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Behemoth
Joined: 01 Dec 2004
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 Posted: Fri Feb 04, 05 1:12 pm Post subject: Farm Properties rise 25% in year |
 
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In today's FT
Cost of farm property rises 25% over past year
By Friederike Tiesenhausen Cave
Published: February 4 2005 02:00 | Last updated: February 4 2005 02:00
The cost of farm property has gone up by 25 per cent over the past year, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
In a report published today, the institution will say that the rise in the prices of farm land and buildings slowed in the fourth quarter to 4 per cent, down from 10 per cent in the third quarter.
Although there was some pick-up at the end of the year, turnover remains well below the levels seen of recent years. And, for the first time in a year, farmers have been the biggest buyers of farm properties, edging out city-dwellers.
In the last quarter, the number of reported trans-actions rose to its highest level in a year. The overall area traded also increased from 1,900 hectares to 2,500. The average price of farmland, weighted for region and use, was �9,950 a hectare: about �4,000 an acre.
Farming buyers accounted for 45 per cent of sales. The only area still experiencing a strong influx of town-dwellers was the south-west, where non-farmers made up 56 per cent of all purchases in the last quarter.
The institution identified two reasons for the shift in demand for farmland: farmers got a better sense of their likely future incomes after reforms to the European Union common agricultural policy, while non-farm buyers were feeling the pinch of higher interest rates.
The Cap reform agreed in June 2003 replaced all prior EU aid payments with a single farm payment scheme from this year, linked to the number of hectares maintained by each farm.
Uncertainty and confusion over these reforms kept fresh instructions to the rural property market tight over the past two years, as potential sellers sat on their hands. In 2004, the total number of farm sales was 43 per cent lower than in 2002.
The outlook for farmland property prices now is weaker than it was last year.
Surveyors expect a moderate increase for residential farms, and little change in the price of commercial farmland.
Julian Sayers, the institution's rural spokesman, said: "Supply conditions are expected to improve as the implications of the single farm payment are clarified."
He added: "Both increased caution from non-farm buyers and expectations for better availability in 2005 have led surveyors to believe farmland property prices will flatten out over the coming year." |
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tahir
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lazzasurf
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tahir
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Treacodactyl
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tahir
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Jonnyboy
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lazzasurf
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lazzasurf
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tahir
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jema
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tahir
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tahir
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| Posted: Fri Feb 18, 05 3:36 pm Post subject: |
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Just found this:
| Quote: |
AUSTRALIA: Water Running to Waste Down Under
Source: Copyright 2002, Environment News Service
Date: July 25, 2002
SYDNEY, Australia, July 25, 2002 (ENS) - Australia, the world's driest continent, currently wastes 92 percent of its city runoff and 86 percent of its effluent water. a prominent water scientist has warned. It is time to develop a national approach to re-use of water, says Dr. Peter Dillon, from the Commonwealth Scientific Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), a government agency.
"The amount of water going to waste is large," says Dr. Dillon of CSIRO Land and Water. "It constitutes a loss to industry and the environment, inhibits future development and adds to pollution. The fact that we re-use barely eight percent of the potentially available water is a reflection of our failure to get our act together on this vital national issue."
Over the past five years, 23 separate research projects have tackled this issue, but they have been localized, fragmented studies and the findings have not been widely shared, Dr. Dillon says.
In addition to conservation of rain water, there are four kinds of water with potential for re-use: stormwater, treated sewage effluent, treated industrial discharges, and gray waste water from household laundry and bathroom use.
The water expert sees how these waters could irrigate city parks, verges, ovals and horticulture, could be used for industrial purposes, for cooling water, for toilet flushing or for environmental purposes.
"The main barriers to re-use of water in Australia are issues of public confidence, health, the environment, reliable treatment, storage, economics, the lack of relevant regulations, poor integration in water resource management, and the lack of awareness," Dr. Dillon observes.
Australia's poor water re-use record is improving. National re-use of effluent has doubled in four years to 14 percent of all effluent produced as a result of A$300 million in capital works investments around the country.
Still, this remains a small proportion of the amount of the water still running to waste.
The Urban Water Resources Centre at the University of South Australia worked on a home water re-use project that shows how ordinary householders can put these concepts to work to save water.
The Intelligent Home concept at Regent Gardens, South Australia, involved collaboration between A.V. Jennings Pty. Ltd, innovative Australian businesses, and groups within the University of South Australia. The Intelligent Home is a modern semi-detached dwelling, which, among some 300 environmental features, has two independent water management systems incorporated into its design.
A roof runoff collection system for hot water supply was installed, with mains water only used as make-up water when the raintank is empty. The rainwater is collected in a tank and pumped to the hot water “head-tank” in the roof of the home. It is heated to 65�Celsius, thereby destroying roof originating bacteria and rendering the supply safe for drinking.
For the treatment and re-use of graywater - bathroom and laundry wastewater - a submerged gravel based reedbed system was installed. Treated water emerging from the bed of reeds is pumped to storage in the house where it is used for toilet flushing. This water could be re-used for garden irrigation.
The combination of the rainwater use and graywater treatment and re-use plans are expected to decrease mains water use in the home by at least 30 percent.
"One of the major obstacles to progress is that there is no national body or funding organization dedicated to water re-use, despite unanimous support for the idea from the Australian Water Association's Water Recycling Forum," Dr. Dillon says.
He says the risks of a public health or environmental failure of a water re-use project are higher from a fragmented and uncoordinated approach than they would be under a single body.
Australia, as the driest continent, could be a world leader in water conservation and re-use and a top exporter of technology and know how in this area, he says.
"Water will be in critically short supply for more than a third of the earth's population during the 21st century. By solving our own problems we will not only help Australia - we can also contribute ideas and technologies for addressing one of the most vital aspects of human survival."
Originally posted at: https://ens-news.com/ens/jul2002/2002-07-25-03.asp |
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jema
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