A documentary which showcases the work of Indigenous Rangers involved in the Western Cape Turtle Threat Abatement Alliance (WCTTAA) is now available to the public.
Conservation
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Words Robyn May | Photo Michael Goddard
The West Normanby distal gully site on Springvale Station is identified as the most important sediment source in the Normanby Basin. Targeted remediation works on active gullies are being implemented to reduce erosion and protect river and Great Barrier Reef habitats.
Words Robyn May | Photo Cape York NRM
Cape York land managers’ efforts to reduce the loss of valuable top soil, and increase grazing productivity, are being supported by a suite of native grass identification tools.
The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) is conducting a survey on pest animal and weed management. They are seeking assistance from owners/managers of agricultural properties to provide vital information about pest animal and weed management in Australia.
You are invited to complete the survey by 15 July 2019.
Words Juliana Foxlee | Photos Barry Lyon
As the focus on Australia’s extinction crisis heats up, Cape York Natural Resource Management and Northern Gulf Resource Management Group are working to protect the habitat of one of Cape York’s rarest birds – the golden-shouldered parrot.
Words and photo Jessie Price-Decle
Late season fires can destroy habitat, threaten property and livestock, and scorch groundcover leaving country vulnerable to erosion. Fighting fires is also a significant drain on people’s time and resources.
Words Jessie Price-Decle and Juliana Foxlee | Photo Jessie Price-Decle
The three-year project saw graziers make changes to their land and grazing practices to improve land condition and water quality outcomes.
The project team, made up of Cape York NRM, South Cape York Catchments, and Department of Agriculture and Fisheries staff, worked across 20 properties over the life of the project.
South Cape York Catchments Grazing Project Officer Jessie Price-Decle said the project made a difference to water quality and land condition.
Words Juliana Foxlee | Photo James Donaldson
Cape York NRM is partnering with Northern Gulf Resource Management Group to facilitate opportunities for Australian Indigenous people to showcase and share their cultural fire knowledge, establish a network of Indigenous fire practitioners and protect the habitat of threatened species.
In May, Northern Gulf RMG coordinated an on- country fire workshop at Talaroo Station in the northern Gulf area. The three - day event was hosted by the Ewamian Aboriginal Corporation.
Words Juliana Foxlee | Photo Robyn May
Cape York NRM and Terrain NRM are working together to help farmers learn from each other and bring greater coordination to personal farming support services, also known as extension services.
Known as the Enhanced Extension Coordination project, the three - year initiative is designed
to improve coordination, collaboration and communication between extension networks and farmers within the Wet Tropics and Cape York catchment areas to increase efficiency, reduce duplication and improve environmental outcomes.
As the year winds down, planning ramps up for WCTTAA’s end of year Forum which will focus on reviewing the outcomes of the 2019 turtle season and contemplating the year ahead.
‘This project aims to substantially reduce the amount of sediment flowing into the Normanby, and as a result, improve water quality in the Northern Great Barrier Reef,’
Cape York NRM’s Healthy Farming Futures project is supporting a Cape York Wildlife Sanctuary which has so far received over 2,500 mm of rain this wet season, to stabilise the landscape to protect critical habitat.
A generous donation of 50 turtle nest cages by two businesses, Hickey’s Metal Fabrication, and Specialised Brake and Clutch Service, to the Pormpuraaw Land and Sea Management Rangers (Pormpuraaw Rangers) will help the next generation of endangered olive ridley turtles survive.
Staff from the Penrith, NSW - based businesses donated time and materials to the effort which was organised by Specialised Brake and Clutch Service’s Kevin Gavin.
‘Everyone was very pleased to help,’ he said.
Cape York NRM hosted a Soils and Weed Solutions Field Day in Cooktown on 29 February.
The hands-on event, aimed at growers and graziers, explored the latest thinking on sustainable solutions to the ongoing challenge of weed and soil management.
The event brought together members of two Cape York agriculture and grazing networks—the Endeavour and Normanby Mixed Farming and Grazing communities.
Thanks to funding from a combination of programs, Andrew Hartwig from Cape York NRM recently coordinated aerial burning across a number of Cape York properties.
The early burns were designed to reduce fuel loads and connect fire breaks on a landscape-wide scale, and were carried out by Cape York NRM in partnership with South Cape York Catchments and Cape York Weeds and Feral Animals Inc.
2019–2020 has been a big year for the Biodiversity and Fire Program. After a number of staff changes, the team now consists of Biodiversity and Fire Program Manager Kerri Woodcock who is based in Cairns, and Biodiversity Officer Dr Helen Penrose, and Community Engagement Officer Joey Dix who are both based in Cooktown.
Since 2015, Sharks And Rays Australia (SARA) has been running regular expeditions to the Mitchell River in Cape York under the lead of Dr Barbara Wueringer, an expert on sawfish and other sharks and rays.
In July 2020, when COVID-19 travel restrictions to the Cape eased, SARA, together with Cape York NRM and Northern Gulf RMG, ran a research expedition to sample for sawfish along the Mitchell River.
Land managers from northern Cape York, in a vast area spanning from the western to the eastern coast, came together in July this year to plan a coordinated burn in order to reduce the risk of wildfires. This collaborative project brought together land managers from across the Embley, Mission, Wenlock, Olive and Pascoe catchments.
The North Queensland Threatened Species Symposium will be held on 16-17 February 2021 at the Cairns Colonial Club.
The objective of the Symposium is to increase knowledge exchange and collaboration between organisations and individuals working to conserve threatened species and ecological communities in Northern Queensland.
The symposium will include presentations from the Threatened Species Recovery Hub researchers, and will include workshops focussing on threatening processes that impact the threatened species in our region.
This edition of the Cape York Healthy Country Newsletter highlights how the combination of solid planning and good on ground delivery combine to bring about great results.
This year marks three decades of marine turtle monitoring in the far northern Great Barrier Reef by the Department of Environment and Science.
Within Australia, citizen science is increasing exponentially in popularity.
Sea turtles are beginning to arrive on western Cape York Peninsula beaches to lay their eggs.
Northern Australia is home to four sawfish species, and three of these are listed as vulnerable on national legislation.
Western Cape Turtle Threat Abatement Alliance (WCTTAA) has kicked many goals this year protecting marine turtles on the Western Cape through its highly successful on-ground work as well as through spreading the word on these quiet achievements.
WCTTAA Ranger groups have again delivered a turtle nest monitoring and protection program during 2021 on beaches covering some 150 kilometres of remote coastline.
The Ranger groups included:
• Pormpuraaw Land and Sea Management Rangers
• Napranum Rangers
• Mapoon Land and Sea Management Rangers
In early November, global leaders met in Glasgow at COP 26 (Conference of the Parties 26) to seek agreement on a path to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees celsius.
Almost 200 countries were asked for their plans to cut emissions as a means to reduce current and future climate impacts.