The Bugle - 13 June 08
In news this week
Regional NRM group stories- Celebration of a lifetime
- BMRG throws weight behind 19th annual Landcare gathering
- Carp busters converge in Mungindi
- Canegrowers testing the waters
- Coal seam gas water risks to be investigated
- Celebrating Australia's love of whales
- NRM leaders awarded with honours
- Community-based NRM gain from state budget
- Give whales a wide berth during annual migration
- New climate change reports on Murray-Darling catchments
- Qld Government celebrates an exciting milestone in bilby conservation
- Places still available for MBI training in Brisbane
- Country project aims to improve our catchments
- New hope in battle to control feral pigs
- Leading Australians show they care about the country
- Mark it in your diaries...
- Love fishing? Become a Fishcare volunteer!
- AgForward workshop update
- Get a job in NRM!
Regional NRM group stories
Celebration of a lifetime
They say that knowledge is a tree: each piece grows out of that which came before. While this holds true for cultures with written records, cultures with oral records are different. For them, knowledge is a chain: each generation must forge its own link from – and onto – the preceding one; if one generation fails to forge its link, the chain has ended, the knowledge is gone.
In what is being termed a 'celebration of a lifetime', representatives from seven Traditional Owner groups from across more than half of Queensland gathered in Longreach on Wednesday to launch the case studies from their Traditional Knowledge Recording Project.
The project provides a mechanism for combining Traditional Knowledge with contemporary land management through video recording and multi-media databases. It enables Elders to pass on their knowledge and skills, in a format that will be preserved for future generations.
This million dollar, cross-regional project is managed by Desert Channels Queensland and funded from the Australian Government's Natural Heritage Trust through the Queensland Government's Strategic Reserve.
For more information on the work of Desert Channels Queensland, call 4658 0600.
BMRG throws weight behind 19th annual Landcare gathering
The annual Queensland Landcare Conference has become one of the most significant Landcare events on the national calendar, attracting more than 350 people consistently. This year's event will be no different.
Thanks to the support of platinum partners, Burnett Mary Regional Group (BMRG), the conference this year takes place in Monto, located approximately 250 kilometres west of Bundaberg.
CEO of BMRG, David Brown said, "We recognise that Landcare groups play a significant role in managing natural resources at a grassroots level. There are hundreds of Landcare groups in Queensland who are working hand-in-hand with graziers, growers and governments to ensure a sustainable future for their communites. Regional bodies across the state rely on these grassroots groups for on-ground action and crucial capacity building.
"We have committed platinum support for the 2008 Queensland Landcare Conference to ensure that important sustainability topics are addressed, and adequate representation of grassroots groups occurs," Mr Brown said.
The event takes place from 21–24 September and features keynote presentations on peak oil and gas, rural mental health, climate change, sustainable living and gardening and soil carbon. There are also more than 20 concurrent sessions and eight field trips to choose from.
Early bird registrations close 30 June. Further information is available online from Queensland Landcare or the Queensland Landcare Conference website. You can also contact the event manager, Samantha Morris, on 3012 7617.
Carp busters converge in Mungindi
The Mungindi Carp Busters Competition, fourth in a six part series of Carp Busting Competitions throughout the Queensland Murray Darling Basin, was held on 17-18 May.
The Mungindi Fishing Club is one of six clubs involved in the Carp Buster series coordinated by regional natural resource management group, the Queensland Murray-Darling Committee (QMDC). The QMDC Carp Busters Series is one of the biggest community awareness programs for European Carp and the damage they cause to river systems in the Murray-Darling Basin.
The Mungindi event was held on the property 'Yarramindi', 25 kilometres from Mungindi along the Talwood-Mungindi road.
Organiser Red Trindall said that a good time was had by all, with almost 80 carp reeled in over the two days. The heaviest carp caught weighed almost 3.5kg.
Lavinnia Fiedler, weeds and pest animal technical officer with QMDC, said, "Carp is one of the world's most widely distributed freshwater fish and has invaded large sections of southern Queensland's rivers, creeks and dams.
