The nation's peak farming body has called on the gas industry to repair its public image if it wants a productive relationship with farmers.
A deep community distrust of the sector is at the core of state-based restrictions and moratoria on gas exploration and development, National Farmers Federation chief executive Tony Mahar said.
"Whether this is a fact or a false truth promulgated by opponents to your industry, or any other industry, is irrelevant," he told the Australian Domestic Gas Outlook Conference in Sydney.
"Whether it's real news or fake news, it's irrelevant, it is a fact that it is a belief that has stuck, rightly or wrongly."
"There is a need for your industry to take active steps ... to rebuild the confidence in what you do and how you do it."
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He said the best way for the gas industry to foster trust among farmers would be to collaborate on scientific research of the impacts of gas extraction and create a universal dispute resolution mechanism.
Mr Mahar said farmers particularly want water resources and prime agricultural land safeguarded from gas exploration and projects, consistency in gas industry regulations, and fairness in land access negotiations.
