Questions for David Pollock and Frances Jones:

ABCTV ‘s Australian Story tonight was about a farmer who destocked his rangeland grazing property in outback Western Australia. It was a love story about a girl from the city who came out for a few weeks and stayed forever, falling in love with the farmer and the farm.
Questions not answered by the program – that would have made sense of the story had they been answered – were the following:
1. Would the tourism enterprise keep the property afloat without stewardship payments?
2. What contribution does the regeneration strategy chosen make to providing food or fibre?
3. Was a regeneration strategy using grazing management to restore the landscape considered?
4. Have the opportunities presented by the Carbon Farming Initiative been considered?
5. Have the carbon levels in the soil been monitored?
6. Is the model valid for use by a large number of graziers in any district or can there be only one as a demonstration property.
Is there a danger that David and Frances's story could encourage city-based people to believe that all farms should be run like theirs - that supermarkets provide food, not farms?
We loved their innovations, like the water spreading wire tubes. Brilliant.