Tuesday, 12 August 2025

Roadside livestock grazing

Bev McARTHUR (Western Victoria) (18:08): (1817) My question to the Minister for Roads and Road Safety concerns a critical issue for drought-prone Victoria’s farmers – the bureaucratic red tape strangling roadside grazing known as the long paddock. Minister, our farmers are the backbone of this state. During droughts they face unimaginable financial, physical and mental strain. Roadside grazing is a time-honoured lifeline providing free fodder when pastures fail. Grass grows on poorly maintained roadsides and goes to waste while livestock starve, yet councils, including Moyne shire in my electorate, are denying permits over absurd fears like cow manure splashing cyclists on quiet back roads. Posie Mann, a farmer in Moyne, was reported for grazing her starving cattle on roadside grass. She was told, ‘It’s too risky. Manure might cause an accident. A cyclist might get splattered.’ On a sleepy single-lane road this is bureaucratic nonsense. What about the farmers rights, or what about the cattle’s right to food?

The benefits of roadside grazing are clear. It addresses fodder shortages, and during drought, feed is incredibly expensive even if it is available, which it is not in many areas. As Posie has highlighted, she is rationing feed while her cattle continue to struggle, but she is trying to keep them alive – no help from the government or the council. It also cuts fire risk by managing roadside vegetation. We know it lowers fuel loads and can reduce fire spread. Badly maintained roadsides become fire wicks.

Councils should recognise this and open grazing seasons to help prevent summer fires. Where invasive weeds dominate, grazing controls them; a problem becomes a solution. These are practical, proven outcomes rooted in tradition and backed by evidence, yet farmers face overregulation and excessive caution. Moyne’s reluctance to issue permits ignores low-traffic roads and farmers’ desperate needs. Ecologists raised concerns about native vegetation, but this should be a consideration, not a roadblock. Safety issues like manure on roads are manageable with fencing, supervision and clean-up. Councils could set clear guidelines: electric fences, no night-time grazing and liability insurance. It is not rocket science, it is common sense. So, Minister, I urge you to act: form a cross-government taskforce to streamline roadside grazing policies, simplify permits, set clear safety standards, prioritise farmers’ needs, cut the red tape and let common sense prevail. Our farmers deserve nothing less.