16 ON THE LAND
thursday 05 august 2021
burdekinlocal.com.au
Farm safety facts are Crop pest a solemn reminder discovered Photo: Merle Shepard, Gerald R. Carner & P.A.C Ooi, Bugwood.org.
CANEGROWERS Chairman Paul Schembri THE Safer Farms Report 2021 has been sobering reading. My state and my age group have featured strongly, and not in a good way. FarmSafe Australia puts out an annual report on fatalities and significant injuries on farms. Overall, there is some
positive news with the number of deaths on farms across the country in the first six months of 2021 down on the figure for 2020. At 20 people killed (instead of 30), though, it is still a big problem. As a Queenslander, what has particularly given me
Paul Schembri
Weekly production figures Burdekin region mills Week 8, ending 31 July 2021 Cane crushed Invicta Pioneer Kalamia Inkerman Burdekin
This week
CCS Invicta Pioneer Kalamia Inkerman Burdekin
161,010 82,181 81,446 54,332 378,969
Season to date
1,138,875 609,054 559,149 440,813 2,747,891
15.06 14.83 14.46 14.34 14.78
Weekly variety performance for region Variety % CCS Variety Q240 44 15.07 Q232 KQ228 25 14.27 Q208 Q183 15 15.58
14.09 14.09 13.71 13.45 13.91 % 9
CCS 14.25 13.86
Comments: Throughput for the week was just under 380,000 tonnes. This was above budget even though Inkerman Mill did not come back online until Tuesday, following corrective work to the steam-water separators in the boiler drum. Invicta Mill recorded the best weekly throughput for the year, of just over 160,000 tonnes. Total throughput for the season to date is now just under 2.75 million tonnes. Average weekly CCS was 14.78 which is now nearly 0.5 units above budget. The highest CCS sample was 18.0 from a rake of Q240 plant cane in the Pioneer Mill area. John Tait Cane Supply Manager Burdekin Region
pause to think is that nearly 60% of the farm-related injuries reported over the past 18 months were in this state. That is 126 serious accidents in Queensland within the national total of 201. In those same 18 months, 24 people lost their lives in accidents on Queensland farms. Hitting close to home, 82% of them were men and 62% were aged over 45 years. Statistics can provide a good opportunity to pause and think. Farms are complex and busy operations and farmers (including growers) are generally juggling a lot of tasks and responsibilities. We must be the most multiskilled people in Australia even before you factor in the pressure and stress that goes with running your own business. With so much going on, there is a lot that could go wrong. Going by the statistics, it goes wrong for the more experienced farmer, those aged over 50, more often than for any other group.
The FarmSafe report made this observation: “A commonly perpetuated myth on farm is that it is the young adults, with their over confidence and lack of long-term experience, that are most at risk on farm. Yet year in and year out we find that males over the age of 50 are the most likely to be fatally injured. It seems that experience isn’t always the best indication of safe practice.” I’ll put my hand up and admit that I’ve lost count of the times I’ve thought, “That was close,” after something happened while I was working on the farm. I know most of my colleagues would be the same with their experiences of near misses. Sadly, virtually every family involved in farming, including the sugar industry, has a story to tell about an accident, and often it resulted in losing someone dear. One of the things I have observed about Australia after travelling to other countries and visiting sugarcane farms is that we do attach a high value to the safety of farmers
Glencore
Glencore sites, many of whom come from the regional communities where we operate. “From Mount Isa and Cloncurry in the northwest, to Clermont and Tieri in Central Queensland, our employment programs provide a challenging mix of on-the-job experience and mentoring by some of the best leaders in the business. “Recruitment campaigns for our programs occur yearround. Applications for our 2022 Queensland Metals Apprenticeship Program are currently open and applications have recently closed for our 2022 Coal Apprenticeship program with candidate selection underway.” The Queensland Metals apprentice program offers opportunities in the electrical, auto electrical, diesel fitting, fitter welder, radio technician, boilermaker, mechanic, fitter turner and refrigeration trades. In addition to the firstclass training and mentoring opportunities, the four-year program rotates apprentices
American serpentine leaf miner
ANOTHER invasive crop pest - American serpentine leafminer (ASLM) - has been found in Northern Australia. The pest is particularly harmful to horticultural crops such as beans, celery, cucumber and lettuce. ASLM was closely related
to the similarly named American leaf miner (ALM), which was first detected in Australia in 2020 and the vegetable leaf miner which has been present in the far north of Queensland for many years.
and to workers in general. Whilst we might feel that there are too many rules, if we are being honest, we do understand the importance of them and of keeping our workplaces, our farms, and our work practices safe. The rules, guidelines and campaigns are there for a reason. If nothing else, the
FarmSafe report is a reminder of why they are there, to take them seriously and to take stock of what we do and how we’re doing it every day we go to work. After all, we don’t want our people, our family, to become part of next year’s statistical review.
across Glencore’s diverse operations and is tied to a direct career path within the business. “Not only do we have a large number of apprentices across many different trades, we have a high completion rate of 96% over the past five years, significantly above the general industry rate of 56% for trades,” Ms Hope said. “We look for bright, curious and confident people and provide them with the tools and support they need to succeed. “Many of our Australian leaders began their careers as apprentices or graduates and have progressed their careers
to senior management in our organisation.” Glencore’s in-house employment programs include opportunities for university graduates, apprenticeships, trainees, vacation and work experience students, as well as school leavers.
Glencore champions jobs in regional Queensland GLENCORE is investing in entry-level job opportunities across Queensland, with 266 apprentices and 115 graduates currently building their resource sector careers with Glencore’s Coal and Queensland Metals businesses. We continue to be one of Queensland’s largest natural resource sector employers and have a range of entry-level programs, including for school leavers or university graduates and people of all ages looking for a new challenge or career opportunity. “We’re proud that we have been able to continue hiring and providing exciting and well-paid jobs to support Queensland’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic,” Glencore’s Regional Human Resource Lead Jodie Hope said. “Glencore employs 8,590 people across the state at our operations generating $8 billion in total economic value,” said Ms Hope. “This year, 67 first-year apprentices and 51 graduates started their careers across
CONNECT NOW: Applications for Glencore’s Queensland Metals 2022 Apprenticeship Program can be made here (search reference QMAPPRENTICE2022). Applications close Sunday 8 August 2021.
