The Bugle - 21 July 2006
In news this week
Regional NRM group stories
- Wildlife saved by the bell
- Residents support wildlife survey
- Burdekin hosts traditional owner annual meeting
- Weeds workshop and field excursion planned for SEQ
Government updates
- COAG considers Indigenous, water issues
- Blueprint for the Bush info sheets available
- More SEQ residents seek Government help to save water
- $6 million for world-class marine and tropical science research
- Australian Government funds protect natural environment
- Readers cheer, critics mute at sound of Bugle's clarion toot
- NRMW seeks views on web site
Reef news
- Reef Plan spreads the news to the science community
- Australian mangroves book released
- Hawaiian effort mirrors Queensland's Reef Plan
Natural resources news
- Weeds field manual released
- Sustainable Home Brisbane full of smart ideas
- Managing pest animals - we're all in this together
- Conference aims to build skills of boards of non-profits
Wildlife saved by the bell
The Condamine Alliance and Toowoomba City Council have received numerous phone calls and emails thanking them for the free cat collars supplied to owners of registered cats this year.
The initiative forms part of a campaign to raise awareness of wildlife in urban areas.
"Responsible pet ownership is an important part of protection of wildlife - or biodiversity - in our urban areas," the Condamine Alliance's Fran Holt said.
"By far the majority of the calls and emails we have received are from responsible cat owners thanking us for their free collar and for recognising their contribution towards wildlife protection."
Interesting ideas and comments include details from a couple of owners whose cats are accustomed to being kept on long leads to keep them safe and stop them straying.
In addition to the large numbers of owners who keep their cats in at night, a number have mentioned the value of "cat runs" - enclosures that allows cat to have external access but in a confined area. Many cat owners choose to keep their cats indoors only - a choice that ensures safety of both their beloved pet and potential prey outdoors.
For more info, phone the Condamine Alliance's Fran Holt on 4620 0117.
Residents support wildlife survey
More than 70% of Toowoomba's 6553 registered cats have received dual-bell cat collars compliments of the Condamine Alliance and Toowoomba City Council as part of their campaign to increase awareness of wildlife in urban areas.
Toowoomba residents are invited to participate in a web-based survey at the Condamine Alliance web site via the "cat lovers and others" link to monitor the effectiveness of the cat collar campaign and provide information regarding pet management and wildlife observations.
The Condamine Alliance's Fran Holt said interesting information was emerging from the survey. Ms Holt has supplied statistics below but says more feedback is required for the results to be meaningful and scientifically valid:
- 80% of respondents are cat owners
- 55% of these cat owners regularly use cat collars with bells
- Supply of cat collars will increase the number of cats wearing collars with bells by 30%
- 65% of cat owners always keep their cats inside at night, 18% usually keep them inside
- 99% of their cats are de-sexed
- 90% see other people's cats roaming the neighbourhood with more than 50% roaming both day and night
- 60% see other people's dogs roaming the neighbourhood, with 28% roaming both day and night
- 46% believe they may have seen species of interest to biodiversity near where they live
- 88% believe the information provided by the web site has helped them to better understand the meaning of biodiversity
- 43% said they would definitely give preference to products sold by a company investing in biodiversity with 56% saying they might
- 45% said they would be prepared to pay a little more for a product where the company invested in the protection of biodiversity, 42% would only buy if the product was the same price or less, and 13% said price would have no effect on their decision.
Phone Fran Holt on 4620 0117 for more info.
Burdekin hosts traditional owner annual meeting
Thirty representatives from 16 traditional owner groups throughout the Burdekin catchment met in Townsville last week to talk about natural resource management.
Two projects under discussion included getting hold of geographical information systems to map cultural heritage in the Charters Towers area and an ecological recording project in the Cardwell area to put all the data that has been collected over the past 10 years into a geographical information system.
Looking to the future, the group agreed to begin discussions about establishing a formal representative body for all 16 traditional owner groups.
There was strong support for strengthening traditional owners' capacity to participate in NRM by training people in areas ranging from computer skills to management.
Communication between far-flung groups was a hot topic. In addition to regular updates from the Thursday morning 4K1G Caring for Country radio program, the group will produce a newsletter with assistance from Burdekin Dry Tropics NRM.
For more info about the meeting and the Burekin Dry Tropics traditional owners, email Tonya Booth or phone 4724 3544 or 0427 243 001.
