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Regional natural resource management

The Bugle - 29 February 2008

In news this week

Regional NRM group stories Government updates

Natural resources news

Regional NRM group stories
Clifton students learn to love their river

Condamine Alliance has teamed up with Clifton State High School (CSHS) to develop a community engagement process for Condamine River Rescue works at Passmore Reserve on the Condamine near Clifton.

CSHS has seized the opportunity to use the site and the planned developments to guide 'themed' learning across the entire curriculum and future high school years of newly inducted year eight students.

The students will have the opportunity to explore the science behind re-snagging and weed control, comprise poems and create artworks inspired by the aesthetic beauty and ecological diversity of Passmore Reserve. They will apply mathematical principles to measure change and horticultural skills to germinate native seedlings for site revegetation.

The students will also witness the application of engineering principles to stabilise banks and gullies and protect wetlands at the reserve, and help stamp out pest fish and weeds. The Alliance's indigenous facilitator, Corie Leslie, will explain the significance of the site and its value to the Traditional Owners.

Passmore Reserve is undergoing rehabilitation to enable its use as a 'demonstration site' as part of the Condamine River Rescue Program.

"Sustainable natural resource management needs ownership from our communities and the youth in these communities," said Francine Holt, strategic programs and partnerships officer at the Alliance. "The partnership with CSHS is a long-term commitment and recognises the importance of linking education to local environmental issues."

A major section of the course will be the preparation of a work-based project on pest management. Each student is required to choose a pest management issue that they wish to develop a management plan for during the course. Ideally it should be a project related to their work but it can be more theoretical.

This pest management education program ('Feral Focus') will soon be up on the pest animal website feral.org.au. The teacher pack is aimed at years nine and 10. The course has been tailored to fit with the relevant state and territory science curricula. It is primarily based around terrestrial pests but applies equally well to the management of aquatic pests.

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Desert Channels make plans for the future

Last week, Desert Channels Queensland (DCQ) submitted a first draft of their regional investment strategy (RIS) for the 2008–2011 period to be considered by the Queensland and Australian governments.

Mike Chuk, regional planner with DCQ, has spent the past three months working with DCQ staff and external stakeholders to put this submission together. The RIS is the roadmap of where DCQ would like to focus its expenditure and activities over the next three years. 

"This RIS builds on the successful delivery of our current one and includes continuing and new priorities," explains Mike.

The following categories have been used in this first draft RIS submission:-

For more information on the work of DCQ call 4658 0600.

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Incentives encourage mega water savings in the Burdekin

A financial incentive scheme to encourage horticultural growers in the Burdekin-Bowen region to demonstrate their commitment to water quality and more  efficient water use has been hailed an outstanding success by peak horticulture organisation Growcom, a participating partner in the project.

Nineteen growers, 12 from the Burdekin, one from Gumlu and six from Bowen, participated in the program and all have reported cuts in water use, in some cases of more than 50 per cent, and increased productivity. Siby Rapisarda, from Rapisarda Farms, who installed a $150 000 EnviroScan for irrigation scheduling, reported a 20 per cent increase in pumpkin and melon production, and a 50 megalitre water saving.

The incentive scheme was part of a Growcom's Water for Profit program to encourage water use efficiency and water quality management in the industry and was funded by Burdekin Dry Tropics NRM with a maximum grant of $11 000 per grower.

Clare sweet corn and green beans grower David Hood said he saved 650 megalitres of water, had less erosion and less run off with increased production of 15 per cent.

Another feature was the saving on fertiliser.

Bowen-based Mathew Hood reported a saving of 1400 megalitres of water, increased productivity, reduced fertiliser usage and increased germination of 65-100 per cent. 

"With just a moderate amount of funding the program has achieved the majority of the proposed outcomes and these gains will only continue to grow," said Rachel Mackenzie, Growcom's land and water program manager.

"Growers contributed more than $700 000 of their own money on equipment upgrades and improved management practices as part of the incentive program.

"This represents a sevenfold investment by the growers for every dollar of the $100 000 funding invested by Burdekin Dry Tropics NRM," Ms Mackenzie said.

