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Drought in the 1990S Australian Farm Families' Experiences Drought in the 1990s Australian Farm Families' Experiences By D Stehlik, I Gray and G Lawrence Rural Social and Economic Research Centre, Queensland & Centre for Rural Social Research, NSW Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation Resilient Agricultural Systems Research and Development RIRDC Publication No 99/14 RIRDC Project No UCQ-5A © 1999 Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. All rights reserved. ISBN 0 642 57877 X ISSN 1440-6845 “Drought in the 1990s - Australian Farm Families’ Experiences” Publication No. 99/14 Project No. UCQ-5A The views expressed and the conclusions reached in this publication are those of the author and not necessarily those of persons consulted. RIRDC shall not be responsible in any way whatsoever to any person who relies in whole or in part on the contents of this report. This publication is copyright. However, RIRDC encourages wide dissemination of its research, providing the Corporation is clearly acknowledged. For any other enquiries concerning reproduction, contact the Communications Manager on phone 02 6272 3186. Researcher Contact Details Dr. Daniela Stehlik Rural Social and Economic Research Centre Centre for Rural Social Research Central Queensland University Charles Sturt University ROCKHAMPTON QLD 4702 WAGGA WAGGA NSW 2678 Phone: 07 4930 9405 Fax: 07 4930 6402 Email: [email protected] RIRDC Contact Details Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation Level 1, AMA House 42 Macquarie Street BARTON ACT 2600 PO Box 4776 KINGSTON ACT 2604 Phone: 02 6272 4539 Fax: 02 6272 5877 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.rirdc.gov.au Published in April 1999 Printed on environmentally friendly paper by Union Offset ii Foreword Drought has brought recurring disaster since the settlement of rural Australia. Battling against it has become part of Australian tradition and has been seen symbolically to reinforce the cohesion of Australian society. Nevertheless, anecdotal 'stories' and media reporting continue to remain the main sources of information and provide less than reliable evidence for decision making by key stakeholders. Often the mythology of 'the Australian bush' obscures the reality of the lived experience of those families who, in the 1990s, have experienced a drought of up to six seasons. The long term impact of the drought on the consciousness of families and on their relationships with their communities were the focus of a two year (1995-1997) collaborative study undertaken by the Rural Social and Economic Research Centre at Central Queensland University and the Centre for Rural Social Research at Charles Sturt University. Over 100 producers were interviewed on 56 properties in the beef producing area of Central Queensland and the sheep/wheat producing area of the western rangelands of New South Wales. In-depth interviewing with producers from both regions, combined with policy and media analysis, interviews with key stakeholders and a major literature review have resulted in 'a social construction of drought'. This report, jointly funded by RIRDC and the Land and Water Resources Research and Development Corporation, is the latest addition to our diverse range of over 250 research publications, forms part of our Resilient Agricultural Systems Research and Development program which aims to enable agricultural production systems that have sufficient diversity, flexibility and robustness to be resilient and respond to challenges and opportunities. Most of our publications are available for viewing, downloading or purchasing online through our website at www.rirdc.gov.au/pub/cat/contents.html Peter Core Managing Director Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation iii Acknowledgments We express gratitude to the two funding bodies which have sponsored this research - the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, and the Land and Water Resources Research and Development Corporation. We also thank the following: Our Senior Research Officers - Helen Bulis (CQ), Rachael Williams (NSW) and Andrea Witcomb (CQ). Our Research Assistants Hannah Walker (CQ) and Vaughan Higgins (CQ). Tony Dunn, who assisted with the focus groups in New South Wales. The transcriptions of all the interviews were undertaken by Karen White (CQ) and Alison Gelding, Debbie Pickles and Nicola Williams (NSW). We particularly offer our heartfelt thanks to all those women and men in Central Queensland and in New South Wales who have shared with us their heartaches, joys, and insights. Their perceptions can only add to an understanding of the social construction of drought and we hope that our recounting of their narratives in this way will enable those of us who do not live in rural Australia to better appreciate and begin to understand their lived experiences. About the Authors Dr. Daniela Stehlik is Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Director, Rural Social and Economic Research Centre at Central Queensland University, Rockhampton. Dani has been extensively involved in research development in human service policy and practice, building on twelve years experience in Federal Government management and policy positions. Recent publications include Futures for Central Queensland (1996). History of welfare and services to people with disabilities in Australia in Annison. J. et al. (eds) (1996) Disability: A Guide for Health Professionals; and a number of papers developed from this study. Dr. Ian Gray is Senior Lecturer in Sociology, and at the time of this study, Deputy Director of the Centre for Rural Social Research at Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga. He is the author of Politics in Place: Social Power Relations in an Australian Country Town (CUP, 1991) and is co-author of 'Predictors of Stress among Australian Farmers' (Australian Journal of Social Issues, 1996), 'Farming Practice as Temporally and Spatially Situation Intersections of Biography, Culture and Social Structure' (Australian Geographer, 1995) and Coping with Change: Australian Farmers in the 1990s (Centre for Rural Social Research, 1993) and Power, interests and the extension of sustainable agriculture, Sociologia Ruralis (1997). Professor Geoffrey Lawrence is Foundation Chair of Sociology and Executive Director of the Institute for Sustainable Regional Development at Central Queensland University, Rockhampton. He has written widely about rural social issues in Australia and has conducted many national research projects. Selected books include: Capitalism and the Countryside (1987), Rural Health and Welfare in Australia (1990), Agriculture, Environment and Society (1992), The Environmental Imperative (1995), Social Change in Rural Australia (1996) and Globalisation and Agri-food Restructuring (1996), Altered Genes (forthcoming 1998) and Australian Food and Farming in a Globalised Economy (forthcoming, 1998). iv Contents Foreword..................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgments.........................................................................................................iv About the Authors.........................................................................................................iv Tables ………………………………………………………………………………..vii Attachments ............................................................................................................... viii Executive Summary....................................................................................................xi Introduction..................................................................................................................1 Objectives......................................................................................................................7 2.1 Research Context...............................................................................................7 2.2 Research Objectives...........................................................................................7 Method ..........................................................................................................................9 3.1 Overview of study..............................................................................................9 3.2 A constructivist approach - narratives of experience.........................................9 3.3 A framework for analysis.................................................................................10 3.4 Gathering the data............................................................................................11 3.5 ‘Rhizomatic’ sampling as a research technique...............................................13 3.6 Research reflections.........................................................................................15 Summary of findings - A Social Construction of Drought.....................................16 4.1 Drought and its impact.....................................................................................16 4.2 Consequences of drought for farm families.....................................................17 Changing Spaces/Places: A Review of Literature...................................................21 5.1 Introduction......................................................................................................21 5.2 Globalisation and agrarian change...................................................................22 5.3 Globalisation and corporatised agriculture ......................................................23 5.4 Local social effects...........................................................................................25
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