Condamine Alliance NRM region
2006
Find out about natural resource management projects funded in part by the Queensland Government.
If you would like any of the 2004 or 2005 stories sent to you, email the regional NRM communications team.
Featured projects in the Condamine Alliance NRM region.
Downs irrigators increase corn yields by 50%
Darling Downs irrigators are being encouraged to improve water-use efficiency on their farms...more
Silage irrigation solution for feedlotter
The introduction of a water use efficiency program for irrigated corn has generated huge yield increases for farm manager Col Blackley...more
Landholders support land management tender
Landholders on vulnerable brigalow lands in the Millmerran area have submitted 13 bids to attract funding from a grazing land management scheme being trialled by the Condamine Alliance...more
Graziers shift from problem to solution for salinity
A program to curb the threat of salinity by encouraging graziers to change their management practices is showing results...more
Gummingurru stones reveal ancient lessons
One of the largest and most complex Aboriginal stone arrangements in Australia, near Toowoomba, will soon be receiving visitors ... more
Showcasing Aboriginal culture to bring communities together
A guide to Indigenous cultural heritage produced by the Condamine Alliance aims to bridge the gap between landholders and Aborigines ... more
Traditional Owners share in Condamine care
The establishment of a Traditional Owner Board with representatives of five tribal groups has engaged Indigenous people in natural resource management in the Condamine River catchment ... more
Young farmers profit from NRM
A network of young farmers on the Darling Downs is helping its members to leverage natural resource management on their farms to improve their business bottom lines ... more
Joint effort to manage coal-seam gas
Condamine Alliance has asked gas companies to work as part of a team to find solutions to the environmental impact of coal-seam gas extraction on the Darling Downs...more
Inventory springs to light in Condamine
A recent investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency for the Condamine Alliance detected 1750 wetlands covering 27,000 ha in the Condamine River catchment...more
Farmers are stirring dust in the wetlands
Land owners who are battling the big dry in the Condamine have been heralded as heroes – in the struggle to protect and research the region's wetlands.
A partnership has been forged between the Condamine Alliance and Greening Australia Queensland to protect important Condamine wetlands and conduct research, at a time when many people in the region have almost forgotten that wetlands exist... more
Dairy farming for the future
Change is so rapid in the Queensland dairy industry that it is a real challenge to keep up, says Donna Fitch, a member of the Darling Downs Young Farmers Network.
"Fortunately, we have the opportunity through the Young Farmers Network, to mix with other like-minded farmers and share ideas and learning experiences," she says... more
2007
Horticulture producers tackle water woes
The Condamine River catchment encompasses a large number of Queensland's horticulture producers, ranging from Chinchilla in the north-west to Killarney in the south-east... read more
Preparing for rain in the Condamine
Julia Simmons’s 133 hectare 'Glenville Downs' property, at Ryeford near Clifton, sits at the bottom of a large basaltic catchment, with about 20,000 hectares of cultivated land draining through the middle of three of her paddocks – all with gradients of less than 0.5%... read more
Assessing the real cost of holding stock through drought
Low dam levels, poor-quality water, very low levels of available feed, and little time left for summer-growing grasses – the list of worries for stock owners appears to grow daily as the drought drags on ... read more
Councils close ranks in war on pests
What was once merely an ambition to have Darling Downs councils pool their resources and work together across shire boundaries to stamp out pests is now a big step closer to reality ... read more
Look out, Adelaide, here it comes…
Heavy rain over cropping and grazing land left bare by the drought in the Condamine River catchment would wash at least 1.3 million tonnes of soil into the river or its tributaries, at the head of the Murray-Darling Basin.Read more
FSA Consulting, Condamine Alliance recycled organics field days
FSA Consulting hosted a series of field days across the Darling Downs as part of a project funded by Condamine Alliance to study the re-use of manure and compost on farms. Read more...
Question of survival for stay-at-home skinks
A seven-day search for the Nangur skink, Nangura spinosa, confirmed suspicions that it may well be the most restricted reptile in Australia, known to exist in only two small, isolated, semi-evergreen vine thickets in southern Queensland. Read more...
Condamine catchment caught up in flood of development
The impacts of climate change, and industrial and urban development, on local landscapes, lifestyles and livelihoods head the list of concerns for residents of the Condamine River catchment. Read more...
