Farmers need certainty, not confusion, from new environmental standards
The National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) has responded to the release today of the first National Environmental Standards under the EPBC Act. NFF President Hamish McIntyre said the standards for Matters of National Environmental Significance, Environmental Offsets, Data and Information, and Community Engagement would determine the next phase of environmental approvals and the Federal Government’s agreements […]
Proposed Change to the Soil Organic Carbon Method 2021 Supplement
In responding to these findings, it is equally important that changes preserve confidence among farmers and project proponents alike who have made long-term investment decisions based on existing methodology settings. While integrity is fundamental, so too is confidence that Scheme settings will remain sufficiently stable for those undertaking long-term investment decisions. We recognise that the […]
Fossil Methane: A Near-Term Abatement Opportunity
It is important to note that a stronger focus on reducing fossil methane emissions must not come at the expense of reduced support for innovation and research and development within agriculture. Agriculture remains hard-to-abate, and available methane reduction technologies vary significantly between production systems. Continued public and private investment is required to develop commercially viable […]
NFF warns EPBC guide leaves farmers with more questions than answers
Comments attributable to NFF Sustainable Development Committee Chair, Angus Atkinson The Federal Government has today released its first guide for farmers and agricultural landholders on changes to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act. The National Farmers’ Federation is extremely concerned it does not enable food and fibre producers to make informed decisions about routine management […]
Dog days ahead if funding fails
The National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) is calling on the Federal Government to urgently commit funding to wild dog control, as the nation’s leading management program faces an uncertain future. Funding for the National Wild Dog Management Coordinator is due to expire at the end of September, with funding for the National Wild Dog Action Plan […]
Draft Report: Independent Review of the Snowy Water Inquiry Outcomes Implementation Deed
The Draft Report characterises the modelled impacts on downstream water users as relatively small and manageable – we do not accept that characterisation. While the modelling indicates that high-security entitlements remain unaffected, it identifies potential reductions in general security diversions of around 2-3% in drier years and reductions in end-of-year allocations of between 1-3%. This […]
Nature Repair (Enhanced Native Vegetation) Methodology Determination
The NFF’s original submission in November 2025 raised significant concerns about the restriction of projects to selected IBRA subregions in eastern and south-western Australia. The NFF argued that this substantially constrained participation, particularly across northern Australia and grazing and native-pasture landscapes, and recommended consideration of percentage-based eligibility or case-by-case assessment for otherwise suitable projects. […]
Impact of the Australian Government’s 2025 Environment Protection Reforms on Queensland
The environment protection reforms passed by Federal Parliament in December 2025 significantly alter the operation of the EPBC Act, continuous-use requirements, treatment of Matters of National Environmental Significance, and the parameters governing assessment and decision-making (i.e., establishment of National Environmental Standards (Standards), National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA), and other statutory test requirements and functions). The […]
Productivity Commission Inquiry into National Water Reform 2026: Preliminary Assessment – Interim Update 2
The “largely achieved” assessment for community partnerships may overstate the consistency of performance across Governments and agencies. The existence of a consultation process is not in itself sufficient. Effective community partnership depends on authentic leadership, adequate timeframes, accessible information, and a clear line of sight between stakeholder input and the final decision. Performance should be […]
Exposure Draft of Proposed Amendments to the SASB Standards and the IFRS S2 Industry-Based Guidance
From the outset we wish to make clear that the NFF are extremely disappointed that there has not been close and direct engagement on the development of any metrics with the agricultural sector. NFF has been delivering a world leading sustainability framework, the Australian Agriculture Sustainability Framework (AASF), supported by Commonwealth grants. The AASF has […]