Ok, so agriculture is already a big part of the WA economy but lately it has been seriously overshadowed by the reignited mining boom.

Some drivers for the future of agriculture in this state -

• Water and land availability around the Ord river
• Improvements in large scale farming practices
• New technologies for monitoring the environment
• New genetically modified strains of crop that are hardier in respect of low water and pest tollerance
• Rapidly growing human populations

Proceedings for the C2030 Broome summit program were opened by Hon Brendon Grylls MLA.

·         Traditional owners were acknowledged

·         Queensland was presented as a model for the development of the vast expanses of Western Australia with regional centres seen as a core component of any development process

·         The heat & humidity should not be seen as a deterant for human settlement with the north of Queensland been presented as an example again

·         The richness of the resources of the region were focused on with particular mention made of the Ord agricultural area and associated expansion there

·         The value of eco tourism received mention

·         Traditional housing models were shown to be flawed with Brendon providing an alternative option in container homes / transportable. (Search futureWA website for more on container homes as it is a topic that drives significant traffic to this site)

·         Mention was made of the James Point gas hub with Brendon suggesting that there should be growth in areas beyond the realm of pearl farming, agriculture & tourism

·         Royalties for the Regions program and significant state & Federal $’s have been committed to the Ord & the East Kimberley