Lives and Livelihoods

Outstanding achievements by outstanding Individuals

George Scott and family – Lake Nash Station, Barkly Tablelands

Lake Nash Station Manager George Scott’s long and impressive career as a cattleman started on Queensland’s Tanbar Station where his father was based as Channel Country Group Manager for the Stanbroke Pastoral Company.

George followed in his father’s footsteps when, with his boarding school years and a few Queensland and Territory station experiences behind him, he also took on the role as Stanbroke’s Channel Country Group Manager, with Bulloo, Nappa Merrie, Davenport, Springvale and Minnie Downs stations under his wing.

Leading up to that role, he had been the overseer at Rocklands Station on the Barkly and manager of Queensland’s Islay and Augustus Downs stations. When his father retired he returned to his boyhood home as Tanbar’s new manager.

When Stanbroke was sold and broken up, a former company director Peter Hughes invited George to become a partner in the new Georgina Pastoral Company, which brought him to the Barkly’s Lake Nash Station as manager and group manager for the company’s Barkly stations, including Walhallow.

“We have 20-25 staff at Lake Nash and, under normal conditions, 55,000 head of cattle here, including 30,000 cross-bred breeders,” George says. “We have a mix of Santa Gertrudas, Charbrais, Brahman, Senapol, Waggui and Brangus. The Lake Nash cattle are produced mainly for Queensland’s prime grass-fed and 100-day grain-fed markets, while Walhallow produces 50% of its herd live export through Darwin and the rest for the domestic beef market.”

George, who runs Lake Nash with wife Dianne and family, says the station has suffered the effects of severe drought in recent years, requiring them to move 37,000 head of cattle to other Georgina Pastoral Company properties for agistment to ride out the grim times. In the 2008 summer, they received an all-time record low 9mm of rain, compared with an average 300 mm under non-drought conditions. With improved conditions, the cattle are gradually being brought back to Lake Nash.

George says that in the short-term, the high Australian dollar rate, world grain and fuel prices and drought will have a negative impact on the pastoral sector. “But on the other hand, our Territory industry is well placed to take advantage of a burgeoning world demand for soft commodities - as long as long as it doesn’t lag behind its competitors.”

Source: Kerry Sharp