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Weeding out the problem plants

Gardeners across Queensland are reminded that seemingly harmless flowers or garden plants can pose a huge risk to our environment.

As many as 4000 plants introduced into Australia are now established wild in bushland. Many of these plants were introduced as ornamental garden plants.

According to Mark Van Ryt, Southern Gulf Catchments' NRM facilitator, any plant grown in the wrong place can potentially become a weed.

"What may be a perfectly safe plant to grow in one area can be an environmental disaster in another," said Mr Van Ryt. "It is important that garden waste is disposed of correctly and not into bushland where it can germinate environmental weeds.

"Most weeds begin as ordinary plants. They escape from gardens and cause great damage, invading natural habitats; choking rivers and crowding out vegetation on which native animals depend. They even make our food more expensive; costing Australia's farmers and the agricultural industry more than $4 billion a year in lost production."

Mr Van Ryt believes home gardeners can have an important role in defeating the weeds menace.

"Unless the spread of invasive plants is slowed down, future generations may be left with the legacy of a degraded Australian landscape. The actions of all home gardeners are vital in ensuring problem plants do not spread or escape and spring-up as invasive weeds.

"Gardeners can take simple steps to help prevent the spread of weeds, including checking existing garden plants are safe and disposing of garden waste carefully," Mr Van Ryt said.

For further information on problem plants and how to manage them, contact your local council or garden retailers, or visit the Weeds in Australia website.

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Duplication slashed across sustainable ag.

Systematic sustainable agriculture has exposed what many already knew – primary producers across Queensland making great gains.

The considerable efforts of Queensland's primary producers in moving towards sustainable agriculture have been rewarded with more efficient and coordinated support programs.

Andrew Drysdale, Queensland Regional NRM Groups Collective CEO said the state's primary producers were already achieving positive outcomes through funding programs and information, which added value to their own investments in farming systems.

"Queensland's growers and producers are continuing to make giant steps towards farming that is sustainable in the long term and meets triple bottom line targets,” Mr Drysdale said.

"State-wide collaboration of representative bodies, regional NRM arrangements, government and industry is better supporting farmers’ sustainable agriculture efforts and promoting real and effective on-the-ground achievements, he said.

"This is a huge task. The Systematic Approach to Sustainable Agriculture across Queensland project is a great first step."

The project, launched last year, is funded by the Natural Heritage Trust Strategic Reserve, managed by the Fitzroy Basin Association and led by the Collective in partnership with the Queensland Farmers' Federation, AgForce and AgForward. The project brings together regional NRM bodies, industry groups, the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, the Department of Natural Resources and Water, the Reef Water Quality Partnership, WWF-Australia, the National Landcare Program, and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.

For more information see the Qld Regional NRM Groups Collective website.

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Resourceful training for women in the Border Rivers

Over 30 women from across the Queensland Border Rivers catchment will participate in a short course to develop their skills and knowledge of natural resource management (NRM), to begin next month.

The short course, called Naturally Resourceful, has been organised by the Queensland Murray-Darling Committee (QMDC) and will be held in two locations - Moonie and Nindigully. The course includes four workshops and covers topics like local ecology, climate change, succession planning, soil moisture, and communication techniques.

QMDC education officer, Pip Bagshaw, said, "Naturally Resourceful short courses were run in November last year, in Roma and Injune, with great success. The women who participated became more involved and aware of NRM issues as a result, and we hope to see the same impact further south with this next round of courses." 

Pip said that there had been an impressive level of interest shown by local women, so far. "The women seem really enthusiastic and keen to learn more about NRM," she said.

The first workshops kick off on 11 March in Moonie, and 12 March in Nindigully. The final workshops will be held in early April. Any interested women can contact Pip Bagshaw on 4671 7900.

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Making Burdekin beef more environmentally sustainable and profitable

Three beef producer teams in the Burdekin catchment met in Charters Towers this week to discuss how they are using a whole of business systems approach to improve their environmental sustainability and profitability at the same time.

The Research to Reality project started in November 2006 and was funded through a partnership between the Burdekin Dry Tropics NRM and the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F). Additional project partners included the Beef CRC for Genetic Technologies and the graziers directly involved in the project.