"These Carp Buster events not only allow us to raise the awareness of the introduced fish carp, but to highlight a host of other issues surrounding the degradation of our river and creek systems and reasons for native fish declines," Lavinnia said.
For more information on the QMDC Carp Buster Series, please contact Lavinnia on 4622 8446.
Canegrowers testing the waters
The Water Quality Pixel Project, a Burdekin Dry Tropics NRM (BDTNRM) funded program that encourages land holders to continually test their ground water and runoff, has revealed some interesting results.
The project, which began in February and will soon involve 60 landholders, has shown surprisingly low levels of nitrates in runoff water.
"This is good news," Adam Connell, project officer with the Burdekin Bowen Integrated Floodplain Management Advisory Committee (BBIFMAC), said. "We are beginning to see an impressive picture unfold on many of the farms."
He said there are some hotspots in groundwater nutrient levels but this has enabled landholders to reduce fertiliser application input.
"With the price of fertiliser set to increase again this will become a bigger issue in the future," Adam said.
A clearer picture will emerge after harvesting begins in July and the planting and fertilising is completed.
"The Water Quality Pixel Project allows landholders to test their water by using a special monitoring test kit supplied by BBIFMAC," Adam said.
"It was introduced to give landholders a more hands-on role in keeping water quality on their land within acceptable limits. And, in particular, to be aware of the quality of the run-off which could then determine management changes to reduce loss of valuable farm inputs."
Coal seam gas water risks to be investigated
The Queensland Murray-Darling Committee (QMDC) has welcomed the news that a Queensland Government working group had been formed to investigate the use of water extracted from coal seam gas fields.
QMDC had been contacted by concerned landholders worried about the potential for salt impacts on the land and soils.
"We were already concerned about suggestions from gas mining companies regarding the use of water extracted from the gas fields as a resource, because coal seam gas water may have a very nasty side to it," said Geoff Penton, QMDC's chief executive officer.
Given the high salt concentrations found in water that is extracted with coal seam gas, Geoff said that the risks to soil and water quality could also be high.
"There are some options within the region to use gas extracted water for irrigation, town supplies and to augment environmental flows. This could be great news, but the potential contamination issues need to be carefully investigated and managed," Geoff said.
"If extracted water is used in untested ways, or is not stored appropriately, we could end up with wide reaching salt scalds, permanently damaged soils, salt runoff into rivers and creeks, and damage to underground aquifers," Geoff said.
Celebrating Australia's love of whales
Burdekin Dry Tropics NRM (BDTNRM) is participating in Australia's first National Whale Day, being held tomorrow (Saturday 14 June).
"We are very excited to be involved in the first ever National Whale Day," Dr Rachel Allan, BDTNRM's Coastal and Marine Programme coordinator, said.
As part of the celebrations, BDTNRM has 'adopted' a whale - named Galbol - known to migrate along the region's coasts. Children at Townsville Central State School will participate in a 'whale workshop' and design a whale poster to promote the protection of whales in the Burdekin Dry Tropics region.
National Whale Day, an International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) initiative, celebrates the unique relationship Australians have with whales, and draws attention to some of the threats whales face today, such as whaling, climate change, ship strikes, ocean noise and marine debris.
"Since the last Australian whaling station was closed in 1978, Australia has become a world leader in whale conservation – this national day recognises not only our love of whales but our ongoing fight to protect them," IFAW Asia Pacific director, Erica Martin, said.
BDTNRM's celebration of National Whale Day is one of 23 events being held nationwide, including the official launch being held in Sydney with guest speaker Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett and special performance by IFAW friend Christine Anu.
For more information or to find events in your region visit the National Whale Day website. For information about whales, whale watching guidelines, and threats to marine wildlife visit the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority website.
NRM leaders awarded with honours
Awarded with an Order of Australia medal on the Queen's birthday, Mike Berwick has been honoured for his tireless service to conservation and the environment.
Mike Berwick has led and supported many initiatives, from the preservation of the Daintree Rainforest and Far North Queensland, to local government and to the community of Douglas Shire and wider Queensland. In honour of this prestigious award, Mike Berwick, chair of both Terrain NRM and the Regional Groups Collective, reiterated his belief for the urgent need for people to limit their impact on the environment.
