The Bugle - 20 July 2007
In news this week
Regional NRM group stories- SEQ leading the way with ecosystem services
- Salinity impact on infrastructure
- Sponsorships for Landcare conference
- NRM is about people
- GIS team spreads the word
- Farewell to FBA's Joanne Rodney
- South West leads way to this year's Ekka
- The desert uplands goes online
- Local government rates rebates offer important drought aid
- Handbook for incentives for biodiversity enhancement launched
- Queensland tree clearing down by 27%
- Round two of the Lifestyle WaterWise grants program now open
- Big day for the Cassowary
- Caring for Country Festival and Conference
- Keeping it real in 2007
- Clean Beach Challenge 2007 is open for entry
- Environs Australia 2007 Sustainability Awards announced
- Woody weeds war well funded
- Get a job in NRM!
Regional NRM group stories
SEQ leading the way with ecosystem services
SEQ Catchments is leading a collaborative project of the Office of Urban Management, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the University Sunshine Coast to develop a framework for defining and assessing the Ecosystem Services of South East Queensland.
There are 25 ecosystem services - benefits people obtain from ecosystems (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005) - identified. Some of these ecosystem services include supporting, regulating, provisioning and cultural services.
Supporting services maintain living organisms through the provision of healthy habitats such as maintaining valued species. Regulating services maintain essential ecological processes and life supporting systems such as clean air, water for consumption and habitable climate.
Provisioning services assist the provision of natural resources such as wood, food and fibre. Finally, cultural services provide life fulfilment opportunities through exposure to life processes and natural systems such as a sense of place and physical and mental wellbeing.
SEQ ecosystems and the functions they perform have been mapped to locate where our ecosystem services are drawn.
A multidisciplinary panel of experts with technical skills, knowledge and experience relating to ecosystems were recently involved in a workshop. They used a simple scoring system to rate the importance of SEQ ecosystems in relation to the services they provide for the community's well-being.
Ecosystem services have the potential to be used in a number of policy, planning and management contexts. The outcome of the project may be incorporated into the review of the SEQ Regional Plan commencing in June 2008; State of the Environment Reporting by the EPA; and provide an additional tool for planning and prioritisation of NRM by SEQ Catchments.
For more information email Simone Maynard or call on 0403 940 055.
Salinity impact on infrastructure
The Condamine Alliance has contracted EA Systems in Toowoomba to investigate the impact of salinity on built infrastructure in key at-risk shires in the Condamine catchment.
The project will draw on recent analyses of salinity risk in these areas and current datasets of the location of infrastructure, supported by discussion with relevant shires and other infrastructure managers, to establish an understanding of the significance of salinity from both a financial and community perspective.
The project is expected to produce a risk matrix, infrastructure mapping and a report compiling the impacts of salinity by shire. The project managers will conduct field visits with local government and other infrastructure managers in the area, to raise awareness and facilitate discussion of impacts.
To find out more visit the Condamine Alliance website.
Sponsorships for Landcare conference
The Condamine Alliance is providing $5000 to Landcare to enable community members to attend the state Landcare conference in Mackay in August.
This will subsidise the cost of a community member from each of the seven umbrella groups in the catchment to attend the conference.
Condamine Alliance's CEO Phil McCullough made the offer at a Council of Landcare Chairs meeting in May in order to recognise and encourage member participation and involvement in the Landcare network.
Condamine Alliance Landcare partnerships coordinator Andrew MCartney said "By attending, individuals will have an opportunity to further develop their understanding of Landcare and the current NRM structure.
"Groups will benefit from more of their members having an enhanced understanding of NRM policy and strategies; funding priorities and sources; and opportunities for linkages with the wider network to compare experiences and performance," said Mr MCartney.
Some Landcare groups are also supporting an additional community member and their coordinator to encourage professional development.
To find out more visit the Condamine Alliance website.
NRM is about people
Queensland Murray-Darling Committee (QMDC), the regional natural resource management body operating in the headwaters of the Darling River system has provided technical support, training and funding to nine Landcare groups to work with land managers in sub-catchments.