The three grazier teams represent nineteen enterprises from Greenvale, Collinsville and the Belyando area. Collectively, these enterprises manage an area of 680 000 ha and 162 000 large stock units. A parallel project called CQ BEEF is being run in Central Queensland.

The process so far has involved grazier teams assessing land condition and their animal husbandry and land management practices within a property planning context. The teams have assessed the cost-benefit of a number of options including developing irrigated sown pasture to rest breeder country, achieving land condition improvement by developing and implementing wet season spelling systems, strategies for improving branding rates and nutrition and maximising profit via the age and class of cattle sold. A number of issue specific field days have also been held. 

The producers have commenced property activities and each grazier team has a different focus based on the issues relevant to their enterprises. Projects include testing a range of techniques for repairing land condition, maximising animal production via nutrition and innovative options for incorporating wet season spelling into property development. Grazier teams will track and test research progress with regular on site activities to discuss and review findings. Further benchmarking and enterprise analysis will help determine the impact on enterprise profitability. Results of the project will be shared between the grazier teams and the broader industry will be invited to attend future field days and other project activities.

For more information about the project contact Brigid Nelson, DPI&F on 4761 5158, or visit the DPI&F website.

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Bunya Pines celebrated at Dreaming Festival

The significance of native Bunya Pines to Aboriginal people was recognised at a special festival last month.

Over 300 people attended the Bunya Dreaming Festival at Baroon Pocket Dam near Maleny including the Chairman of the Burnett Mary Regional Group, Russell Stewart.

Mr Stewart said that it was good to see Aboriginal people continuing the tradition of meeting at the time the trees produce Bunya nuts.

"It's great to see the return of this very old tradition, with non-Aboriginal people also taking part," he said.

"The festival means more than just eating the delicious Bunya nuts; it's a chance to hear the stories, reflect on the connection of people to the land and have a bit of fun."

Festival organiser and descendent of the Gubbi Gubbi people Beverly Hand said that for thousands of years, Aboriginal people used to come from far away to gather at Baroon Pocket from December to March.

"These gatherings were a celebration of their culture with politics, sports, justice, dissemination of information, marital arrangements and other social activities taking place," she said.

"The Bunya tree was so special to our people that there were laws that precluded people harming it in any way."

Ms Hand said she loved to share her enjoyment of the Bunya Pine with the whole community. 

"The festival shows that the tree is more than just an icon, it generates understanding of Aboriginal culture, provides a forum for networking and information sharing, and strengthens community partnerships."

Ms Hand is active in her community, and has been awarded the Australia Day Cultural Award for her work, especially her achievements towards Caring for Country.

The festival was hosted by Barung Landcare. For more information, contact Beverly Hand on 5494 2889.

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Rare frogs in Burnett Mary region among the world's most endangered

Three species of very rare frogs in the Burnett Mary region are now on the list of the world's most endangered amphibians.

Last month, the Zoological Society of London released a list of the 100 most endangered species of amphibians which it says are threatened by extinction.

Biodiversity conservation regional coordinator Rachel Lyons said that she was sad to see that the region continues to be over represented with threatened species.

"I hope that the Zoological Society's list will get people interested in protecting the habitat of these species," she said.

"Frogs are highly sensitive to pollution and climate change, but because they are not cute and cuddly, they attract little or no conservation attention."

The three species from the Burnett Mary region on the list are:

Ms Lyons said that the key to saving theses species was protecting their habitat for the future and getting local people interested in education about the species.

"Hopefully this will ensure that they can keep on surviving for millions of years to come," she said.

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Government updates
The Data Hub Study – Improving data and information sharing

We all know that NRM is a complex business. Natural resource systems have many dimensions and there are lots of different players involved in NRM decisions, each with different data, information and knowledge to contribute. 

To get good NRM outcomes we need to make best use of all data, information and knowledge. With this in mind, millions of dollars have been invested in data and information collection, and in systems and tools for data and information sharing.  

