Snowy Valley's apple and timber industries have welcomed an $86 million aid package from the federal government as a "real shot in the arm" for bushfire recovery.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Apple growers in Batlow lost up to 40 per cent of their crop during the Dunns Road bushfire in January and 40 per cent of timber plantation trees in the region were damaged.
Batlow orchardist Greg Mouat said the federal package of $120,000 would match contributions from the state government and help meet the $300,000 per hectare cost of replacing apple trees.
"We're quite excited about it. The state government was generous in its $120,000 per hectare but we felt it was a little bit light on where it should have been," he said.
"Now that the federal government has come to the party and matched that, it's terrific."
Mr Mouat said the money meant growers could now begin a significant replanting effort but it would take five years from the start of that process for orchards to get back to their pre-bushfire condition.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the announcement was about "jobs up in Batlow and Tumbarumba" after promising growers that the government would help them out and that getting the orchards back "affects the broader region".
Australian Forest Products Association chief executive Ross Hampton said the support package will go a long way to helping the industry that now faced unprecedented long-term timber shortages as a result of the bushfire.
"The $40 million Forestry Recovery Fund will support timber processors facing significant, long-term reductions in log supply to retool and upgrade their mills," he said.
"The $10 million Salvage Log Storage Fund will boost mills' capacity to process and store the short-term surplus in burnt logs, particularly in the NSW South West Slopes region where around 40 per cent of the softwood plantations were fire damaged."
The package included $5 million for grants up to $10,000 for wine producers who lost grapes to bushfire smoke taint.
Liberal candidate for the Eden-Monaro byelection, Fiona Kotvojs, said the industry aid packages would make a "huge difference".
"I'm really pleased that the specific needs of orchardists, viticulturists and the timber industry are being met," she said.
"This will make a huge difference for these businesses, allowing them to rebuild, and keep these jobs in our community.
"As a farmer, I know that these orchards and vineyards are more than just a job, it's their life and heart."
Labor candidate Kristy McBain said it "shouldn't have taken a byelection for Scott Morrison to make some more announcements on helping our industries".
"I welcome the announcement, but I'll be really interested to see the detail of that because we know so many people that have had these announcements have tried to apply for these grants and haven't received them," she said.
"So, you know, I welcome it, I hope it's real and I hope people access those funds as soon as possible.
"We have been calling out the funds to flow to communities in Eden-Monaro since the bushfires started and that was December the 31st."