Drought and taxes pile on mental pressure for farmers

Brad Marson is surrounded by none of the lush greenness he's used to.

Instead, he is confronted daily by dirt and dust as he endures the worst drought since rainfall records began in 1880.

The parched landscape stretches beyond the horizon and spares no farm.

It also takes a heavy toll on the mental health of everyone it captures.

"It's the driest thing in history for us," Mr Marson explains from his ravaged property deep in Victoria's western district.

He and those like him have had a tough 18 months.

Yet if grappling with the impossible challenges of extreme weather weren't enough, their plight has been made worse with the introduction of a controversial emergency services tax.

The impost, which from Sunday replaces Victoria's cheaper fire services levy, is designed to raise additional revenue for the State Emergency Service, Triple Zero and State Control Centre.

While mental health struggles for Australians on the land are not new, they appear to be becoming more widespread, according to the 2023 National Farmer Wellbeing Report.

The landmark research found 30 per cent of farmers felt their mental health had declined in recent years, while almost half admitted to thoughts of self-harm or suicide.

Nearly nine in 10 landholders also reported that their farming operations had been negatively impacted by weather events over the previous five years.

"It gets you down," Mr Marson says bluntly.

Victoria is in the midst of a historic drought, with the Bureau of Meteorology declaring parts of the state along with South Australia experiencing their driest spell in decades.

Some areas last month experienced their lowest rainfall totals since 1900, making it Victoria's seventh-driest May on record.

"It's just dirt," Mr Marson says.

"The reason why you farm here is because of the reliability of it. The last two years have been something completely out of the hat. It's not normal.

"It's just been a very long time since we've had a (drought) here."

Mr Marson and wife Fiona operate her family's property, Grassdale Estate Angus, southwest of Hamilton.

Adapting to ongoing drought has meant the forced sale of stock, he says.

"Our plan moving forward is simply to try and maintain the survivability of the business."

While the couple had anticipated 2025 would be tough for them personally, Mr Marson says the hardship is being felt across the community.

One option they're considering is sending cattle up to Queensland.

"I think we will get through this but we're very lucky in our position. We don't have as much debt as a lot of people are carrying right now," he reasons.

"A lot of neighbours, producers and clients are in a worse spot; they can't afford to feed animals. They're sending them into the yards to be slaughtered because they just cannot feed them."

The night before speaking with AAP, Mr Marson attended a small local get-together.

He says the gathering of farmers was not only important for checking in on one another but also strangely comforting.

"You feel a little better that everyone's in the same boat," he says.

"It's not that you're doing a bad job. We're all together, we're not alone."

They've leaned on the same sense of solidarity over the emergency services levy.

When it was proposed last month, state-wide protests erupted as thousands of farmers including Mr Marson descended upon Melbourne calling for the government to reconsider.

Their belief is that the tax unfairly targets communities that are already under siege.

"Considering that firefighting volunteers are primarily farmers and country people, it's without a shadow of a doubt a direct attack on the Country Fire Authority as well as every other Victorian."

In response to the backlash, Premier Jacinta Allan has since announced a 12-month reprieve.

But the damage has already been done, Mr Marson says.

"This ... levy, with the drought combined, it's definitely not helping."

In addition to the pause, the government has pledged $38 million in extra drought relief, which means infrastructure grants increase to $10,000 in 11 council areas and parts of West Wimmera.

Meanwhile, regional charity Rural Aid is offering free, confidential on-the-ground support to farmers and their families.

Chief executive John Warlters calculates there has been a 20 per cent increase in people accessing the service's free counselling support in June, compared to the previous month.

"We've definitely seen an increase in the number of farmers wanting to have a conversation with our counsellors off the back of the big disasters in 2025," he says.

"The ongoing cost of the drought takes a toll on people, that emotional cost.

"Then there is the significant financial burden that comes with feeding livestock."

Natural disasters have this year hit farmers hard across Australia, including significant flood events in Queensland and NSW, he says.

"We're talking about a group of people who are incredibly resilient, who are up for any challenge that's thrown at them.

"But each challenge just erodes their ability to deal with those big moments when they come along."

While counselling is important, strength of community in rural Australia can't be understated according to National Centre for Farmer Health director Alison Kennedy.

Although farmers generally have good mental wellbeing, she says that status is increasingly threatened.

"Community can come together in a really positive way, in a way that sort of supports each other's mental health," Dr Kennedy says.

The Marsons and their neighbours are relying on it.

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