Why then when we all agree that better data sharing would improve NRM outcomes, have the results of data sharing initiatives been so mixed? What is hindering us from sharing data? How do we improve the interaction, cooperation and sharing of information between regional NRM bodies and government agencies? These are some of the questions that the NRM Data Hub Project aims to answer.

The NRM Data Hub Project has been set up under the auspices of the NRM Science Panel (which has membership from regional bodies and State and Federal Government NRM agencies) and is funded by the Department of Natural Resources and Water (NRW). It is being run by Alan Jones and Phil Norman from NRW's Community and Integration Sciences at Indooroopilly and started in late 2007. 

The project is reviewing and analysing how data and information are shared (or not) between regional NRM bodies, local government, industry, and government agencies. It is looking at the barriers, disincentives and bottle-necks that inhibit sharing, and proposing actions to address these.

When first envisaged, the original concept for the project was focussed on process automation, with the expectation that its recommendations would be about building or amending IT systems. However, initial discussions with stakeholders and a scan of the literature quickly established the need for a broader perspective - an examination of the interactions of technology, human behaviour and organisational elements of data sharing and NRM cooperation. 

The clear indication from this initial phase of the project is that without the right people, processes and resources in place first, computer systems aimed at encouraging data sharing and cooperation will continue to meet limited success and patchy uptake.

It is also clear that the best mix of these elements will vary between situations and that getting it right will require a flexible approach and practice. The NRM Data Hub Project is currently working with regional bodies and agencies throughout the state to develop regional and data theme pilots to test and refine key aspects of the concept. 

If you have any questions on the Data Hub Study, contact Phil Norman on 3896 9737 or Alan Jones on 3896 9293.

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Floodwater brings wildlife boon

While heavy rain and rising floodwaters have wreaked financial havoc in parts of Queensland, experts say the sudden influx has been a boon for local wildlife and ecosystems.

The salt water Lake Wyara and freshwater Lake Numalla, in the Currawinya National Park, near Cunnamulla, had been dry for five years but in just a few weeks, they have received enough water to fill both lakes creating an inland paradise for birds and aquatic animals.

"We had some aerial surveys made of the area and the most striking thing we have found is around 13 000 pelicans have been seen on the salt lake," Environmental Protection Agency extension officer Richard Johnson said. "They are nesting which means there is abundant fish to be had either in the two lakes or nearby in creeks and rivers."

The wildlife in the wetlands has also received a boost from creatures flushed out of local waterholes and brought downstream by floodwaters.

"With the saltwater lake some of the local run off has flushed fish out from permanent holes on feeder creeks and those fish are now breeding," Mr Johnson said. "Also the floods in the Paroo River floods have kick-started an aquatic ecosystem there and you will see fish and turtles coming into the freshwater lake from the connection to the river."

Experts say it is not unusual for Lake Wyara to dry up periodically, with the lakes' species accustomed to dry conditions. However, Mr Johnson said it was only the second time that Lake Numalla had dried out since the 1940s.

"The salt lake in particular dries fairly regularly so its a system that has adapted well to a boom and bust cycle with periodic wetting and the plants and wildlife respond very well to influxes of water," he said.

"It is a shallow terminal lake that dries very frequently, whereas the freshwater lake doesn't dry frequently and apart from this recent occurrence it had only dried once since the Second World War.

"When that dries you get many animals who are reliant on the lake and the availability of water that are not able to deal with a loss of water die. Now those animals are able to recolonise those areas," Mr Johnson said.

The only negative, Mr Johnson said, is that the situation has created near-perfect breeding conditions for freshwater pest fish the European Carp.

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Heritage honour for Aboriginal stone hatchet quarry

An ancient Aboriginal stone hatchet quarry of immense importance to Central Victoria's Wurundjeri people has been given Australia's highest heritage honour - inclusion in the National Heritage List.

Australian Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts, Peter Garrett, said the 18-hectare site provided stone tools that were essential in the daily lives of many Aboriginal communities.

"Mount William tells us how this prized 'currency' was made and used in trade for thousands of years," Mr Garrett said.

"This site was one of the largest and most intensively-worked Aboriginal quarries in Australia. The Wurundjeri mined the greenstone, shaped the hatchet heads and exchanged them for possum skin cloaks and fine wooden spears."

