cross the border and take our gear and self-isolate while we're not working."
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Bryce Eishold
Bryce is a senior journalist with Australian Community Media's Stock & Land where he reports on all aspects of agriculture. Bryce is also the president of the Rural Press Club of Victoria. Email Bryce at bryce.eishold@stockandland.com.au.
Bryce is a senior journalist with Australian Community Media's Stock & Land where he reports on all aspects of agriculture. Bryce is also the president of the Rural Press Club of Victoria. Email Bryce at bryce.eishold@stockandland.com.au.
