Just days before harvest Adelaide Hills fruit growers have been dealt a devastating blow. Some apple orchards were seriously damaged and degraded when SA Power Networks engaged in routine pruning around power lines. Growers fear the recovery could take year and are calling for greater transparency.
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00:00Rotting on the ground, these apples should have been lining supermarket shelves.
00:07You know, I came in to mow the orchard and, whoa, what's going on here? And there was
00:12trees, this high. You know, they'd taken a metre, a metre and a half off.
00:17Kim Green has been left cleaning up the damage in his Adelaide Hills orchard, after SA Power
00:23Networks cut dozens of his trees to make way for overhead power lines.
00:27I'm expecting to cut the gum trees here, go ahead. And then it was a big shock that they'd come in and done these apples.
00:33Neighbouring farmer Lachlan Green's trees were also damaged.
00:36They come through our orchard and just acted like butchers, and without a care in the world.
00:43Both growers say they've heard of similar cases elsewhere in the state, and say growth will take years to recover.
00:49We're going to have next to no fruit on these trees, which has cut 10 or 15 bins worth.
00:56This isn't the first hardship growers in the region have experienced this year.
01:00They say a hot and dry season, fruit bats and birds had already had a significant impact on their crops, before the pruning.
01:07Treasurer Stephen Mulligan says growers have been let down.
01:10We've had bushfires, we're now dealing with drought conditions.
01:14You know, the last thing that these primary producers need is for SA Power Networks to come in and cut down their livelihoods.
01:20SA Power Networks is remaining firm on the rules.
01:23The business wasn't self-managing the strict clearances required between power lines and trees,
01:30and that is why we had our contractors on the property to trim those trees.
01:35SA Power Networks says while farmers have historically been allowed to maintain their trees,
01:40the agreement was revoked last year, and there are strict rules in bushfire-prone areas.
01:45Farmers are now calling for greater consultation to protect against future losses.
01:50Communication is what we want, and respect is what we want.
01:55A deep cut leaving a lasting scar.
01:57F