Hugh McCormack

Biography

Hugh is an economist at Frontier Economics specialising in agricultural and resource economics, urban and rural water, energy and sustainability. He advises government and industry on policy design, regulatory assessments, and investment decisions, with expertise in cost–benefit analysis, socio-economic impact assessment, market valuation and policy evaluation.

Hugh works on projects such as:

• A socio-economic assessment for the Victorian Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action on the impacts of reducing water entitlements in the Campaspe Valley;
• A cost–benefit analysis for NSW Crown Lands’ regulatory impact statement on updated regulations for fencing under the Wild Dog Destruction Regulation;
• Annual water entitlement valuations for the Murray–Darling Basin Authority’s (MDBA’s) Living Murray Initiative and the Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder; and
• Detailed socio-economic analysis and drafting across the submissions for the Murray River Council (MRGC) and Greater Shepparton City Council (GSCC) to the MDBA’s 2026 Basin plan review. With a particular focus on agricultural impacts, sustainable diversion limit settings, vulnerability indicators and the distribution of local impacts across northern Victorian communities.

Before joining Frontier Economics, Hugh worked for a private consultancy agronomy firm, servicing irrigated cotton farms in western NSW, and as a farm manager in north-west NSW.

He holds a Bachelor of Agriculture and Resource Economics from the University of New England. His First Class Honours Thesis examined the economic viability of reducing the carbon footprint of irrigated cotton farms through enhanced efficiency fertilisers. It used whole-farm budget analysis, sensitivity testing and stochastic modelling. The paper is currently under review for publication.

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