AE Walker v Department of Natural Resources and Water
[2008] QLC 84
•7 May 2008
LAND COURT OF QUEENSLAND
CITATION: AE Walker v Department of Natural Resources and Water [2008] QLC 0084 PARTIES: Allan Edward Walker
(appellant)v. Chief Executive, Department of Natural Resources and Water
(respondent)FILE NO: AV2006/0394 DIVISION: Land Court of Queensland – General Division PROCEEDING: An appeal against an annual valuation. DELIVERED ON: 7 May 2008 DELIVERED AT: Brisbane HEARD AT: Blackall MEMBER: Mr JJ Trickett, President ORDER: The appeal is allowed, the valuation of the Chief Executive is set aside and the unimproved value of "Bonnie Doon" as at 1 October 2005 is determined at One Million and Thirty-Three Thousand Dollars. ($1,033,000). CATCHWORDS: Unimproved value – grazing property at Blackall – comparison with determinations of test cases – sales relied upon in the test cases – classification of country - carrying capacity – sheep area values – disabilities - Valuation of Land Act 1944 APPEARANCES: Mr A Boyd, agent, for the appellant.
Mr W Isdale, Executive Legal Consultant, Crown Law, for the respondent.
This is an appeal by a landowner in the Shire of Blackall against the unimproved value applied to his land by the Chief Executive, Department of Natural Resources and Water (the Department) under the provisions of the Valuation of Land Act 1944 (the Act).
Background
Mr Walker is the owner of a grazing property known as "Bonnie Doon", containing an area of 7,515 ha, situated about 59 km south of Blackall. As at 1 October 2005, the Department applied an unimproved value of $1,100,000, or $146/ha, to that property. Mr Walker appealed to the Land Court against that valuation, stating that his estimate of the unimproved value is $510,000.
The appeal was lodged on his behalf by his agent, Mr A Boyd. The grounds of appeal are wide-ranging but general in nature, essentially contending that the unimproved value is excessive because of the failure by the Department to take into account and make proper allowance for various matters, or to apply the correct principles of valuation.
These cases were tried by the fast-track process, following the determination of agreed test cases in the Shires of Blackall and Tambo. The parties agreed that the remaining appeals be determined by confining the evidence to comparisons with the decisions in those cases and to the sales relied upon in arriving at those determinations. However, evidence of the differences between individual properties was also heard.
Mr Walker's Evidence
Mr Walker gave evidence that "Bonnie Doon" has been greatly affected by the restrictions imposed by the vegetation management legislation prohibiting the further development of remnant scrub country. Therefore, the property can no longer be developed to its full potential.
According to Mr Walker, at the time of the previous valuation in 2001 the Department had accepted his description of "Bonnie Doon", which included a total area of 5,345 ha of scrub country, much of which had been developed. However, there was still a large proportion of remnant scrub. He explained that in order to ascertain the area of remnant scrub he had hired a helicopter to take GPS recordings in the various paddocks, which were then ground-proofed, as far as possible, by himself and his manager. Mr Walker and his sister had then co-ordinated all the material and concluded that there was an area of 2,811 ha of remnant scrub on "Bonnie Doon", approximately 37% of the total area of the property.
As I understand Mr Walker's evidence, in addition to the scrub country, there are about 1,500 ha of downs country on "Bonnie Doon", some of which is boree country and only lightly grassed. Other areas on the fringe of the scrub are also lightly grassed because of the intrusion of timber onto that country.
According to Mr Walker, a proportion of what he classified as developed scrub has severe regrowth. He estimated this area at 17%.
In his written statement, Mr Walker contended that the carrying capacity of the virgin scrub was about 1 sheep to 4 ha, which adversely impacted on the overall carrying capacity, which he stated to be about 1 sheep to 1.8 ha. In his oral evidence, Mr Walker appeared to resile from that estimate, contending that the property had historically run only about 2,800 sheep as a maximum. However, he stated that the property was running approximately 2,000 sheep and 200 cattle at present, which converted to 3,200 to 3,400 sheep equivalents. He rejected the suggestion that the property could run 5,010 sheep (1 sheep to 1.5 ha) as contended by the Department, even if he could develop another 1,000 ha.
Mr Haydon's Evidence
Evidence for the Department was given by registered valuer, Mr P Haydon, who explained that he had classified the country on "Bonnie Doon" by utilising the WARLUS land system mapping, regional eco-system mapping and satellite imagery. The areas had been measured using a computer based measuring system.
Mr Haydon classified the country on "Bonnie Doon" as comprising:
1,700 ha (23%) downs, carrying capacity 1 sheep to 1.3 ha;
4,000 ha (53%) scrub, of which 3,509 ha had been developed, carrying capacity 1 sheep to 1.3 ha;
375 ha (5%) channels, carrying capacity 1 sheep to 2 ha; and
1,440 ha (19%) remnant scrub, carrying capacity 1 sheep to 3 ha.He assessed the overall carrying capacity of "Bonnie Doon" as 1 sheep to 1.5 ha, or 5,010 sheep.