"Aboriginal people travelled hundreds of kilometres to obtain the prestigious stone hatches of Mount William."

During the mid-1800s it was recognised as a special place that had been used by Aboriginal people well before European settlement. In 1855 naturalist William Blandowski described the site as 'a celebrated spot' which supplies Aboriginal people with stone.

"I'm delighted to give the site the recognition it deserves, with a place in the National Heritage List," Mr Garrett said.

National Heritage Listing ensures places are protected for future generations under the Australian Government's Environment Protection and Biodiversity Act 1999. For more information visit the Australian heritage website.

The full media release can be found on the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts website.

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Young Queenslanders gather for United Nations Youth Summit

Eighty young Queenslanders will gather in Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast this week to undertake United Nations style talks on topics such as climate change, international trade and conflict in the Sudan.

Youth Minister Lindy Nelson-Carr said the three-day summit, sponsored by the United Nations Youth Association (UNYA), aims to educate Queensland students about the importance of the United Nations and international relations.

Ms Nelson-Carr said the summit would provide the year 10 to 12 students with an opportunity to have their say about global issues.

"Today's students will be tomorrow's leaders, so this is an invaluable opportunity for young people to learn how countries relate on an international level," Ms Nelson-Carr said.

"The experience they will gain over the next few years will help equip them with the skills necessary to become effective and skilled leaders in the future."

President of the UNYA Charlotte Yellowlees said the summit provided a unique opportunity for school students to learn about international relations, foreign diplomacy, negotiation and public speaking.

"These are areas that aren't normally specifically addressed in school, so it's fantastic to be able to provide educational opportunities for students who are passionate about global issues and international relations," Ms Yellowlees said.

"UNYA is a network of young people that hosts a whole range of educational opportunities and policy forums. We're a group of young people who are passionate about the ideals of the UN and the potential for change generated by involvement in these sorts of activities," said Ms Yellowlees.

On the first day of the summit students will receive talks on the role of the media from Courier Mail editor David Fagan; juvenile justice issues by Youth Affairs Network's Siyavash Doostkah; and substance abuse from John Heron, chairperson of the Australian National Council of Drugs.

The students will then take part in YouthSpeak, Australia's largest consultation with young people, which seeks to include young people in the decision making process.

Ms Nelson-Carr said as a part of this consultation, the delegates will compile a declaration that will include ideas that have been discussed as well as statements on particular issues.

"The declaration will be presented to Members of Parliament and other government and non-government organisations," Ms Nelson-Carr said.

The summit ends on Sunday, culminating with a mock UN General Assembly and workshops on negotiation and diplomacy.

The United Nations Youth Association of Australia is an officially UN affiliated body, designed to represent and educate youth in international and domestic issues.

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Rescue plan secures prime piece of Springbrook rainforest

The Queensland Government has purchased 58 hectares of near pristine rainforest for future addition to the Springbrook National Park.

Minister for Sustainability, Climate Change and Innovation, Andrew McNamara, said the $3.6 million property was purchased as part of the $39 million South East Queensland Rainforest Program. Mr McNamara said the property, located near the Mt Warning volcano rim, had great environmental significance.

"This property is the linchpin of the whole $39 million rainforest program," Mr McNamara said.

"The program aims to purchase and protect areas of high conservation value in South East Queensland. The newly acquired land will provide the first protected link between the east and west sections of Springbrook National Park.

"The property has a diverse landscape which supports a rich variety of animals including the Albert's Lyrebird, Rufous Scrub-bird, Whirring Treefrog and Spotted-tailed Quoll. Its purchase ensures protection for this important habitat," Mr McNamara said.

Member for Mudgeeraba Dianne Reilly welcomed the expansion of the park.

"The property, located near the Best of All Lookout on Repeater Station Road, will be a wonderful addition to Springbrook National Park," Ms Reilly said.

"The cooperation of local landowners has ensured that this parcel of land can be preserved and enjoyed by future generations. The property is exceptional. It is frequently in cloud and has an average rainfall of between 2-3 metres, qualities not seen anywhere else in Australia outside of the Wet Tropics.