There are now 67 groups of land managers working on how to conserve and improve their soil, ground cover, biodiversity, riverbanks, waterways and manage pests and weeds. The aim is to improve farm productivity over time.
Twenty-two groups have approved plans and QMDC has provided more than $6 million to 192 individual land managers to undertake a range of works including conversion from cropping to grazing, soil conservation, off stream watering points and stream bank and vegetation protection
QMDC's is developing community capacity, building the knowledge and capability of the community to manage natural resources in a sustainable way.
Regional landcare facilitator, Jamie Gorry, has worked with QMDC since their funding delivery first began and he says "I've seen some big changes in the thinking and management strategies of the landholders we work with."
In particular, Mr Gorry says, the way land managers are now making decisions about land management, they consider factors and impacts beyond the boundary fence and pool their resources to achieve a greater outcome. Attitudes have changed and their has been a shift towards the whole family getting involvement in NRM.
Angus McGilvray, a land manager in the Maranoa River region, says the Sub-Catchment Planning process has motivated him and his neighbours through knowledge, as much as through money. He, and wife Sally, support the importance of building community capacity, saying that the access to information and training has been one of the best parts of their involvement with QMDC.
"We're the custodians of this land, and we're the ones who are ultimately going to look after it," Mr McGilvray said highlighting the importance of knowledge in caring for the land.
GIS team spreads the word
Geographical Information Systems (GIS) staff at the Fitzroy Basin Association (FBA) celebrated their second annual GIS Day on 13 June.
FBA's GIS Coordinator Kristian Smith led an information sharing session with a lively and enthusiastic 'class' of FBA staff and guests from Queensland Government Departments and Fitzroy River Catchment Committee. Participants were challenged with a short quiz and other exercises including imagery interpretation where features such as ponded pastures, fence lines and crops were identified from satellite imagery.
Kristian Smith explained that GIS was involved in everything FBA does. The team aimed for seamless delivery in their provision of property maps to land managers and recording project outcomes to assist in modelling and predicting future actions.
FBA Support Officer Sharlene Blakeney said they hoped Central Queensland region would host an active and involved GIS group, like the Far North GIS users group in north Queensland.
The GIS day was sponsored by ESRI, an American company that makes GIS and mapping software, with the purpose of making people more aware of GIS technology and the important contribution it is making in a variety of fields.
For more information visit the FBA website.
Fairwell to FBA’s Joanne Rodney
Life's full of opportunities and a good one has come up for Joanne Rodney, Fitzroy Basin Association's (FBA) media and communication officer.
After 13 months with the FBA she is off to sharpen her event coordination skills and will be joining the Beef Australia team in Rockhampton at the end of July.
She will be doing lots of specialist and international media liaison to promote the Beef Australia 2009 expo and is really looking forward to new horizons.
The editors of The Bugle would like to thank Jo for all of her great stories over the last 13 months and also for her contributions to the regional communicators network. We look forward to regular updates for the Bugle about Beef Australia 2009.
South West leads way to this year’s Ekka
South West NRM's media and promotions officer Kyle Muldoon is organising a display for all regional NRM bodies at this year's Brisbane Ekka (Brisbane's Agricultural show).
An e-mail has been sent out to all regional NRM CEOs asking if they are interested in attending the Ekka and showcasing their best project, with the goal of the stand to promote Queensland regional NRM in general over the course of the show.
The intention is each regional NRM body would person the stand on a different day or days, depending on how many show interest.
To date the South West NRM, Fitzroy Basin Association, Desert Channels Queensland and South East Queensland Catchments have said they would like to attend.
Southern Gulf Catchments have said they cannot staff the stand, but they are interested in providing materials for it.
If any other regional NRM bodies are interested in attending to help promote NRM to a vast, new audience, please email Kyle Muldoon or phone on 4654 7382 as soon as possible. This will be a very beneficial event for regional NRM in Queensland and the more regional NRM bodies that participate, the further that benefit will extend.
The Ekka runs from 9-18 August.
The Desert Uplands goes online
The Desert Uplands Committee, this week, welcome their new communication tool with the launch of their website.
