Kangaroo Island and other areas affected by the 2020 bushfires have been inundated with state and federal governments funding announcements in the last year.

These have been directed not only at direct bushfire recovery efforts, but also at tourism recovery in the wake of COVID-19 restrictions and at agricultural improvements.

With both state and federal elections looming the largesse looks set to continue, with three new announcements in the last week.

They include a $3.45 million in Disaster Recovery funding for a project to breed sterile flies in a bid to eradicate sheep blowfly from Kangaroo Island within four years.

A cost benefit analysis has shown eradicating sheep blowfly on Kangaroo Island could save producers an estimated $88 million over 25 years.

Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development David Basham says the initial sterile fly releases are expected to be in late 2022.

“The eradication of blowflies from Kangaroo Island would further reinforce the area’s clean, green reputation across the world.

“The project team are finalising the design of a mobile facility and the site on Kangaroo Island.”

A further announcement says Kangaroo Island farmers can now apply for up to $50,000 to install or repair on-farm water infrastructure to help the industry recover from bushfires.

The $600,000 On-farm Water Infrastructure Rebate Scheme enables eligible producers to apply for a rebate of up to 50 per cent of the costs associated with the purchase, installation or repair of farm water infrastructure for livestock and permanent horticulture.

“The program is aimed at providing long term certainty for Kangaroo Island farmers when it comes to water storage, particularly after being impacted by the devastating bushfires,” Minister Basham says.

Applications will close when funding is exhausted or at 5pm on 31 October, whichever occurs first. Full details are available on the PIRSA website. 

More grants are available from the state government’s $2.6 million Bushfire Mental Health Project, which is delivering targeted assistance over four years to people living in bushfire affected communities.

Community organisations can apply for grants of up to $20,000 to help support their continued recovery, in this second round of funding.

“While people feel stress and grief after a major disaster, sometimes the impact is not obvious straight away and the recovery can be an extended process,” says Stephen Wade, Minister for Health and Wellbeing.

“These grants aim to fund locally driven projects that help communities connect with each other and build resilience through their recovery to meet any longer-term impacts head on.”

“The successful projects in the first round of grants were diverse in nature, ranging from a program that provided additional support for people caring for animals impacted by the fires, to first aid sessions that provided mental health information tailored for children,” says Wellbeing SA Chief Executive Lyn Dean.

“The previous projects proved that there is no single way to build resilience and improve mental health and wellbeing, and we are encouraging all local community groups, volunteer organisations, charities, schools and councils to apply.

More information on the grants and on a project supporting the mental health and wellbeing of young people on Kangaroo Island through Headspace is available from Wellbeing SA.