"We have a brief opportunity to act now to dramatically reduce our ecological footprint with the rising risk of losing our natural heritage, our rivers, landscapes, and biodiversity," Mr Berwick said.
Damian Miley was awarded the Public Service Medal for outstanding public service in managing projects under the Land and Sea Management Strategy for the Torres Strait.
Damian Miley is the manager of the Torres Strait Regional Authority Land and Sea Management Unit and was honoured to accept the award on behalf of his team.
"I believe the recognition I have received is also recognition of all my staff. Since 2006, we have developed a number of projects with Torres Strait communities which address issues about land and sea, and building the capacity of the community in land and sea management," Mr Miley said.
"I feel very privileged to work with the Torres Strait community. It is a special place."
Congratulations to both Mike and Damian.
Community-based NRM gain from state budget
Queensland's regional natural resource management bodies are pleased by the announcement of the $17.2 million state budget in 2008-09 dedicated to continue regional natural resource management programs.
Mike Berwick, chair of the Regional Groups Collective, welcomes the state budget allocations acknowledging the value of regional delivery.
"This is the final piece of the jigsaw puzzle, which started to be compiled at the call of the election last year. We can finally now see at least 12 months ahead," Mr Berwick said.
"The state government funds are not only about maintaining regional bodies, but the regional system on the whole. Communities are the ones who have carriage of the delivery of natural resource management.
"This support from the state government gives regional bodies and their partners greater confidence for maintaining staff and achieving results on the ground," Mr Berwick said.
This budget announcement has eased initial funding concerns for Queensland's regional bodies.
"We look forward to working with the state and federal governments to ensure community-based natural resource management is strengthened year by year for the longer term," Mr Berwick said.
"It's great to see the state government budget continually support the regional system.
"Regional bodies encourage the planned discussion between the state and federal governments to negotiate a bilateral agreement for cooperatively delivering the new program in Queensland."
Government updates
Give whales a wide berth during annual migration
One of the marine world's great treks - the annual migration of humpback whales up the Australian east coast - has started, and Queenslanders are being asked to give the huge mammals a wide berth.
Minister for Sustainability, Climate Change and Innovation, Andrew McNamara, said regulations which set out approach limits are in place to protect both the whales and people from harm.
"Please play it safe around these huge, unpredictable animals," Mr McNamara said. "People come from far and wide to see these majestic animals passing so close to our coastline and, with a little care, it can be a positive experience for both whales and people.
"Humpbacks migrate north from Antarctica in early autumn and usually reach our waters around the beginning of June, head up to the Whitsundays and further north to give birth and mate. They head south again from about August through to November.
Mr McNamara said humpbacks are curious animals and are known to come up to boats and lie against or even push them, slap their massive tails or breach (leap out of the water) near boats.
"The whale-watching regulations are there to ensure everyone's safety," Mr McNamara said. "They outline how close people can get to whales in boats, jet skis, aircraft and in the water. Penalties apply for breaching these regulations without reasonable excuse."
For information about the regulations and penalties visit the Environmental Protection Agency website.
Read the full media release on the Queensland Government media statement website.
New climate change reports on Murray-Darling catchments
CSIRO has released two reports on the effects of climate change on water availability in the Murray-Darling Basin.
The reports cover the Condamine-Balonne and Moonie regions in the north of the Basin as part of the Murray-Darling Basin Sustainable Yields project being undertaken on behalf of the Australian Government and the Murray-Darling Basin states.
The project looks at the impacts of climate change and land use change across the Basin's 18 regions.
Penny Wong, Federal Minister for Climate Change and Water said, "The Sustainable Yields reports will be important in developing a new and sustainable diversion limit for the Murray-Darling Basin to help achieve on these priorities."
The Condamine-Balonne region contains the internationally significant Narran Lake Nature Reserve and nine nationally important wetlands. The Moonie River features valuable floodplain wetlands and waterholes.