The redesigning of the site was untaken as the committee wanted to be able to provide an up-to-date informative site that could be accessed by land managers at any time. During the recent information days, held throughout the Desert Uplands Region, land managers were consulted for their input into what they would like to see on the website. A number of these suggestions were taken on board and added to the site concept.
The site features an enquiry form that gives land managers the opportunity to submit queries straight to the Desert Uplands staff and an events calendar which allows online registration for workshops and events.
Desert Uplands' communication officer Hannah Whiteaker hopes the new site is a useful communication tool that will be full of current information updated by the staff themselves.
For more information call 4651 1002.
Government updates
Local government rates rebates offer important drought aid
Around 3500 producers are eligible for a 50 per cent rebate on their local government rates.
This scheme offered by the Queensland Government for the 2006/07 and 2007/08 local government rates periods is available to primary producers in an Exceptional Circumstance (EC) declared area of Queensland who have received EC Relief Payments at any time during the 90 days before receiving the rates notice.
The rebate can provide useful financial assistance to producers to help offset the costs of the drought on their business and household.
Primary industries are an essential business sector in Queensland's economy and must be supported through these difficult times to sustain industry and our natural resources.
While the uptake on these programs is running below expectations, all producers are reminded not to self assess but rather contact QRAA on 1800 623 946 or visit QRAA website to obtain the Drought Rate Rebate Scheme Application Form and eligibility terms and conditions.
Visit the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries website or call on 13 25 23 for information on drought financial assistance services.
Handbook for incentives for biodiversity enhancement launched
A joint venture between Department of Natural Resources and Water and CSIRO, funded by the Department of the Environment and Water Resources has produced a handbook for catchment managers to assess if an incentive program for biodiversity enhancement is appropriate in their catchment.
The handbook, Motivating change in the catchment, encourages catchment managers to assess environmental problems confronting their region and to consider if revegetation is the appropriate remedy.
The handbook encourages regional groups to consider various forms of incentives available to them to encourage land managers to provide effective revegetation strategies.
A range of incentive schemes that support revegetation and other conservation management actions on private and public land have been developed in recent years. The handbook provides a thorough overview of the various incentives, including stewardship payments and auctions.
A copy of the report can be found on the CSIRO website.
Queensland tree clearing down by 27%
Queensland continues to lead the nation in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, with new figures showing tree clearing throughout the state is down by 27 per cent.
Natural Resources and Water Minister Craig Wallace said the Statewide Landcover and Trees Study (SLATS) showed the statewide average annual rate for clearing of woody vegetation in 2004/05 was 351 000 hectares, this is 27 per cent lower than in 2003/04 (482 000 ha) and 54 per cent lower than the peak measured clearing rate in 1999/2000 (758 000 ha).
The 2004/05 clearing reductions equate to savings of 8.8 million tonnes of greenhouse gases. The end of broadscale clearing in Queensland will lead to a cut in greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 20 million tonnes each year.
The SLATS project, which releases figures two years in arrears, uses world-class satellite remote-sensing technology. Given Queensland's size (1.7 million sq kms), satellite image data is the only practical method of monitoring land cover change. Queensland has 84 million hectares of woodland and forests.
SLATS woody vegetation monitoring technology is recognised as being the most comprehensive in Australia. The technology is now being used by the NSW Government to assist them with its vegetation management activities.
The reports is available on the Department of Natural Resources and Water website.
Round two of the Lifestyle WaterWise grants program now open
The Lifestyle WaterWise grants program for not-for-profit organisations is a $10 million program over two years, to encourage not-for-profit organisations to reduce consumption of treated drinking water.
The program aims to reduce dependence on town water supplies in Queensland and the State Government is providing funds to organisations to retrofit existing facilities with water-saving devices.
These organisation must meet set criteria and pass an assessment and an information package about this is available on the Department of Natural Resources and Water website.
Round two has now commenced and applications close at 5pm on 5 October 2007.
Successful applicants for round one have also been announced grant recipients from round one.
For more information call 1800 243 585 or email Lifestyle WaterWise.