"Springbrook offers visitors impressive views of subtropical and temperate rainforest, spectacular waterfalls, and mountain streams," she said.

The government has bought back more than 470 hectares of land to enlarge Springbrook National Park and plans to acquire more than 500 hectares. The park will soon cover 3500 hectares and contains the popular Purling Brook Falls on Springbrook Plateau, the rugged Mt Cougal section and Natural Bridge.

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Queensland another step closer to eradicating EI

Queensland will be out of the red this week, Minister for Primary Industries and Fisheries Tim Mulherin said.

"With no confirmed equine influenza (EI) properties in Queensland, from February 27, the current Amber Zone will become White and the current Red Zone will become Amber," Mr Mulherin said. "There will be no Red Zone.

"While there will remain some restrictions, we are continuing full steam ahead towards being declared EI free.

"These zone changes are another major milestone in the fight against EI and will further free up horse movement in south east Queensland. We had anticipated being able to implement these changes late last week, however adverse weather conditions during the past fortnight slightly slowed our surveillance efforts."

The Red Zone's reclassification as Amber means that horses can move freely on hoof and can be transported with just a waybill within the Amber Zone. However a permit and waybill will be necessary for horses to move outside the zone or interstate, and specific isolation and testing requirements may apply depending on individual horse status.

The Amber Zone's move to White will see it joined with the rest of the state. Within the White Zone horses can move freely on hoof and can be transported with only a waybill. This reclassification will also make it significantly easier to move horses from this area into white zones in other states. Waybills and travel documentation are still required.

Details of what the new changes will mean for horse owners are available on the DPI&F website or by calling 13 25 23.

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Natural resources news
Extinction a real Saw point for Seaweek 2008

Seaweek is on again!

On from 2-8 March 2008, Seaweek is a national educational campaign conducted annually to not only focus community awareness, provide information, and encourage an appreciation of the sea, but to celebrate individuals and groups involved in marine environmental education, and acknowledge actions for the conservation and sustainable management of the marine environment

Sponsored by the Northern Gulf Resource Management Group, the theme for Seaweek 2008 is 'Extinction – a Saw point' highlighting the plight of the declining sawfish.

Sawfish populations have declined over the years because of pressures imposed on them from fishing and modification of their habitat. Sawfish are vulnerable to most forms of fishing in particular net fisheries as at any size their toothed rostrum is easily entangled in the mesh.

The aim of Seaweek 2008 is to:

Seaweek 2008 is primarily web-based to reduce the carbon footprint of MESA (the Marine Education Society of Australasia), the host group of Seaweek.

For information on Seaweek, or to find out what events are happening in your region, check out the Seaweek website.

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Attack of the vicious pears!

A cactus so tough that its spines can penetrate boots and car tyres has been found growing at Mundubbera, 400km northwest of Brisbane.

Once spines of the hudson pear cactus penetrate the skin, they often require pliers to pull them out. It is potentially the worst cactus species to spread in Australia since prickly pear in the 1920s.

Biosecurity Queensland land protection officer Jodie Sippel said there was anecdotal evidence the cactus had caused a fatality at Lightning Ridge in New South Wales when a person fell into a clump of pear and had a heart attack.

When animals are impaled spines break off, leaving foreign matter under the skin that lead to infection. "It's pretty nasty stuff and we don't yet have chemicals registered to treat it because we've only just found it," Ms Sippel said.

Up to 50 plants had been found on one property but an urgent search was needed to see if it had spread further, she said.

A native of Mexico, the plant is highly invasive and spreads whenever an animal, vehicle or person brushes against it, dislodging segments that take root. Its spines threaten bush walkers, campers, horses, dogs, cattle and sheep.

Hudson pear (Cylindropuntia rosea) is densely branched and grows up to 1.5m tall and 3m wide. Its spines are 4.5cm long and white. Flowers are pink-purple and 5cm wide. Fruit are oval, up to 4.5cm long and yellow when ripe.

If you see the pear contact Biosecurity Queensland on 13 25 23.

