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Salinity
credits
The Murray Darling Basin Commission has suggested
that 1.5 million hectares of new-planted forest might be required
in the catchment area to control dryland salinity. In the Western
Australian wheat belt, a similar area might also be required.
This has led to calls for the introduction of salinity control
credits so that farmers can be paid if they plant forests where
there is a demonstrated salinity control benefit.
Paying farmers for the off-farm (off-site) salinity-reduction
provided by forests on their property is a market-based solution
that might encourage multipurpose tree-growing projects on salinity
recharge areas. The potential to earn annual payments for salinity
credits from commercial forests enables farmers to make environment-focused
choices. They might, for example, be able to forego an annual
return from grazing in anticipation of some income from salinity
credits and a future return from timber.
Selected areas in New South Wales and South Australia are currently
trialling salinity credit payment pilot programs. In the NSW
scheme, one unit of salinity control is equal to transpiration
of one million litres of water. State Forests of NSW establishes
the forests and pays an annuity to the farmers who own the land
where the forests are grown and Macquarie River Food and Fibre
(MRFF) pays State Forests of NSW for the transpiration service
provided by their plantations. State Forests of NSW retains
the rights to the timber and other values provided by the forests.
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