As I sit back in the ‘border bubble’ in my home town of Barham, I have reflected on the bureaucratic mismanagement which is hurting our rural communities.
Decisions are made from afar by those who have very little knowledge, instead using computer models to justify their positions and the funding they rely on to keep their job.
Over the years I have unfortunately witnessed some of the worst bureaucratic blunders, though I must admit the ignorance which led to one farmer being advised by Service NSW to fly hay to Sydney before spending two weeks in quarantine just about takes the cake. Others have been told to put headers and large machinery – even their sheep – on a plane to Sydney (then into quarantine) if they want to get them into NSW.
These examples show how out of touch our city-based bureaucracy is with the real world of rural Australia, but it’s not unique to pandemic decisions.
For those in the water space, the impact of decisions which are made in isolation by those with no understanding of local situations is a national disgrace, as are the rural politicians who don’t call it out because it may threaten their political career.
Those unaccustomed to dealing with our bureaucracy will laugh at suggestions to fly sheep to Sydney, and rightly so. But those of us who have dealt with this dysfunctional system, especially over the past 15 to 20 years, are not surprised.
In water policy I have seen governments move departments and their personnel out of rural towns, and in the process, they by-pass community consultation and collaboration. Now, the government’s idea of ‘collaboration’ is allowing city-based bureaucrats to invite submissions, then ignore the local advice and plough ahead with their false computer modelling.
This has been the key driver to the downfall of water policy. It has led to disastrous water management decisions which are destroying the environment they are supposed to protect, killing our communities and jeopardising our staple food industries.
The best projects I was involved in were led from the ground up with all stakeholders working together. Those days are over and now there are no winners.
But nothing will change until our local politicians convince their party colleagues to stand up to the bureaucracy and protect our future and the nation’s food supply.
Neil Eagle
Barham NSW