The two regions account for about 14.4 per cent of the Basin’s total area and are home to almost 184 000 people. Land use includes pastures for livestock, sheep and cattle grazing, cotton and grain.
More information about the CSIRO Murray-Darling Basin Sustainable Yields project can be found on the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts website. The full media release can be read on Australian Government's media centre website.
Qld Government celebrates an exciting milestone in bilby conservation
The State Government is one step closer to ensuring the survival of the bilby, one of Australia's most endangered animals, in Queensland.
At the launch of Dreamworld's Bilby Education Program on the Gold Coast, Minister for Sustainability, Climate Change and Innovation, Andrew McNamara, announced that the government hoped to release more than 15 bilbies back into their natural environment by the end of July.
"The EPA has successfully bred 26 bilbies, coupled with Dreamworld's captive breeding program, 36 bilbies have now been bred in captivity in Queensland in the past year," Minister McNamara said.
"Some of these bilbies will be released into a 29 square kilometre predator-proof bilby enclosure at Currawinya National Park in South West Queensland."
Mr McNamara congratulated Dreamworld and the Save the Bilby Fund on their bilby conservation efforts. "Dreamworld have done a fantastic job and teamed up with the Save the Bilby Fund and Bilby Brothers, Frank Manthy and Peter McRae, to create a hands-on bilby education program," Minister McNamara said.
"The education program is a one hour on-site program designed to raise awareness about the bilby, one of Australia's most endangered animals."
Read the full media release on the Queensland Government media statement website.
Places still available for MBI training in Brisbane
Learn more about market-based instruments (MBIs) by attending one of 18 two-day workshops which will be conducted throughout Australia.
After the highly successful first workshop held in Townsville (29-30 May), interest in MBIs from regional groups is very high, so if you missed the first workshop you still have one opportunity in Brisbane to learn more about MBIs.
The workshop will focus on peri-urban issues with designing MBIs and will be held on the 4-5 August. Regional NRM groups and government staff with an interest in MBIs are invited to attend the free workshop which aims to increase the capacity of government policymakers and regional NRM groups to use MBIs such as offsets, conservation tenders and cap-and-trade mechanisms as tools to assist in the management of natural resources. There will also be practical examples and hands-on activities that explore the design of MBIs.
Up to 30 places are available at the workshop, so registering is essential. To register, use the online application in the Designer Carrots website.
Reef updates
Reef Guardians' message goes global
Reef Guardian students from Belgian Gardens State School, Townsville State High School and Oonoonba State School will be sharing messages of environmental sustainability with millions of people in Japan, when broadcasts the students participated in go to air later this year as part of International Year of the Reef celebrations.
The schools were featured in a two-hour Japanese documentary on the Great Barrier Reef and a multi-part television series produced by Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK), Japan's principal broadcasting corporation.
Reef Guardian Schools coordinator, Megan Sperring, said that television was a great way for Australian students to share environmental messages with students and people around the world.
"It is exciting for the students to have the opportunity to spread their messages of sustainability to a global audience," Megan said.
"Some of the students even brushed up on their Japanese in order to share their ideas directly with people in Japan."
The Tokyo-based NHK production crew said the students' messages would resonate well in Japan where marine environments face many of the same threats as Australia's marine ecosystems.
The students' messages included tips on cleaning up litter, especially cigarette butts and plastics, keeping storm drains clean and planting trees to soak up excess carbon dioxide and improve water quality.
The International Year of the Reef 2008 is a worldwide campaign to raise awareness about the value and importance of coral reefs and threats to their sustainability, and to motivate people to take action to protect them.
Wetlands updates
Whitsunday wetlands in protection program
Around 85 percent of freshwater coastal wetlands in the Mackay Whitsunday region have been lost and many remaining wetlands are under threat from residential, industrial and agricultural development, sediment accumulation and nutrient enrichment, dams and barriers, and aquatic weeds.
Wetlands play a major role in providing a filtering and bufferring effect in catchments by reducing sediment, pesticide and nutrient loads entering freshwater, coastal and marine ecosystems such as those found in the Great Barrier Reef catchment.