Big Day for the Cassowary
The Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service has officially handed over management of the Garners Beach cassowary rehabilitation facility to the Australian Rainforest Foundation (ARF).
Environment Minister Lindy Nelson-Carr signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the ARF which now assumes the daily running of the world-class QPWS facility for sick, injured and orphaned cassowaries.
Chief executive officer of the Australian Rainforest Association Roger Phillips said with less than 1200 cassowaries remaining in the wild the recovery program was important globally in dealing with injured and distressed cassowaries, endangered birds that are crucial in the ongoing fight to protect and extend our remaining rainforests.
"This agreement with the Australian Rainforest Foundation will enable better delivery of wildlife services in the Mission Beach area, including a range of cassowary support programs such as public education to raise the birds' local profile," Ms Nelson-Carr said.
For the full media statement visit Queensland Government's Ministerial media statements.
Reef updates
Barrier Reef may cope with warmer times
A study released this week by the Australian Institute of Marine Science in Townsville has used DNA analysis to show that many corals store several types of algae which kick in to provide nutrients when temperatures increased. This means the Great Barrier Reef may be much better suited to surviving climate change and warmer conditions than previously thought.
This research is contradictory to the work of many coral experts who believe the reef will not adapt well to climate change.
Researcher Jos Mieog said when conditions warmed, the more heat-tolerant algae provided back-up, becoming more abundant. Some algal types imparted greater resistance to environmental extremes.
Many scientists had previously believed only a few coral species harboured the algae, but this new research has shown it is much more widespread. The research shows coral has the ability to 'shuffle' the algae, maximising life-sustaining nutrients depending on water temperature.
The AIMS study's lead researcher, Madelaine Van Oppen acknowledged the work was viewed as controversial in coral reef sciences but said the research helped to explain how corals have survived over thousands of years.
"This flexibility discovered in our research is important in understanding the past evolutionary success of these coral species and their future survival capacity in the face of changing climate," Dr van Oppen said.
Visit the AIMS website for more information.
Sustainable banana farming practices in north Queensland
Community concerns about the possible impact of farming practices on the environment are being felt by agricultural producers across Australia and governments are reflecting this with a range of policies and initiatives like the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan (Reef Plan).
For banana producers in north Queensland the focus is squarely on the potential impact of sediment, nutrient and pesticide transports from farms into the Great Barrier Reef lagoon.
The Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries is helping banana producers to meet these community expectations with a Natural Heritage Trust funded extension project on sustainable production systems. The project aims to help producers in developing and implementing farm practices that address issues such as chemical and fertiliser use and soil erosion.
This project is implementing a pilot comprehensive extension service delivery program in high priority Great Barrier Reef catchments.
For more information about this project visit the Reef Plan website.
Natural resources news
Caring for Country Festival and Conference
Caring for Country Festival and Conference will be held in Cardwell 9-14 October.
The conference organisers are inviting organisations to participate in the Caring for Country Festival and Conference exhibition hall. This is an ideal opportunity to engage with Indigenous people from around Australia and promote your land and sea management techniques and services to Indigenous people.
The exhibition hall will be open every day of the conference during the lunch hours and will also be featured during the Girringun Cultural Festival 13 and 14 October, with an expected 5000 to 10 000 people attending.
For more information visit Caring for Country Festival website.
Keeping it real in 2007
Keeping it real 2007 is your chance to find out about a range of management systems, marketing opportunities and ways to make changes that will work on your farm.
Keeping it real 2007, incorporating the fifth Environmental Management Sponsors in Agriculture and the fifth National on Farm Food Safety and Quality Assurance Conferences, will be held in Hobart Tasmania from 6 to 10 August.
The program includes:
- updates on international and domestic retailer requirements and what’s around the corner.
- producer experiences with environmental management systems, the good, the bad and the ugly.
- options for integrating on farm systems, does one system fit all?
- workshops and farm tours.
For registration and bookings visit Tasmanian Quality Assured website, email Trish Kurtzer or call on 03 6423 6008.
