World wetlands day celebrates nature’s purifiers

From assisting in fencing a sacred lagoon, to monitoring water quality and flora and fauna at Mary Valley,  Cape York NRM is doing its part in protecting vital wetlands on Cape York Peninsula. 

World wetlands Day on February 2 marks a global awareness campaign about the importance of wetlands and their service to nature. 

“There are 29 important wetlands currently listed on the national directory (DIWA) in the Cape York region and about a third of the Great Barrier Reef is adjacent to its coast,” Cape York NRM Biodiversity & Fire Programs Manager, Toby Eastoe said.

“Unfortunately, none are nominated under the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (RAMSAR convention) but the wetlands and shores of Cape York and the Torres Strait Islands are important resources for migratory and shorebirds.”

Wetlands are areas which get saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. They work to filter waterways, absorb pollutants and improve water quality. They protect shores from wave action, reduce the impacts of floods, and are breeding sites for hundreds of Australian animals and plants. 

However, more than 35 % of the world's wetlands have disappeared in the past 50 years. 

At Cape York NRM, we work with landholders to protect these protectors by providing assistance with safeguarding and restoration projects to keep out feral animals and control weeds. We also collect important data that may be used to better understand these remote wetlands.

At Mary Valley, for example, the Kyerrwanhdha Thingalkal Land Trust, with support from Cape York NRM, is monitoring three wetlands bordering the Morehead River, which flows into the North Kennedy River, and then on to Princess Charlotte Bay and the inner lagoon of the Great Barrier Reef.

Fencing and weed spraying were carried out under the project “Building Traditional Owner Capacity to Maintain Water Quality on Traditional Lands”. Subsequently, Traditional Owners, trained in the use of water monitoring equipment, have developed baseline data and continue to monitor the sites to record any changes or improvements. 

Protection of the Muwanta-Walnga Lagoon at Binthi Warra has also been underway with the construction of a 2km pig-proof fence to contain a 50-hectare area including a steep riverbank.

Working in partnership with the Binthi Land Holding Group Aboriginal Corporation (BLHGAC) the project aims to reduce the heavy impact of feral pigs on the site. 

The Muwanta-Walnga Lagoon, near the junction of the McIvor and Morgan Rivers, is the tharma for the Binthi Warra people - a “place of bounty”, teeming with birds, ducks and geese and surrounded by rainforests, fisheries, woodlands, swamps, and mangroves.

Members of each family which makes up the BLHGAC are carrying out the work, which will be completed after the wet season. A photographic history from set points around the waterway will gauge recovery over time. Cape York NRM provided fencing materials and assisted with site preparation. 

The Mary Valley  Project is funded by the Great Barrier Reef Foundation Healthy Waters Grant.

The Binthi Project is funded through the Australian Government’s Reef Trust 7 Program.