Downs farmers lead in spray drift control
The rate of adoption of the latest spray drift technology in the Brigalow-Jimbour area of the northern Darling Downs is leading the nation, according to spray consultant Bill Gordon ... read more
Landcare's $843 000 kick-starts new partnerships with farmers
Condamine Alliance has welcomed funding of $843 000 for three new National Landcare projects ... read more
Leg up for native fish
Condamine Alliance has secured a $63 000 Recreational Fishing Community Grant to support a $190 000 project to provide a fish passage along the Condamine River at Loudoun Weir, near Dalby ... read more
Traditional Owners lend a hand to help endangered eastern bristlebird
Queensland's national parks are vital for protecting habitat for a wide range of fauna species, especially those listed as endangered, vulnerable or rare ... read more
Collars cramp stray cats' style
Moggies make great pets, but their secret lives have been exposed: Toowoomba owners have reported a 60% drop in the number of animals killed by cats that wear dual-bell collars, given away by Condamine Alliance and Toowoomba City Council.
Cat-owners have enthusiastically embraced the campaign, with more than 1020 out of 8000 registered cat owners responding to a survey to receive free collars with their registration papers ... more
Science meets tradition in land management
In what is thought to be a national first, Indigenous people across southern Queensland have come together with three regional natural resource management bodies in a project where science meets the experience of 40 000 years of land management.
The project aims to put science behind the traditional owners' descriptions of what makes a landscape 'healthy' versus 'unhealthy' ... more
Snags make fish feel at home
Bemused campers at popular fishing spot Bowenville Reserve were left scratching their heads when Jondaryan Shire turned up at first light on a recent Saturday with a truckload of snags... more
Wanted: The Condamine Five
Condamine Alliance has called on people power to eradicate the “Five Most Wanted Weeds” in the Condamine catchment, urging landholders to remove them if possible, but not just dump them...more
Clifton farmers lead with 'green' qualifications
Farmers at Clifton on the Darling Downs have used technology and an internationally recognised management system to justify the green image of Australian farming...more
2008
Condamine plans electro-magnetic surveys for nutrient mapping
Condamine Alliance is looking to introduce software based on electro-magnetic (EM) surveys to Australia to provide practical solutions for monitoring key NRM indicators in the Condamine catchment ... more
Management plan to reduce cost of floods
A review of the Condamine catchment floodplains suggests that proactive management may save up to 25 percent of the annual cost of $12 million caused by flooding ... more
Shane says no more! Let's protect the Condamine
Rugby league legend and Leyburn local Shane Webcke has joined the Condamine River Rescue Program run by Condamine Alliance, expressing his concern about rising numbers of carp and the risk of another pest fish, tilapia, finding its way into the Murray-Darling river system ... more
Clifton students learn to love their river
Condamine Alliance has teamed up with Clifton State High School to develop a community engagement process for Condamine River Rescue works at Passmore Reserve on the Condamine near Clifton ... more
Farm size no obstacle to high-tech land management
A group of inner-eastern Darling Downs grain growers is proving that size doesn’t matter when it comes to embracing the latest technology to improve land management... more
Daniel hits the road, a long way from home
Condamine Alliance has begun its annual survey of land management practices at more than 400 sites in the Condamine catchment, supported this year by the services of University of Southern Queensland student, Daniel Boitshoko...more
Indigenous team rescues precious Jewel
Condamine Headwaters Landcare Group Inc, in partnership with Condamine Alliance, the Department of Main Roads and Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, has been working on an exciting project to protect valuable habitat for the endangered bulloak jewel butterfly (Hypochrysops piceatus) at Leyburn...more
Chinese experts awe-struck by care for Condamine River
Conservation officials from China were "overwhelmed" by the relative good health of the Condamine River catchment during a tour recently...more
Dalby company strikes a first for Australia
The Loudoun Weir Fishway will be the first fishway in the Queensland section of Murray-Darling to be completed with financial support from corporate investment. Dalby's local Civil Construction firm Ostwald Bros have led this challenge assisted by GHD Toowoomba and Arrow Energy to ensure the fishway on Loudoun Weir would become operational in time for the next big rain...more
2009
Aboriginal strategy sets path for the future
Desert Channels Queensland (DCQ) and its Aboriginal Advisory Panel (AAP) marked a significant milestone, and a first for the region last week with the launch of its Aboriginal Engagement Strategy...more
Native fish given a better chance of survival
Native fish will have a better chance of survival with over 100 kilometres of river now opened for migrating fish with the official launch of the reconstructed vertical slot fishway at Loudoun Weir, near Dalby, today...more
Endangered regent honeyeater may still splash yellow across our skies
Condamine Alliance and project partners are investing to save the endangered Regent Honeyeater...more
Last updated 31 July 2009