Funding support for the beekeeping industry will keep queen bees buzzing and help restore thousands of bee hives destroyed from the 2019 to 2020 bushfires.
The 2019 to 2020 bushfire season destroyed over 9800 hives, with another 88,000 suffering heat and smoke damage.
Aiming to create a hive of activity in the state, the NSW and Australian governments will provide $1.9 million in funding for apiary projects. This will include:
an audit of NSW government-owned land for suitable bee sites
establishing pollinator-friendly plants in rural NSW
upskilling beekeepers by subsidising courses in biosecurity and queen breeding
establishing a ‘Honey Library’ by profiling the unique chemical composition of NSW honey
researching projects on new honey markets and enhancing forest and bee health for high-value medicinal honey.
Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall says identifying public land that can be used for hives will help increase honey production.
“We will also lead the development of a ‘Honey Library’ to help identify the unique profile of NSW honey to ensure provenance as well as protect the high-quality reputation of the state’s industry," Mr Marshall said.
More than one million plant specimens kept for research by leading scientists will be housed at a recently opened herbarium facility at the Australian Botanic Garden in Mount Annan.
Residents facing the difficult task of cleaning up after extraordinary flooding across the state will be able to take flood-generated waste to the tip for free.
