Issue 111

Dear Chris

Wheatbelt NRM will be attending the Beverley Harvest Festival on Sunday 20 November 2011 from 10am - 4pm. If you are planning on attending, be sure to stop in on David Grasby and Taryn Beagley to say hello or browse the many resources that will be available.

And congratulations to the Avon Valley Environmental Society (AVES) who were the winners of this years CSBP Environmental Awards as part of the 2011 Regional Achievement Awards. See below for more information.

Kind regards,

Weatbelt NRM

Web version

Events

Mexican at Moorine – Another successful event

Above: Speakers Mary Nenke of Cambinata Yabbies and Glenice Batchelor, former Chair of Wheatbelt NRM

By Merrilyn Temby

There was a great turnout for the Mexican Night as part of Bodallin Catchment Group’s second Ladies Night. Some 35 ladies gathered at the Moorine Rock Tennis club, suitably decorated with Mexican colours, flags and cactus plants, for a night of Mexican themed food and drinks, interesting speakers and lots of chatter.

One of the speakers was former Wheatbelt NRM Chairperson, Glenice Batchelor. She was joined by Sally Robson-Thomas of Relationships Australia and Mary Nenke of Cambinata Yabbies. Under the theme of “Building Resilience” our three speakers talked about the challengers in life and how they have met them.

The evening was funded by the Dry Lands Assistance Fund through the Shire of Yilgarn, Rural Business Development Corporation and DAFWA. Landmark sponsored the Mexican cocktails and Spanish wines. The inaugural Ladies Night was funded by Wheatbelt NRM under their Birchip Tour project. That enabled us to ‘test the waters’ with a new style of event and gave us the feedback and confidence to make it a new part of our Group’s program.

General News

Avon Valley Environmental Society wins the 2011 CSBP Environment Award

Above: Mark Germain (far right) from CSBP presents Avon Valley Environmental Society representatives including Wheatbelt NRM Board member Peter Weaterley.

Wheatbelt NRM congratulates the Avon Valley Environmental Society (AVES) for winning the 2011 CSBP Environmental Award.

AVES takes up local environmental challenges, research solutions, source funding and apply effective and efficient remediation. The volunteers have been involved in developing and upgrading walking tracks, a solar power co-operative, a proposal for a cultural centre and commissioning a biological baseline study into water quality in the Northam pool. The Society continues to initiate new projects and is dedicated to reducing environmental impacts.

Potential for Casuarina obesa on marginal sites revealed

Caption: Project Manager Georgie Troup inspects the form pruning at provenance trial at Meckering. Bob Hingston’s expertise has turned the ‘landcare’ trees into trees with timber potential.

By Monica Durcan

A newly released report evaluating three Casuarina obesa sites in the Avon Wheatbelt will be available on the Wheatbelt NRM and AVONGRO websites shortly. The study was funded as part of Wheatbelt NRM’s Soil Conservation Incentives Program (SCIP) Round 5 (with funding provided through Caring for our Country) to assess two 8-year old provenance trials and to demonstrate the benefits of pruning and thinning applicable to any tree crop.

Tree growth and form assessment rating was used to determine which provenances showed the most potential. One of the sites had experienced significant parrot damage at an early age, however the expertise of Bob Hingston, Farm Forestry Development Officer now with DAFWA, managed to form prune some of these into trees with sawlog potential.

Thinning of the older colonised site from as many as 30,000 stems per hectare down to 400 has significantly increased the potential growth rates of the remaining trees on the site while providing up to 56 m3 per hectare of poles and firewood. With the added room, the remaining trees now have the potential to grow into timber logs if the landowner wishes.

Casuarina obesa is one of the few species that have commercial potential that can also tolerate saline sites. More work needs to be done on Casuarina obesa to select the straightest growing provenance so that land managers can combine salinity control with commercial timber production.

A field day was held in conjunction with the AVONGRO and WA Wheatbelt AFG AGMs and another is planned for February 2012. For more information on the findings contact Bob Hingston on 0409 109 051.

New National Vice President of the Australian Forest Growers – our own home-grown Western Australian wheatbelt farmer, Ian Hall

By Monica Durcan

After a recent trip to Sydney for the biennial Australian Forest Growers (AFG) Policy Forum, Western Australian representative Board member, Ian Hall (and Board member of Wheatbelt NRM), was re-elected onto the Board and elected as the national Vice President.

AFG have been representing the interests of private tree crop growers at a very high level for over 40 years, however in the past the focus has been on sawlog trees in higher rainfall areas, so its quite a coo for the WA wheatbelt to have the national Vice President and will certainly lift the profile of low-rainfall tree crops. AFG develop tree crop related policies and work the government to ensure the concerns of private growers are addressed.

Congratulations Ian!

Funding topped up on 20 projects

$2.3 million has been used to extend the work of 20 State NRM Program funded projects. Community organisations, Government agencies and universities are amongst the recipients and projects span from the Kimberley to the South Coast.

All projects funded address State Natural Resource Management Program investment priorities. These priorities are set by the WA NRM Ministerial Council and include the protection of land, water, marine and coastal environments; recovery and conservation of biodiversity; and enhancement of skills, knowledge, capacity and planning processes to achieve NRM outcomes.

Download the list of projects extended

Funding

Closing Tomorrow - 2012 Science and Innovation Awards for Young People in Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

Grant applications are now open for the 2012 Science and Innovation Awards for Young People in Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. If you’re 18-35, this is your chance to apply for up to $22,000 to fund your project on an innovative or emerging scientific issue to benefit Australia’s primary industries.

