The Bugle - 09 November 2007
In news this week
Regional NRM group stories- New product to combat erosion at beach
- Cyber learning for land managers
- Envirofund and Landcare: boosting southern inland QLD
- Barramundi's off the menu 'til February
- Women's growing cane role
- Saving Australia's precious groundwater
- Recycling on the rise in Australia
- Calls for comments: National Climate Change Research Strategy for Primary Industries
- AgForward workshop update
- Get a job in NRM!
Regional NRM group stories
New product to combat erosion at beach
During the hot summer months, many Queenslanders like to head for the beach.
However, with increased coastal development and visitor numbers, many of the fragile sand dunes at our beaches are under threat.
To address this issue, a regional natural resource management group is helping to find new ways to tackle erosion of the dunes.
Under a trial supported by the Burnett Mary Regional Group (BMRG), an innovative product known as Sand Pillows is being used at the Agnes Water foreshore.
BMRG coastal and marine coordinator Sue Sargent said that although they have been used previously for channel protection ground stabilisation, this is the first time the sand pillows have been adapted for use on high dune systems and for recreational access.
"Geofabrics Australasia sent one of their engineers to look at the erosion at Agnes Water, and they have devleoped UV stabilised and hardened pillows which we have used as steps," Sue said.
Sue said that it became clear that existing recreational access via board and chain was not appropriate at one site, due to the elevation of the frontal dunes and the angle of the incline.
"Beach users were choosing to walk down the other side of the dune rather than using the 'board and chain' ramp.
"This erodes the dune even further, causing one side of the ramp to tilt."
The trials are being closely monitored by coastal engineer Professor Jurek Piorewicz of Central Queensland University to evaluate their success.
Cyber learning for land managers
Land managers in southern Queensland have been learning just how easy it is to use wikis, audio files and other online resources to access land management training.
The Queensland Murray-Darling Committee (QMDC) was awarded $39 930 earlier this year from the Community Engagement Project of the Australian Flexible Learning Framework, to deliver the E-learning for natural resource management project.
The project, which wrapped up this week, has helped land managers use the internet and other electronic tools to access training and improve their knowledge.
"Land managers are very time-poor," said QMDC's Community Training Coordinator Sandy Robertson.
"Their time is dependant on the seasons, workloads and family commitments."
Seven e-learning workshops have now been held with over fifty people across southern Queensland, including Toowoomba, Goondiwindi, St. George and Roma.
"The workshops introduced participants to personal web pages, blogs, wikis, digital storytelling, online communication and conferencing, and concept mapping," said Sandy.
"Once people are comfortable with online tools, it's easier for them to access collaborative training opportunities and technical material available online."
Envirofund and Landcare: boosting southern inland QLD
Southern inland Queensland has just received an extra $547 533 from Envirofund for 26 more projects, with the announcements of round nine earlier this month.
Of the 64 project applications from the region, 20 were supported by local Landcare groups and natural resource management group, the Queensland Murray-Darling Committee (QMDC). An impressive 14 of these were successful.
Jamie Gorry, the regional Landcare facilitator working with QMDC, said that projects supported by Landcare coordinators had a much higher success rate than those who tried to "go it alone".
In order to support those community members who haven't been previously involved with Landcare, QMDC and regional Landcare groups will be holding a series of workshops in the lead up to the next Envirofund round (February/March next year).
"Landcare coordinators can't support everyone. But, hopefully, these workshops will help bridge that gap, and increase the chances of success of all applicants across our region," said Jamie.
Government updates
Free manual targets pest weeds
A new manual explaining how to control weeds that cost the pastoral industry $60 million a year is available free to all land managers.
The best practice manual for the management of weedy Sporobolus grasses with emphasis on giant rat's tail (GRT) and giant Parramatta grass, provides extensive grazing land managers with up to date, well planned control guidelines.
Minister for Primary Industries and Fisheries Tim Mulherin launched the 38-page full colour manual at the AgForce Nebo Branch meeting on 3 November.
