CONSTITUENCY STATEMENTS

Mr RICK WILSON (O'Connor) (09:46): Last Friday, I was honoured to attend the Australasian launch of the United Nations designated International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists 2026 at the Perth Royal Show. I take this opportunity to thank IYRP 2026 chair Debbie Dowden, of Challa Station, for hosting this event and for her long-term advocacy for the people and the projects of the WA Rangelands, which lie in my electorate of O'Connor and the neighbouring electorate of Durack.

Over 80 per cent of Western Australia is comprised of rangelands, which is more than the Australian average of 75 per cent. The rangelands are vast open spaces, made up of ancient landscapes, unique and complex ecosystems and productive agricultural land. They host much of Western Australia's mineral wealth, and the pastoral country provides food and fibre not only for Australians but also for international trading partners.

The rangelands support thousands of Western Australians, including pastoralists, Indigenous land managers, mining companies and residents of regional and remote towns, providing their livelihoods and culture. The pastoralists of the rangelands are a resilient lot, raising livestock that graze alongside native wildlife, competing with feral herbivores like wild camels and goats, and under the threat of predation by introduced carnivores.

A division having been called in the House of Representatives— Sitting suspended from 09:48 to 10 : 00 Mr RICK WILSON: Businesses like Challa Station are multigenerational operations whose sustainable agricultural practices have seen their enterprise survive the climate challenges of floods and droughts, and ride out economic boom and bust cycles and government supported interventions—from positive ones like invasive species control, Indigenous ranger and traditional land management programs to negative government interference in vital markets such as live cattle and sheep exports.

I take this opportunity to mention Rawlinna Station, which spans one million hectares and runs over 30,000 sheep in some of the most hostile environmental conditions on the Nullarbor Plain. Thanks to 400 kilometres of wild-dog fencing and feral-animal control measures, Rawlinna is the only station in my electorate of O'Connor that can still sustain a large sheep enterprise, and there are plans to double its flock size to 60,000 in the foreseeable future.

Rawlinna Station is another great example of a rangeland enterprise that is not only surviving but thriving. I believe the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists is an opportunity to recognise the value of our rangelands and the hardworking people who manage these unique environments—people whose specialised knowledge and downright resilience have seen them not only survive but thrive when many would have walked away or perished.

I encourage the coastal dwellers of Australia to take the opportunity that this International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists presents to visit and learn about Australia's amazing interior and the important role it plays in our national identity, productivity and prosperity. I hope 2026 will be the year that puts the rangelands and their pastoralists well and truly on the map.