Story sourced from The Courier Mail (online)

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Newest 'supermodel' gives clearer picture on Murray-Darling's future

The latest issue of ECOS reports on a massive research effort to accurately map the Murray–Darling Basin's surface water and groundwater resources.

The research is providing policy-makers and planners with a sound basis for making decisions about future water allocations for agriculture, the environment and the wider community.

Through the CSIRO-led Murray–Darling Basin Sustainable Yields (MDBSY) project – said to be the most comprehensive water-resource inventory undertaken – researchers have developed a hydrological 'supermodel' of Basin water resources by linking 40 separate computer models and a comprehensive dataset representing surface and groundwater flows and extractions.

The integrated model, which also takes into account connections between groundwater and surface flows, will give managers a clearer picture of how future water availability will affect agriculture, forestry, urban supplies and the environment, and allow them to assess different management approaches under various climate scenarios.

The Murray–Darling Basin covers one-seventh of the continent and supplies 40 per cent of Australia's farm production. As well as the Murray, the Darling and the Murrumbidgee, the Basin includes the catchments of 15 other tributaries, such as the Condamine, Balonne, Culgoa, Moonie, Paroo, Warrego, and Nebine-Mungallala rivers.

Read more from the latest issue of ECOS.

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The 'lost' language of the fishes

The spectacular colours of coral reef fishes represent a 'language' that has been around for at least 50 million years – to which humans have lost the key.

Colour in fish is most probably a highly developed form of communication, some of which we can interpret, but much of which remains cryptic says Professor David Bellwood of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies and James Cook University.

"Colour is one of the languages fish use to communicate. By brightening or darkening their hues they can display aggression or fear, identify mates, advertise status, hide from danger and probably many other things we can only guess at," Professor Bellwood said.

Science has been able to figure out the reasons for some patterns observed on coral reef fish. A black stripe across the eye helps to conceal the position of the organ from predators who may then find it hard to tell which end of the fish to attack. Many fish further confuse them by adding a large dark eye-spot towards the end of the tail, presumably so the predator heads in one direction while the fish escapes in the other. These eye spots (ocelli) and other patterns also appear on fish fossils millions of years old and are clearly a long-standing evasion device.

But why many reef fish display brilliant blues, crimsons, purples and oranges, in striped, spotted, variegated and harlequin patterns - and are apparently doing everything possible to catch the eye remains a scientific puzzle. The language of fish colour remains to be interpreted.

"We do know that the most brightly coloured fish are associated with very clear waters – round coral reefs and in the Great Lakes of Africa, for example. But the meaning their colours convey is still not entirely clear, despite many decades of scientific study," Professor Bellwood said.

For more information or to read the full media release, visit the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies website.

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Wonderful WaterWatch website

The Queensland WaterWatch program has a new and improved website.

It has been designed to assist community-based groups and others interested in learning more about the condition of their local waterways, and caring for their catchment.

The site has information on education and training material; resources for monitoring, schools, training (to name a few); and explains why water monitoring is conducted (and how to do it).

Find out more on the new WaterWatch website.

AgForward workshop update

The AgForward team present a range of workshops to landholders, including GPS essentials, computer mapping, vegetation management, and AgForest's native forest field days.

Between March and June this year AgForward will conduct around 107 workshops throughout Queensland. Upcoming workshops include:

More information on these workshops can be found on the AgForward website (under 'Workshops').

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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: Desert Channels Queensland (DCQ)

Title: Industry liaison officer

Tenure: 12 months

Salary range: $55 000 to $65 000

Location: Longreach

This position will work closely with the DCQ community, actively promote a range of services available to producers from agencies, private consultants, bankers and financial institutions, facilitate community meetings, workshops and information sessions for the DCQ community, and respond effectively to current and emerging community issues.

For a full position description and selection criteria contact Brittany Wakefield on 4658 0600.

Closing date: COB Monday 17 March

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Thought for the week

Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.

George Bernard Shaw

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We welcome your contributions and feedback. If you have any comments or suggestions for The Bugle please contact Carl Glen, Shona Strachan or Aleisha Domrow.

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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 22 January 2009

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