Weeds workshop and field excursion planned for SEQ
Pest plants in the Warrill creek are the target of a weed management project being jointly undertaken by the Ipswich and the Boonah Shire River Improvement Trusts.
The River Trusts have been working both independently and cooperatively over a number of years to manage such weeds as Chinese Celtis along the riparian zones of the Bremer river and its major tributaries.
Ipswich Rivers Improvement Trust Chairman Peter Phillips said the focus of the Trust in recent years had been the removal of Chinese Celtis (celtis sinensis) in the riparian areas of the Bremer catchment and Woogaroo creek. This tree grew vigorously even in the current drought and was clogging the streambanks and waterways, limiting the natural revegetation of native trees and plants.
"Some people see the tree as an attractive form of vegetation on their property," he said, "but they don't realize how it can spread on their own property and cause major problems for landholders downstream".
To promote greater awareness of the weeds infesting land adjacent to the Bremer River and its tributaries, the Ipswich Rivers Improvement Trust held a workshop at Harrisville on 12 July, followed by a field excursion to view work being undertaken on Warrill creek.
Guest speakers included Steve Lyngcoln from SEQ Catchments, Clyde McGaw, the Lands Protection Officer from NRMW and Stuart Mutzig, Conservation Support Officer from Ipswich City Council.
For more info, contact Ipswich Rivers Improvement Trust secretary Norm Craswell on 0409 263 812.
COAG considers Indigenous, water issues
The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) met in Sydney last week.
Items on the agenda included Indigenous issues and national water reform.
Blueprint for the Bush info sheets available
The Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Water has produced a great range of information sheets about the Blueprint for the Bush initiative.
Blueprint for the Bush is a 10-year partnership plan between the Queensland Government, AgForce and the Local Government Association of Queensland to foster and support sustainable, liveable and prosperous rural communities in Queensland.
Info sheets on the NRMW web site include:
- Reclaim the Bush - a Pest Offensive
- State Rural Leasehold Land Strategy
- OnePlan
- Rural Water Use Efficiency Stage Three
- Environmental Partnership Scheme
- Cape York Land Tenure Resolution
- High-Priority Artesian Bore Capping Initiative.
Read about the Blueprint and view the info sheets
More SEQ residents seek Government help to save water
More than 2000 applications valued at $500,000 have been lodged with the Queensland Government's Home WaterWise Rebate Scheme as residents in the State's south-east step up their efforts to save water.
Water Minister Henry Palaszczuk said 2109 applications totally $518,060 had been received by the Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Water as of 18 July.
"Applications for Queensland Government rebates are currently coming in at a rate of more than $50,000 each day," Mr Palaszczuk said.
For more info, see the NRMW web site.
$6 million for world-class marine and tropical science research
The Australian Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Senator Ian Campbell, yesterday visited North Queensland to announce more than $6 million would be invested in research to explore and protect some of Australia’s most applauded natural assets.
The $6.1 million funding is for 2006-07 research priorities under the $40 million Marine and Tropical Science Research Facility based at James Cook University campuses in Cairns and Townsville.
"This is an important step towards a better understanding of the many environmental challenges facing the Great Barrier Reef, the Torres Strait and our tropical rainforests including the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area," Senator Campbell said.
The 2006-07 Marine and Tropical Science Research Facility research plan covers:
- Great Barrier Reef, wet tropics rainforests and Torres Strait ecosystems
- conservation issues and protecting species
- evidence of climate change on Great Barrier Reef/rainforest and catchment
- threats and impacts of invasive pests
- water quality
- sustainable use and management of marine resources of the Great Barrier Reef
- planning and management of tropical rainforest landscapes.
Australian Government funds protect natural environment
The Australian Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Senator Ian Campbell, recently announced $6 million in funding to extend the amount of high conservation value land protected under the National Reserve System.
Applications are now open from partners who wish to acquire properties for protection under the scheme.
Senator Campbell said the nation-wide network of reserves was being set up by the Australian Government in partnership with local communities, non-profit conservation groups, local and state governments and private industry to protect Australia's unique natural environment.
For application forms and more information, email the National Reserve System Section, phone 02 6274 1759 or visit the DEH web site.
Applications close 23 August.