Mr Mulherin said improved land management practices were needed to control current infestations and prevent the spread of the weed into clean areas.
"These extremely aggressive, invasive and unpalatable weedy grasses that now infest an estimated 450 000 hectares of grazing land in eastern Queensland and New South Wales thrive in the more than 700mm annual rainfall belt," Mr Mulherin said.
"Infestations of GRT and the related American rat's tail, Parramatta grass and giant Parramatta grass are collectively costing the pastoral industry some $60 million annually in lost production and in control and containment costs.
"This manual takes a strategic approach to weed management by weighing up the situation and taking a best bet strategy based on the latest research and a focus on achieving cost-efficient, effective weed control."
The manual is available free through the Department of Primary Industries & Fisheries Business Information Centre by calling 13 25 23.
South American bugs to attack lantana
Have you ever come across the plant, lantana?
It causes all sorts of headaches for land managers because it's not easy or cheap to control, but Biosecurity Queensland (BQ) is hoping some small bugs from South America will help to slow the spread of this invasive weed.
BQ, with the help of national landcare coordinator Kym Johnson, recently launched the herringbone leaf-mining fly at Forest Park on the outskirts of Brisbane.
"Lantana is actually very wide-spread in Australia," Kym said.
"Its core infestation covers about four million hectares of Australia between Townsville [and] southern New South Wales, and there are little scattered infestations in South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
"Lantana causes really serious impacts on our natural biodiversity and on our production systems. We've recently done an economic survey that indicates that lantana costs the grazing industry alone $104.3 million a year in lost production, plus ... $17 million in control costs and that has really serious effects on that industry."
In Australia, there are already 17 established biological control agents for lantana, and this eighteenth agent resembles the small fruit fly.
"They're about two or three millimetres long, so they're really quite minute, but we're hoping they're going to have a big effect on our lantana over here," Kym said.
"There's been an awful lot of research that's gone into the host-testing of these insects to make sure that they're not going to have an impact on any other species... so we don't expect [any] side effects.
"[We're working] with community groups to release them in the best places we possibly can for their establishment, and once they're there, they spread themselves."
Wetlands updates
The commercial value of wetlands
University of Adelaide research has, for the first time in Australia, put a commercial value on wetlands and shown the high economic cost of their loss to the nation.
PhD graduate Dr Carmel Schmidt examined the economic value of wetlands as natural filters of our domestic water, and found that the value of permanent natural wetlands for water filtration was at least $7100 per hectare per year and the value of constructed wetlands ranged from $14 100 to $28 000 per hectare per year.
"Wetlands are often referred to as the 'kidneys' of our river systems because of the important job they do purifying water by trapping sediments and removing impurities," Dr Schmidt says.
"But the impact on water quality due to the loss of wetland areas is little recognised. With the ongoing drought and increased risk to our wetlands because of the high demand for water for agriculture and other uses, this has become even more important.
"The Lower Murray dairy swamps were once part of a series of fresh-water wetlands stretching from Mannum, along the Murray to the Coorong, but of the original 5700 hectares of wetlands only 500 hectares remain today.
"This destruction of the wetland area is typical of wetland losses that have occurred across the country.
"It would have been very profitable to include wetlands as part of the domestic water filtration process in South Australia instead of constructing water filtration plants," Dr Schmidt says.
Ten filtration plants were built in 1998 to service Adelaide and rural areas. Previous studies on wetland valuation used a 'willingness to pay' approach and put values between $82 and $300 per hectare per year.
Natural resources news
Barramundi's off the menu 'til February
Anglers are reminded that the annual closed season for barramundi along Queensland's east coast will be in place from midday 1 November 2007 until midday 1 February 2008.
The Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol Mackay district officer Dan Stampa said that the closed season aimed to protect barramundi during their spawning period.
"The closed season allows fish to spawn and replenish, ensuring healthy fish stocks for current and future generations of commercial and recreational fishers," Mr Stampa said.