Clean Beach Challenge 2007 is open for entry
Get involved in this year's Clean Beach Challenge. Last year, coastal communities across Queensland entered their favourite beaches in the Clean Beach Challenge and it was a great year with 176 entries.
The Clean Beach Challenge is free to enter and helps keep Queensland beaches litter free and encourage local governments, communities and businesses to work together on beach management issues for environmental, economic and social benefit.
Your beach could win one of nine regional awards or even take out state awards in categories such as Tourism Queensland Friendliest Beach, Cleanest Beach or Environmental Protection.
For a full list of the categories and entry information please email Stuart at Keep Australia Beautiful or call on 3252 2886 or visit the Keep Australia Beautiful website.
Entries close 1 September.
Environs Australia 2007 Sustainability Awards announced
Environs Australia, the network for environmental professionals in local government, has announced the opening of its 2007 Sustainability Awards.
The 2007 awards recognise the contributions made by environment professionals and councillors in progressing sustainability at the local level. There six silver awards announced and a major gold award judged from the winners of the silver awards.
In addition there will be two Gold Outstanding Sustainability Leadership Awards, one reserved for councillors and the other for officers. There are two silver awards themes Outstanding Sustainability Partnerships and Achievement in Sustainability the awards will be judged by an independent panel drawn from councils and universities.
Outstanding Sustainability Partnerships awards will recognise a significant achievement by a partnership between councils or with a council and an external organisation in progressing sustainability within the community. The Achievement in Sustainability theme recognises significant achievements within a council in progressing sustainability projects in their communities.
For each theme, there are three award categories: urban and larger councils (population exceeding 50,000); smaller urban (population less than 50,000) and rural councils.
Entries close on 31 July, to enter the awards please go to the Environs Australia website.
The award winners will be announced at the annual Local Government Sustainable Development Conference being held on 11-12 September in Melbourne.
Woody weeds war well funded
Woody weeds throughout Central Queensland are set to get the chop as the Capricorn Pest Management Group (CPMG) wages an all-out war on these plants.
The CPMG was the successful recipient of $370 000 from the Queensland Government's Reclaim the Bush: A Pest Offensive, which is controlling weeds such as rubbervine, parkinsonia, prickly acacia and badhara bush.
The funding will be used for on ground control reducing the effects of these weeds that severely degrade natural resources and significantly reduce biodiversity.
These strategic projects will start in the headwaters of the Fitzroy Basin and work downstream. The projects will assist in restoring ecosystem functioning, increase primary productivity and help to preserve the long-term sustainability of central Queensland's natural and agricultural resources.
The CPMG will undertake extensive control of parkinsonia in the headwater section of the Isaac and Connors rivers based on land manager's requests. Parkinsonia now poses a significant threat to productivity by reducing stocking rates, preventing movement of stock, causing erosion, reducing biodiversity and harbouring feral animals.
NRM coordinator Trudy Baker said "Landholders situated in the downstream region of the basin had expressed concern regarding continued re-infestation of parkinsonia from upstream.
"The seed of parkinsonia is transported via water, causing incursions of the weed in these regions," Trudy said.
To prevent further outbreaks, control is required from the head of the catchment down.
For more information about these projects visit the Capricorn Pest Management Group website.
Get a job in NRM!
Are you interested in working with Queensland's regional natural resource management bodies? Then head to the Regional Groups' Collective website where current job opportunities are now available. Be sure to check back regularly to ensure you don't miss out on the job of a lifetime!
Here's a sample of what's on offer:
Regional group: Cape York Peninsula Development Association
Title: Chief executive officer
Tenure: Full-time
Location:Cairns
Closing date: COB, 31 July
Thought for the week
We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all we need to make us really happy is something to be enthusiastic about.
Novelist Charles Kingsley (1819-1875)
We welcome your contributions and feedback. If you have any comments or suggestions for The Bugle please contact Carl Glen or Shona Strachan.
View past issues of The Bugle.
The Bugle is a weekly newsletter published by Community Partnerships, the Department of Natural Resources and Water, highlighting regional NRM activities around Queensland.
Last updated 22 January 2009