How will the goverment tackle Lockyer Valley soil erosion? SEQ Catchments chief executive Simon Warner at a replanting program on Laidley Creek, Mulgowie. It is difficult to see how the Queensland government plans to tackle Brisbane's achilles heel, the problem of millions of tonnes of topsoil washing from Lockyer Valley farms to Moreton Bay. Brisbane's problem - our achilles heel In January 2013, topsoil blocked the Mt Crosby Water Treatment Plant after four times the level of the January 2011 floods washed downstream to the bay. Grain fields in Lockyer Valley. That meant the city of Brisbane was within hours of running out of drinking water. Healthy Waterways report cards into the condition of greater Brisbane's rivers, streams and Moreton Bay's water continually show there is a serious problem emerging. On Thursday, Fairfax Media outlined the problem from farmers and growers, which pointed out that silt washing downstream from the Lockyer Valley is Brisbane's achilles heel. Then on Friday, we outlined one answer a consortium has submitted to the federal government. They are asking for $100 million over three years to fund replanting programs. The problem area - the Lockyer Valley one of the world's most fertile areas, used for intensive agriculture; 2974 square kilometres of land surrounding the lower Lockyer Creek; The Lockyer Valley includes almost one quarter of the Brisbane River catchment; includes some of Australia's most productive alluvial soils; the 13,000 hectares produce 35 per cent of Queensland's vegetables; that includes grains, vegetables and lucerne. Two days ago we asked the state government to explain how it plans to tackle the situation. The Queensland government's response. "State, federal and local government all have a part to play in achieving better water quality outcomes," Natural Resources and Mines Director General Dr Brett Heyward said. Water quality issues are prioritised in the Queensland government's natural resources management funding commitments. The Department of Natural Resources and Mines is working positively with local councils, SEQ Catchments and other state government agencies and will continue to work collaboratively to identify and pursue solutions to erosion issues that impact on water quality. Queensland farmers and water users are benefiting from $15 million of funding through a state government program to improve on-farm productivity and riparian recovery, following major flood events over the past two years. A Lockyer catchment project is being considered for funding. (A media spokesperson at 6.30pm on Friday did not know which project this sentence referred to, or why. There are literally hundreds of projects already being funded by both the state and federal governments.) If approved, it will help landholders improve the management of the landscape, minimise the loss of highly productive land and improve water quality outcomes to reduce sediment levels that can have an impact on Brisbane's drinking water supply. Recently, the Queensland government has also appointed an expert consortium to undertake a $1.16 million Brisbane River Catchment Flood Study into the water hydrology of the Brisbane River catchment to help create new systems which can better handle future floods and minimise their impacts. The Queensland government is committed to working with SEQ Catchments to deliver better water quality outcomes. As a statutory body and non-for-profit, SEQ catchments are able, and do, to seek and obtain funding from multiple sources. Sigh. Very general isn't it. They plan to wait until the Brisbane Catchment study is finished. And to keep funding Landcare projects. I'm sorry readers. I also wanted to know more detail about a strategy from the Queensland government. But I received this at 6.15pm on a Friday evening and everyone had gone home. No comment from a minister, no-one left who understood anything about the issue. Meanwhile, Federal Environment Minister Greg Hunt said his department was still looking at the request from SEQ Catchments for $100 million over three years to fund revegetation plans. "Under the Government's Plan for a Cleaner Environment, a number of new environmental programs will be launched during 2014," a spokesman said. These programs will help communities develop simple, long-term and practical solutions to tackle environmental problems such as preventing soil erosion. That federal government plan, see here, is the one that mentions the plans for the federal government's Green Army. The Green Army will begin with 250 projects, or 2500 young people in 2014/15. It will climb to 500 projects in 2015/16, 750 in 2016/17 and 1500 in 2018/19, which will mean 15 000 young people per annum at full strength. Green Army projects include rehabilitating coastal foreshores, stabilising riverbanks and reducing weed density to improve water flow and quality. Young people aged between 17 and 24 will be given a "training wage" to do this Landcare-type work. The federal government is looking to have that the problem in the Lockyer Valley addressed by this scheme.