"A person must not take or possess a barramundi during the closed season. The maximum penalty is $75 000.
"Fishers should be aware it is not unlawful to unintentionally catch a barramundi during a closed season so long as the barramundi is not injured or damaged and is immediately put back into the water."
Anglers should note the Gulf of Carpentaria also has a closed season in place which began 4 October 2007 and will run until 29 January 2008.
"While the Gulf and the east coast closed seasons mean barramundi are off limits, anglers wanting to catch the iconic fish can still throw in a line at several of Queensland's stocked impoundments," Mr Stampa said.
"A yearly Stocked Impoundment Permit (SIP) costs $35, which allows the holder to fish in any of the dams involved in the scheme. There is a 10% discount for holders of particular concession cards. A weekly permit costs $7 and again covers all SIPS dams."
For more information about which stocked impoundments you can fish in and other fisheries related information visit Fishweb.
Women's growing cane role
A project to improve women's participation in decision-making in the sugar industry has discovered that the role and status of women in the industry is changing.
Researchers from CSIRO and the University of Queensland (UQ) interviewed both women and men working in various roles in the sugar industry.
"The message from both men and women is that the industry is starting to accept women in what were traditionally male roles and there is greater recognition of their contribution," said project leader Dr Emma Jakku, of CSIRO.
Many of the women interviewed felt they were now more accepted on industry boards and at industry meetings and were increasingly being employed in different sectors within the industry.
Women who are employed in industry sectors, such as extension and milling, said their focus was on doing their job well, rather than their gender.
"The majority of women we interviewed rated their participation within the sugar industry as highly important to them personally. Their reasons ranged from the need to be involved in their family business, through to the need for women's perspectives to be heard," said Jenny Bellamy, of UQ.
Women in the study identified a need for better communication, networking and information exchange among women in the industry.
Many women, especially in the growing sector, work off-farm to help support their family and are unable to attend industry meetings, meaning that this group of women needs to give and receive information in other ways.
To try to meet this need, a group of motivated sugar industry women are working together to create an email and online network to improve communication and information sharing.
This research is being funded by the Sugar Research and Development Corporation as part of its strategy to help the men and women of the Australian sugarcane industry respond and adapt to change. The researchers are collaborating with Bundaberg, Isis and Wet Tropics Women in Sugar groups, BSES Limited, CANEGROWERS, Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, Burnett Mary Regional Group for NRM, Terrain NRM, FNQ and Wide Bay Area Consultative Committees, Isis Mill, Centacare, and individuals across the industry.
Saving Australia's precious groundwater
At a time of critical national water shortages, Australia's precious groundwater is at risk of pollution from industrial contaminants released on the surface.
Several million Australians rely on underground water for their drinking supplies and industry also depends extensively on it, says Dr Grant Hose of CRC CARE and the University of Technology Sydney, who is working to develop the nation's first guidelines for sampling and assessing groundwater in order to protect it.
"Australians use almost 1500 gigalitres of groundwater every year and some communities depend entirely on it," Grant says.
"In cities like Perth, Newcastle and Wagga, it is a major component of the household and industrial water supply."
Chemical and fuel spills and seepage from contaminated industrial sites often end up in groundwater, Grant says. Australia's 100 000 potentially contaminated sites would, in most cases, be leaking contamination into aquifers running beneath them.
Until the current water shortage, it was largely a case of "out of sight, out of mind", but facing growing scarcity of all waters, Australia needs to put as much effort into protecting the quality of its groundwaters and their ecology as it does its surface water resources, he says.
Grant's research aims to provide industry and regulators - and through them the community - with guidelines for sampling and assessing groundwater ecosystems to enable comprehensive and sustainable management of groundwater and contaminated sites in Australia.
While his research is focussed on contaminated sites in NSW, Grant says its outcomes will have national implications.