The Awards aim to encourage science, innovation and technology in rural industries and help to advance the careers of young scientists through national recognition of their research ideas. Project recipients can undertake groundbreaking research and innovation with the objective of keeping Australia’s rural industries sustainable and profitable. The Awards have already helped more than 150 young Australians make their ideas a reality and showcase their talent to the world.

There are twelve Award categories open for applications: cotton, dairy, fisheries and aquaculture, forestry, grains, viticulture and oenology, animal welfare, red meat processing, pork, new and emerging rural industries, meat and livestock and horticulture. Each category includes a grant of up to $22,000 for the nominated project.

The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry’s Award provides an additional $33,000 to one recipient of the industry Awards to extend their project.

Applications in each category Award and the Minister’s Award are assessed by a judging panel of industry representatives, convened by the Award sponsor to assess applications.

Applications close 5pm AEDT Friday 18 November 2011.

Application documents
•2012 Information for applicants
•2012 Application form  Word [305kb]

Opportunities

Project Managers - Biodiversity (x2), Coastal Environments & Landscape Conservation

South West Catchments Council

Various locations in South West Western Australia

The South West Catchments Council is seeking the following talented, high performing, professional and experienced staff to join our dynamic Natural Resource Management team to support the delivery of Caring for our Country in the South West Region.

2 x Biodiversity Project Managers (maternity leave replacements)
- Location: Bunbury 12 months /Dunsborough 6 months
- Salary range: $62,106- $65,638 plus super

This diverse role involves working with farmers and land managers to implement on-ground environmental projects that primarily address biodiversity protection in the South West NRM region. The ideal candidate will have substantial knowledge and experience in implementing biodiversity based projects.

Coastal Environments Project Manager
- Location: Mandurah
- Salary range: $62,106- $65,638 plus super

This diverse role involves working with farmers and land managers to implement on-ground environmental projects that primarily address water quality issues in the Peel-Harvey Coastal Hotspot. The ideal candidate will have experience in implementing riparian and rivercare based projects.

Landscape Conservation Project Manager
- Location: Narrogin
- Salary range: $62,106- $65,638 plus super

This diverse role involves working with farmers and land managers to implement on-ground environmental projects that improves support for landscape-scale biodiversity within the broad acre region of the South West NRM region. The ideal candidate will have experience in implementing biodiversity based projects in a broad acre context.

Applications for the above positions must specifically address the selection criteria in the Job Description Form available from the SWCC website: http://www.swccnrm.org.au (Jobs & RFQs page)

Applications (email preferred) to:

- email: swcc@agric.wa.gov.au  
- post: PO Box 5066, Bunbury DC WA 6230

Enquiries: Julie Callegari, phone: 08 9780 6193.

Closing date: 5pm Monday, 21 November 2011.

Publications

Landcare In Focus November 2011 Edition

Landcare In Focus is published by Landcare Australia Limited. For further information or to submit an article, email enquiries@landcareaustralia.com.au 

Landcare In Focus – November 2011 PDF (file size 3.6mb)

Focus On

Anika Dent

Project Manager (Aboriginal NRM)
Wheatbelt NRM

Anika has recently moved to Northam from the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands in the far north-west of South Australia, where she managed and coordinated the on-grounds work for the black-flanked rock-wallaby conservation project (Warru Kanyintjaku) for three years.

Hailing from a small town south of Adelaide Anika has completed a degree in Biodiversity and Conservation at Flinders University. After graduation Anika spent 8 months in Madagascar travelling and volunteering on a reef conservation project, one year living in the UK and 8 months in Panama volunteering at a release site for captive bred harpy eagles.

Anika has a passion for conservation and working with people from other cultures. Working alongside the Pitjantjatjara people in South Australia she gained a great respect for their knowledge of and connection with country. Anika is looking forward to working alongside the Nyungar people of the Wheatbelt to develop the Aboriginal NRM projects.

Anika can be contacted on 9690 2290 or email adent@wheatbeltnrm.org.au

Have you seen this Skink?

By Rebecca Palumbo

The Western Spiny Tailed Skink is currently considered to be threatened and has previously only been recorded in a few locations from Mullewa to Kellerberrin.

The skinks inhabit fallen logs in woodland areas and live in communal groups, however with loss of their normal habitat due to salinity and land clearing these skinks are moving into back yards and farms and inhabitating piles of tin and timber. There are stories of families of skinks living in one pile of scrap for decades.

So if you’re planning a cleanup of that pile of junk down near the shed keep a look out as you may be intruding on a family of skinks who have been quite comfortable there for many years.

If you come across these skinks call Mick Davis on 0428 969 096 at Wheatbelt NRM  or your local DEC office who can give you advice on how to look after this special little critter.

Have you seen this Weed?

By Rebecca Palumbo

Bridal Creeper is regarded as one of the worst weeds in Australia because of its invasiveness, potential for spread, and economic and environmental impact.

The problem with Bridal Creeper is that it is hard to eradicate as it can produce more than 1000 berries per square metre that are attractive to birds and other animals that eat the berries and then spread them to other locations. Bridal Creeper also has a tuberous root system that survives underground even after the leaves are removed. Care must be taken when moving soil from around the plant to avoid spreading the weed to other areas.

As Bridal Creeper entered the country as an attractive garden plant many infestations are still associated with escapees from gardens and garden waste.

Wheatbelt NRM is currently mapping the distribution of Bridal Creeper in the Avon River through a Caring for our Country project funded by the Australian Government. If you’ve seen Bridal Creeper call Greg Warburton on 9690 2230 at Wheatbelt NRM to let him know where it is.