THE Tweed cane industry plans to use Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery funds to pay for repairs to important infrastructure ahead of this year's harvest.

Federal and state governments announced this week that primary producers could access recovery grants through the Commonwealth-State Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA).

Tweed MP Geoff Provest welcomed the announcement and said local farmers would be grateful.

Grower Robert Quirk said the decision would allow repairs to be undertaken on valuable cane infrastructure ahead of the coming crush.

He said without the cash injection, the industry would have suffered a double-blow and been forced to not only absorb crop and equipment losses but also find the money needed to undertake repairs and ensure the harvest went ahead.

"We were told when (Emergency Services Minister Troy Grant) visited that the state had signed off on Category C and it was with the Prime Minister,” he said.

"We've had massive erosion on our roads, cane pads and in the cane and were hoping if we achieved Category C, we can repair some of the roads in time for harvest and, while it won't cover all of it, it will get us close.”

Debris such as petrol tins and gas bottles is also expected to affect the coming harvest, with Mr Quirk suggesting teams would have to watch out for dangerous items in crops when operating machinery.

Mr Provest said farmers were also pushing for a flood-plain modelling program.

Mr Quirk said modelling, which farmers want carried out from Condong Creek to McLeods Creek, was needed to find solutions to improve flow and avoid water pooling in paddocks.