"The project is more about developing processes than it is about specific outcomes. It's about how we assess underground ecosystems and should apply to a wide range of aquifers in different settings and locations. It's about how we run toxicity tests on groundwater organisms so we can develop water quality guidelines for groundwater.
"At the moment we know very little about the ecology of Australian groundwater ecosystems, what's there, the role it plays and how sensitive it is to pollution. These are some of the critical questions that this project will answer."
Recycling on the rise in Australia
Picture a forest of 19 million trees.
According to Australia's largest recycling company Visy Recycling, this is roughly the equivalent of the total amount of paper being consumed in Australia each year.
Figures released by the nation's leading instrument for managing the environmental impacts of consumer packaging, the National Packaging Covenant, show of the 2.6 million tonnes of paper and cardboard consumed by Australians in 2006, 1.7 million tonnes (about 66 per cent) was recycled.
Visy spokesman Geoff Potts said aside from saving new trees from being cut down, a lift in recycling of paper, which outstrips other recyclable material produced by almost triple, would make inroads into the amount of greenhouse gases being released by landfill waste.
"It comes down to putting the right materials in the bin," Mr Potts said.
"People are getting better at it and, for the sake of the environment, we need people to be more conscious about their recycling so we can ensure more of this matter is actively recovered and less goes into landfill."
Paper goods such as phone directories, newspapers, magazines, cardboard cereal boxes, food boxes, office paper, envelopes and office mail can all be recycled.
Calls for comments: National Climate Change Research Strategy for Primary Industries
The National Climate Change Research Strategy for Primary Industries (CCRSPI) is underway, and stakeholders are invited to comment on the issues, opportunities and risks posed by climate change for primary industries.
In an open letter, Michael Robinson, chair of the Joint Strategy Taskforce undertaking the research strategy, calls for comments across four different areas:
- What are the opportunities and risks for primary industries and regions, and what information or research is needed to understand these?
- What information or research is needed to assist primary industries to reduce and manage their emissions?
- Are there areas which industries, governments and researchers could collaborate on to better address some of the issues for primary industries?
- What research projects are already in place to address climate change (including emissions trading)?
Stakeholders are invited to comment via the CCRSPI website, email, fax or writing. For more information, and to register and provide comments, visit the CCRSPI website.
Deadline for initial comments is Friday 16 November.
The CCRSPI is a joint initiative of the Rural Research and Development Corporations and the federal, state and territory governments, managed by Land & Water Australia.
AgForward workshop update
Every month, AgForward runs a number of workshops across the state. Upcoming workshops include:
- 27 November: Alpha - GPS essentials
- 28 November: Aramac - GPS essentials
- 29 November: Longreach - GPS essentials
- 30 November: Yaraka - GPS essentials
- 4 December: Biloela - Follow up day for past workshop participants
- 5 December: Eidsvold - Follow up day for past workshop participants
- 5 December: Prairie - GPS essentials
- 6 December: Gayndah - Follow up day for past workshop participants
- 6 December: Hughenden - GPS essentials
- 13 December: Cunnamulla - GPS essentials
The cost of the workshops are:
- Computer mapping - $100 per enterprise
- GPS essentials - $50 per enterprise
More information on these workshops can be found on the AgForward website (under 'Workshops').
Workshops in vegetation mangement, computer mapping, GPS essentials and forest management (AgForest) will begin again from March 2008.
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 body: SEQ Catchments
Title: Communications officer
Tenure: Full-time
Location: Brisbane
Closing date: 5pm, Monday 19 November
The role of the communications officer is to support SEQ Catchments by providing timely and professional communication of organisational news, information, achievements and business to a range of stakeholders including rural and urban resource managers, community groups, government, industry, traditional owners, researchers, and natural resource management professionals and the wider community.
A position description and selection criteria can be obtained by contacting Catherine Tight, SEQ Catchments.
Thought for the week
Time is like money. The less we have of it to spare, the further we make it go.
Josh Billings
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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 04 December 2007