Brad Marson is surrounded by none of the lush greenness he is 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,” Brad 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 wasn’t enough, their plight has been made worse with the introduction of a controversial emergency services tax.

The impost, which replaced Victoria’s cheaper fire services levy, is designed to raise additional revenue for the State Emergency Service, 000 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,” Brad said bluntly.

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

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

“It’s just dirt,” Brad said.

“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.”

Brad and wife Fiona operate her family’s property, Grassdale Estate Angus, south-west of Hamilton.

Adapting to ongoing drought meant the forced sale of stock, Brad said.

“Our plan moving forward is simply to try and maintain the survivability of the business,” he said.

While Brad and Fiona had anticipated 2025 would be tough for them personally, Brad said the hardship was being felt across the community.

Severe drought across parts of southern Australia has left dams empty and paddocks barren. (Dave Hunt/AAP PHOTOS)

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,” Brad said.

“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.”

Brad attended a small local get-together back in June.

He said 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 said.

“It’s not that you’re doing a bad job. We’re all together, we’re not alone.”

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

When it was first proposed earlier this year, state-wide protests erupted as thousands of farmers, including Brad, 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,” Brad said.

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

But the damage has already been done, Brad says.

“This ... levy, with the drought combined, it’s definitely not helping,” he said.

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 calculated there was 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 said.

“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.”

He said natural disasters had this year hit farmers hard across Australia, including significant flood events in Queensland and NSW.

“We’re talking about a group of people who are incredibly resilient, who are up for any challenge that’s thrown at them,” he said.

“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.

Regional charity Rural Aid is offering free, confidential support to farmers and their families. (HANDOUT/RURAL AID)

Although farmers generally had good mental wellbeing, she said that status was 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 said.

The Marsons and their neighbours are relying on it.

— AAP

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Sunday, 15th January 2023

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