Mr Haydon accepted that the total area of scrub amounted to 5,400 ha. He measured 3,509 ha of developed scrub from the regional eco-system mapping, which shows the non-remnant (that is the cleared) country in white. After hearing Mr Walker's evidence, Mr Haydon had again measured the area and came to much the same result. In measuring 1,440 ha of remnant scrub, Mr Hayden did not take into account shade lines and shade clumps, because he reasoned that a prudent owner would have left such areas of standing timber.
Mr Haydon was confident of his measurement of the cleared scrub country. He could not explain why Mr Walker had measured 2,811 ha as remnant scrub. He speculated that Mr Walker may have included some of the thicker regrowth areas on country which had been cleared at an earlier stage, but which showed as non-remnant in the regional eco-system mapping, meaning that it could be legally re-cleared, notwithstanding the restrictions imposed by the vegetation management legislation.
Mr Haydon was extensively cross-examined by Mr Boyd about his adopted sheep area value of $220 compared with the sheep area value of $232 applied to "Eastwood". According to Mr Haydon, the country on "Bonnie Doon" was basically the same run of country as on "Eastwood". However, because of the prohibition on clearing the large proportion of remnant scrub, he had adopted a carrying capacity of 1 sheep to 1.5 ha for "Bonnie Doon", which resulted in an unimproved value of $146/ha on, compared with the unimproved value of "Eastwood" at $178/ha.
The Issues
While Mr Walker and Mr Haydon disagreed about the area of downs country, there seems to be little argument about its quality. However, from the photographs tendered by Mr Walker, it may be that some of the country referred to by Mr Haydon as downs is what Mr Walker calls boree country.
The principal issue between Mr Walker and Mr Haydon is the extent of the gidyea country, particularly the area of remnant scrub. Mr Walker has gone to a great deal of trouble and expense to try to accurately calculate that area. Measurements based on GPS recordings from a helicopter, showed the area of virgin scrub at 2,811 ha, leaving the area of developed scrub at 2,534 ha.
On the other hand, Mr Haydon measured the area of developed scrub at 3,509 ha. That measurement was made by computer from the regional eco-system map, a copy of which was attached to Mr Haydon's report. While it is possible that the RE Map is not correct, it represents the official designation of the areas which had been developed and which may be continued to be re-cleared. Therefore, in the absence of demonstrable proof to the country, I accept the measured area of 3,509 ha as being accurate.
Mr Haydon had originally classified the area of remnant scrub at 1,440 ha. That did not include the areas of shade lines and shade clumps. However, since my ruling in an earlier case regarding the inclusion of shade lines and shade clumps in the remnant area, that figure would have to be revised to approximately 1,900 ha. That is still significantly short of Mr Walker's measured area of 2,811 ha.
The difference between those areas was not resolved at the hearing. Mr Haydon speculated that Mr Walker may have included some of the regrowth areas in his calculation. Be that as it may, Mr Walker did not produce any of the GPS readings or details of the calculations which led him to calculate 2,811 ha. On the other hand, Mr Haydon produced maps which clearly show the areas of cleared country and the areas of remnant timber, most of which appears to consist of gidyea scrub. On the balance of probabilities, I find that Mr Haydon's measurements are more likely to be accurate.
There was also a considerable difference between the two as to carrying capacity. Mr Walker seemed to change his mind when giving his oral evidence, adopting a much more conservative carrying capacity than the 1 sheep to 1.5 ha adopted by Mr Haydon. Mr Haydon's carrying capacity was based on the potential that could be achieved by maintaining the developed scrub country, but excluding the areas of remnant gidyea, which he assessed at a carrying capacity of 1 sheep to 3 ha. However, Mr Walker's opinion was that the remnant scrub would carry very few sheep.
Conclusion
Having regard to the satellite imagery and Mr Walker's photographs in Exhibit 3, I am of the view that Mr Haydon's carrying capacity for the remnant scrub should be extended a little further. That would be consistent with the carrying capacity which he placed on the remnant scrub in other cases. Therefore, I intend to adopt a carrying capacity of 1 sheep to 1.6 ha, or 4,697 sheep, for "Bonnie Doon". However, Mr Haydon's sheep area value of $220 will be maintained.
I agree that "Bonnie Doon" is most comparable with the sale property "Eastwood", which has an area of 10,097 ha, where the applied value is $178/ha. With a carrying capacity of 1 sheep to 1.3 ha, the sheep area value is $232. I accept Mr Haydon's opinion that basically the country on "Bonnie Doon" is the same run of country as on "Eastwood".
Therefore, with a carrying capacity of 1 sheep to 1.6 ha, "Bonnie Doon" would carry 4,697 sheep. At a sheep area value of $220, the unimproved value would be $1,033,340. Therefore, I propose to determine the unimproved value of "Bonnie Doon" at $1,033,000, or $137.50 per ha.
Order
The appeal is allowed, the valuation of the Chief Executive is set aside and the unimproved value of "Bonnie Doon" as at 1 October 2005 is determined at One Million and Thirty-Three Thousand Dollars ($1,033,000).
JJ TRICKETT
PRESIDENT OF THE LAND COURT
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