Potato farmers surrounding Ballarat have been devastated by this week's major flooding, with some reporting massive crop losses.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Areas north of Ballarat, near Mollonghip, Dean, and Clarkes Hill, were hit with more than 100mm of rain on Wednesday evening, causing massive flooding and washing away paddocks worth of potatoes.
This will in turn cause a major economic impact on the region, particularly with fertiliser prices higher than usual.
The Creswick Creek rose to a higher level than the 2011 floods in places, and some farmers labelled the storm "the worst they'd ever seen", according to Tourello potato farmer and Victorian Farmer's Federation horticulture vice-president Katherine Myers.
"The worst I've heard, one grower lost 90 acres (36 hectares) of crop - that's $20,000 a hectare to get to that stage (of growth) at the moment, it's a lot of money that's just washed into the Creswick Creek," she said, noting masses of hail - up to eight inches in one area - will add to the hurt.
"If a plant's had every leaf stripped off, that's going to be a huge effect - crops could have a yield reduction of between 20 to 50 per cent," she said.
"It's going to take a couple of weeks to assess the damage, some crops will recover fairly well, but one of the big issues is going to be disease - potatoes are really susceptible."
Ms Myers said her family's farm had one paddock completely washed out, receiving between 50 to 60mm of rain, but their neighbours were far worse off.
"Even five kilometres to the south, or east, or west, it was more like 80 to 100mm, and that will have done a hell of a lot more damage," she said.
The VFF is coordinating a response to support farmers, she added, particularly if there are any issues with insurance.
Another issue will be fertilisers, which would have been sprayed on crops earlier this year.
"With this rain, nearly all the fertilisers that farmers put on their crops have gone, and that's bad for the environment, it's in water now, but we also have record high fertilser prices," Ms Myers explained.
"Most farmers would have contracted their fertiliser back in August, which saved a lot of money - now farmers have to go out to the market at these record prices to replace what they've lost in these storms."
The storms are also expected to impact on McCain Foods' production - a spokesperson for the company said they are currently assessing the damage and will have more to say next week.
Hepburn Shire Council has also urged anyone affected to reach out through its storm recovery officer, by phoning 5348 2306.
Hepburn residents can also drop off flood-related green waste for free at the Creswick Transfer Station until January 17.
In a media release, mayor Tim Drylie said council undertook a flood and drainage study for Creswick following the floods in 2010, and there will be investigations into this week's event.
"This study was very comprehensive, and we have implemented all the study recommendations, including construction of a levee bank which is designed for one in 50 year floods," he said.
"We will continue to investigate what contributed to the flood and what more can be done to reduce the risk of flooding in Creswick, particularly in lower lying areas of the town.
"This will also include seeking support from other levels of government to assist any future works.
"Thank you to all agencies, volunteers and staff who assisted with the clean-up and response work. So many people put their hand up to help and we are incredibly grateful of the speed at which this has carried out and the professionalism of everyone involved."
IN THE NEWS
The Creswick recovery centre, at the Doug Lindsay Reserve, will reopen on Saturday from 9am to noon for any residents who require support, and next week the storm recovery officer will be located at the Creswick Hub during office hours.
According to VicTraffic, the Bungaree-Creswick Road remains closed in both directions due to road damage from the flooding.
More rain is expected in the area on Saturday, according to the Bureau of Meteorology, and potentially later next week.
Have you signed up to The Courier's variety of news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in Ballarat.