The Great Barrier Reef Coastal Wetland Protection Program (GBRCWPP) develops and implements strategies for the long term management and conservation of wetlands in the Reef catchment. This program plans to improve the quality of water entering the Reef lagoon by the rehabilitation and conservation of surrounding wetlands.
Ten priority wetland sites in the Mackay Whitsunday region have been selected for rehabilitation: McCreadys Creek Wetland, Lower Fursden Creek, Orphanage Swamp, Padaminka, Sandringham Creek/Lagoon, McEwans Wetlands, Goorganga Wetlands, Tedlands Wetlands, Neilson Creek and Demoylans Lagoon.
Projects that are continuing at these sites include grazing and burning trials to encourage wetland regeneration by controlling introduced grasses, water weed control in ponded pasture, revegetation of degraded areas, fish habitat restoration and rehabilitation, biodiversity and water quality monitoring and community feral pig control programs.
Visit the Reef Coastal Wetland Protection Program website for more information.
Natural resources news
Country project aims to improve our catchments
A new $8 million state government 'Healthy Country' project is supporting communities, farmers and scientists to work together to improve water quality in South East Queensland catchments and Moreton Bay.
The four-year project focuses on ways to reduce sediments and nutrients entering the waterways locally and in the Bay.
SEQ Healthy Waterways Partnership spokesperson Professor Stuart Bunn said the success of this project was essential to the future health of our waterways, as well as the lifestyles of people living in South East Queensland.
"We are aiming to show that with well targeted investments that are underpinned by sound science we can repair our waterways and reduce the loads of sediment and nutrients downstream," he said.
"If we continue with business as usual, Moreton Bay as we know it will not exist in 2026."
At the same time, the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries partners are working with primary producers to increase the adoption of land and water management practices to create more productive landscapes.
The Healthy Country project will consist of a series of collaborative research projects, waterway restoration and sustainable land management programs.
New hope in battle to control feral pigs
Scientists say they have discovered a new weapon to control one of the nation's most destructive feral animals.
The Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre's Steven Lapidge says feral pigs cost the sorghum and wheat industries in New South Wales and Queensland close to $100 million each year. Dr Lapidge says the centre is developing a common human food product that is toxic to pigs.
"There might be around 10 million feral pigs in Australia but no-one really knows," he said. "If they are left unchecked that 10 million can very quickly become 20, and we have found a new chemical that pigs are very sensitive to.
"There is an antidote for it and it has a very humane mode of action, so this will hopefully really improve feral pig control in Australia."
But Dr Lapidge says it is still years from becoming publicly available.
"It's a chemical that occurs in nature and has been responsible for mass mortalities of domestic pigs where they didn't know what they were feeding them," he said. "It's a chemical that humans consume everyday that pigs are very sensitive to, it's just a quirk of nature that that they should be so sensitive."
The centre says the caged feeding hopper that can only be opened by the muscular snout of a pig is also a more cost-effective way to control the feral pigs.
"There's very few other animals that will lift a heavy door with their snout in the weight and the size that we are looking at," Dr Lapidge said.
Story sourced from ABC Online
Leading Australians show they care about the country
Leading Australians are recognising the role that rural and regional Queenslanders play in producing food for the nation and managing the environment by lending weight to phase three of AgForce's Every Family Needs A Farmer campaign, which got under way this week.
Australian of the Year 2008 Lee Kernaghan puts heart into the bush anthem 'we care about our country' while campaign patron and Governor-General designate Quentin Bryce, and ambassador and league legend Shane Webcke, appear with other rural Queenslanders in the 15 snapshots which encapsulate life outside our cities.
This year the Every Family Needs A Farmer campaign is a partnership with the Queensland Government's Blueprint for the Bush, after being initiated in 2006 by AgForce and foundation sponsors Suncorp Agribusiness, Wesfarmers Federation Insurance and Wideland Insurance, Prime Super and Queensland Country Life.
AgForce vice president and South East Queensland cattle producer John Cotter said the looming global food shortage, ongoing drought and climate change highlight the need to strengthen links between country and city people, and increase knowledge about where food comes from and how it is produced.