Readers cheer, critics mute at sound of Bugle's clarion toot
Readers of The Bugle have given the e-newsletter a resounding toot of approval.
One hundred and two people responded to the annual survey of Bugle readers, a response rate of about 15 per cent.
Almost seven in ten respondents said their overall impression of The Bugle was "great – I can’t wait to read it each week" or "good – it's well worth reading".
Ninety-six per cent of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed that The Bugle was "relevant"; 86 per cent that it was "interesting"; 87 per cent that it was "credible"; 90 per cent that it "contains a good variety of stories"; 82 per cent that it "reports important NRM issues"; 91 per cent that it "keeps me up to date with Queensland regional NRM news"; and a whopping 99 per cent that it "is easy to read and understand".
More than nine in ten respondents thought the number of stories in The Bugle was "about right", and 97 per cent said stories were "about the right length".
More than half the respondents wanted The Bugle to continue as a weekly publication, with just over 40 per cent preferring a fortnightly.
The most popular sections were "regional NRM group stories" and "natural resources news". Nineteen respondents made suggestions for new sections in The Bugle, with the most common being a section for staff movements, who’s who in NRM and job opportunities.
Thirty-two respondents included a suggestion or comment at the end of the survey, the most common being that readers like the scannable format and the links to stories at the top of the page. A typical comment was: "I appreciate the quick and easy style of the Bugle – I find it easy to skim over and read the detail of what I’m particularly interested in".
The Bugle team thanks all respondents for taking the time to complete the survey. We will go through the suggestions in detail and progressively incorporate them where we can.
We would also like to thank respondents for their support and encouragement. Knowing our readers appreciate our service means a lot to us, and we are grateful for your ideas on how to make The Bugle even better.
The Bugle team
NRMW seeks views on web site
And just when you thought it was safe to read The Bugle and not be asked to do a survey...
The Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Water is surveying users of its web site. The aim is to clarify how people are using the site and what they want from it. This will help the department plan the web site's growth and development.
If you use the NRMW web site, please take a couple of minutes to complete the online survey.
Reef Plan spreads the news to the science community
The Reef Water Quality Protection Plan was featured at the Catchment to Coast conference in Cairns last week.
The conference was hosted by the Australian Marine Sciences Association and the Society of Wetland Scientists.
A number of sessions focused on the Reef Plan, which is supported by the Australian and Queensland Governments.
The conference looked at the vital role and value of wetlands within the terrestrial and marine environments - a major focus for the Reef Plan.
The joint conference provided an international platform for showcasing the need for, and benefits of, a multidisciplinary approach to the complex issues associated with the land-sea interface.
The conference brought together the annual meetings of two major scientific societies: the Australian Marine Science Association - the major national professional association for marine scientists from all related disciplines and the Society of Wetland Scientists, which is the largest professional body of wetland scientists and managers in the world, with more than 4000 members.
The Reef Plan had a display at the conference and it was an ideal opportunity to demonstrate some of the great work that is being done to protect the reef.
Visit the Reef Plan web site to find out more about wetlands and improving water quality.
Australian mangroves book released
The Catchment to Coast conference provided more than a review of the latest scientific research on wetlands and the marine sciences.
Norm Duke from the University of Queensland released his new book Australia's mangroves: an authoritative guide to Australia's mangrove plants.
The book will be of great interest to government agencies, local government, regional NRM groups and anyone involved in mangroves and the restoration of these types of wetlands.
The book describes the 41 Australian species that make up 57% of the world's mangrove types. It provides a key to help identify mangrove species and contains a pocket-sized wheel key tool which is small enough to be taken into the field. There are also more than 500 colour photographs.
Norm Duke said one of the significant differences about his book was that in addition to providing a comprehensive guide to Australian mangroves, it included a manual to help increase community awareness on the importance of mangrove wetlands.
The conservation and restoration of wetlands is a priority of the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan and the Queensland Wetlands Program.
Australia's mangroves is available for purchase on line.
Hawaiian effort mirrors Queensland's Reef Plan
The Reef Water Quality Protection Plan has a sister program in Hawaii.
Similar to the Reef Plan, the Hawaiian program is focusing on the reduction of pollutants, such as sediment and nutrients, which are a significant threat to coral reef ecosystems globally.
The USA's Coral Reef Taskforce recognised this threat and identified a reduction of land-based pollutants entering reef systems as a priority issue for future work by US federal and state agencies.