"The Every Family Needs A Farmer campaign reinforces the positive and productive ways rural and regional Queenslanders are caring about our country, and lets Queenslanders know they can be proud of the fact that farmers are using environmentally sustainable production systems to produce our food and fibre," Mr Cotter said.
More information is available on the campaign website, and the advertisments and stories about farming families can be viewed at 'Video Central' on the AgForce Qld website. Read the full media release on the AgForce Qld website.
Mark it in your diaries...
The first National Local Government Environment Conference is only four short weeks away.
Taking place in Cairns from 9-13 July, the conference theme 'Valuing the Environment' will draw out opportunities and challenges for councils in managing and adapting to climate change, natural resource management, sustainable purchasing, land use planning, and waste management.
Keynote speakers include Nick Rowley who has worked at the centre of government on sustainability, climate change and broader policy and political strategy in Australia and the United Kingdom. Nick worked at 10 Downing Street as senior policy advisor to Prime Minister Tony Blair and was recently appointed strategic director to the Copenhagen Climate Council - a global initiative working with some of the world's largest businesses and climate experts to help achieve a new global climate treaty at the UN Climate Summit in Copenhagen in December 2009.
To register or find out more visit the Local Government Association of Queensland website (under 'Key events') or contact Bron Browning on 3000 2220.
Love fishing? Become a Fishcare volunteer!
If you're a keen angler and care about keeping recreational fishing in good shape for the future, why not register as a Fishcare volunteer.
Run by the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F), Fishcare volunteers work to raise community awareness about preserving fisheries resources and the need for an ethical approach to recreational fishing. They promote the benefits of catch-and-release, give advice about fishing methods and how to handle fish to increase survival rates, and provide information about rules and regulations.
Volunteers are asked to commit to one field activity per month, and occasionally attend events, such as boat shows and fishing competitions, kids fishing clinics and seniors' fishing days.
To register your interest or to find out more, visit the DPI&F website or contact the coordinator on toll-free 1800 659 861.
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:
- 17 June: Camooweal - GPS essentials
- 17 June: Winton - Vegetation management workshop
- 18 June: Julia Creek - GPS essentials
- 18 June: Longreach - Vegetation management workshop
- 19 June: Hughenden - GPS essentials
- 24 June: Goondiwindi - AgForests field day
- 24 June: Normanton - Computer mapping workshop
- 25 June: Burketown - Computer mapping workshop
- 26 June: Bollon - AgForests field day
- 26 June: Cloncurry - Computer mapping workshop
To register for the workshops contact Bree Robertson on 3238 6039. To register for the AgForests Field Day contact Rohan Allen on 0408 769 918.
More information on these workshops can be found on the AgForward website (under 'Workshops').
AgForward will be taking a break from workshop delivery in July to finalise its schedule for the period August – December, so if you’d like to arrange workshops in your region please contact Bree in Brisbane on 3238 6039 or download an expression of interest form and fax it to Brisbane on 3236 3077.
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 or NRMjobs 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:
Organisation: Landcare Queensland
Title: Senior project officer
Tenure: Full-time
Location: Brisbane
Landcare Queensland seeks a full-time senior project officer to manage a range of projects, events and campaigns within the Landcare community.
The key purpose of this role will be to ensure funding and resource needs of Landcare groups in Queensland are met by:
- developing project outlines, budgets, funding proposals and grant applications
- undertaking administrative and management duties associated with events, fundraising campaigns, and communication activies
- representing Landcare Queensland at functions and events and make presentations to businesses and corporate sector where required
- maintaining strong links with Queensland's Landcare community
- attending to enquiries from the general public and Landcare community to assist with distribution of technical and promotional information of Landcare Queensland.
For more information or to obtain a position description and selection criteria contact Emma Trigg, manager, Landcare Queensland.
Closing date: 30 June 2008
Thought for the week
You must always work not just within but below your means. If you can handle three elements, handle only two. If you can handle ten, then handle only five. In that way the ones you do handle, you handle with more ease, more mastery, and you create a feeling of strength in reserve.
Pablo Picasso
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Last updated 13 June 2008