Also like the Reef Plan, a collaborative approach was used to develop the overall goals and objectives for the Hawaiian strategy and a steering committee similar to the Reef Plan's Intergovernmental Operational Committee was formed to coordinate implementation.
The Hawaiian strategy uses a process similar to the Queensland's regional NRM approach, as it is being implemented on the watershed (catchment) scale. To date, three priority catchments have been chosen for implementation.
The strategy incorporates traditional Hawaiian land and NRM systems, known as ahupua'a and involves local community groups, industries such as pineapple farms, and tourism, in addition to state and federal government agencies.
For more info about the Reef Plan, visit the Reef Plan website.
To find out more about the Hawaii islands project visit:
Hawaii coral reef outreach network web site.
Weeds field manual released
The Bureau of Rural Sciences has just published the Field Manual for Surveying and Mapping Nationally Significant Weeds.
You can download the manual free from the Bureau's web site or order a free hardcopy or CD from the BRS online publication shop. The manual is also available from the front page of the Weeds Australia web site or from its mapping page.
Call the BRS shop on 1800 020 157 if you wish to order by phone or have any problems ordering the manual.
Sustainable Home Brisbane full of smart ideas
A new sustainable home in Brisbane's west will set benchmarks for future housing design in South East Queensland, according to Environment Minister Desley Boyle.
Ms Boyle officially opened the "Sustainable Home Brisbane" at Seventeen Mile Rocks this week and said it would demonstrate to industry and homeowners how sustainable design features could be incorporated into new or existing homes.
Sustainable Home Brisbane is one of 23 homes being built as part of the Sustainable Homes program, which includes at least one house in each of Queensland's four climatic zones.
For more info, see the Sustainable Homes web site.
Managing pest animals - we're all in this together
The inaugural Queensland Pest Animal Symposium will be held at the Highfields Cultural Centre, near Toowoomba in October.
The three-day symposium (October 24-26) will be the first event of its kind in Queensland and will cover four main themes of prevention, harvesting and hunting, managing impacts and innovations in dealing with pest animals.
Gold sponsors for the event are the Condamine Alliance, the Invasive Animal Cooperative Research Centre and the Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Water.
The event will cover a lot of ground and includes rural, peri-urban and urban pests. It will look at emerging pest species, the latest research and eradication techniques for more long-standing pest animals, as well as some unique harvesting opportunities.
There are also a number of optional field trips planned for the symposium, including a tour of the Robert Wicks Pest Animal Research Centre at Inglewood, the home for pest animal research for the entire south-west of Queensland.
Details and registration forms for the symposium are available at the symposium web site. Note: Early bird registration closes 1 August.
Preparations well underway for Landcare conference
Preparations for the 17th annual Queensland Landcare conference are well underway. So far:
- The program contains more than 90 speakers in concurrent sessions, keynote presentations and forums.
- The conference streams are bridging the rural-urban divide; ecosystem services; climate change; technology; peri-urban issues; engagement; innovation; and the business of landcare
- More than 15 organisations are sponsoring the conference.
- The 30 trade exhibition spaces are fully booked.
- More than 230 registrations have been received.
- The Queensland Biodiversity Forum, taking place as part of the conference, has received more than 25 registrations and plenty of community interest. Registration fees for the forum have been kept to a minimum ($60 for community and $120 for agencies).
The latest program, field trip descriptions and registration information is available on the Landcare web site.
For more info, email Samantha Morris or phone 3211 4413.
Conference aims to build skills of boards of non-profits
The 3rd National Building Better Boards Conference is to be held from 28-29 October in Sydney.
The major theme is accountability, and it is aimed at CEOs and board members of non-profit organisations.
See the web site for more info
Thought for the week
"For as long as Man continues to be the ruthless destroyer of lower living beings, he will never know health or peace. For as long as men massacre animals, they will kill each other. Indeed, he who sows the seeds of murder and pain cannot reap joy and happiness."
Pythagoras
We welcome your contributions and feedback. If you have any comments or suggestions for The Bugle please contact Paul Rees or Shona Strachan.
To view past issues of The Bugle visit the regional NRM web site.
The Bugle is a weekly newsletter published by Community Partnerships, the Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Water, highlighting regional NRM activities around Queensland.
Last updated 28 July 2006