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Murray Bridge ALOC site inspections
The Murray Bridge Aboriginal Learning on Country (ALOC) team recently toured the key project sites they will be working on this year.
Starting in Murray Bridge with staff from the Rural City of Murray Bridge and the Eastern Hills and Murray Plains Catchment Group, they looked at projects at Hume Reserve, Murray Park, Dorset Street Reserve, Rocky Gully Wetland and Swanport Wetland.
The team then travelled to the Mowantjie Willauwar Conservation Park, located between Tailem Bend and Wellington, where they will be involved in a number of activities including rabbit control and revegetation.
After lunch the team met with staff from the Goolwa to Wellington Local Action Planning Association (LAP) to inspect project sites at Finniss, where they will work to protect the nationally endandered southern emu-wren (Stipiturus malachurus intermedius), and Callington, where they will assist in the restoration of Mt Barker Creek.
The ALOC project is a partnership between the Ngarrindjeri Regional Authority, Ngarrindjeri Ruwe Contracting, Natural Resources SAMDB, the Rural City of Murray Bridge, the Goolwa to Wellington LAP, and the Eastern Hills and Murray Plains Catchment Group. The project is supported through funding from the Australian Government and the SA Murray-Darling Basin NRM Levy.
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Filling shuttles for the black box irrigation trials
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Gerard black box trial underway
A trial at Gerard in the Riverland to investigate methods of managing the health of black box (Eucalyptus largiflorens) trees on the River Murray floodplain is now well underway.
Ninety mature trees were selected to be part of the watering trial, with 30 receiving low levels of watering, 30 receiving high levels of watering and 30 control trees that are left un-watered. The health of all trees was assessed and recorded and photopoints were established before any watering took place .
The irrigation system was set up in late December and a number of watering rounds have already been completed. Following each watering event the health of all trees is re-assessed and photopoints are repeated. It is hoped that over time the effects of watering on black box health and survival will be better understood and that, if successful, the methods of watering developed at Gerard can be used more widely by others along the River Murray.
The project is being delivered by Natural Resources SAMDB in partnership with the Aboriginal Lands Trust, the Kungun ALOC team, the Gerard NRM team and the Riverland Working on Country (WOC) Rangers. The project is supported through funding from the Australian Government.
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The Raukkan ALOC and WOC teams learning about setting up a biodiversity survey in Block K
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Raukkan biodiversity surveys
The Raukkan Working on Country (WOC) and Aboriginal Learning on Country (ALOC) teams are currently setting up a large-scale biodiversity survey across the Narrung Peninsula which will target reptiles, mammals, birds and bats.
The survey will include sites in Block K, Gum Park, Princes Scrub, Kartoo Scrub, and a number of areas along the Lake Alexandrina shoreline. Most of these sites were previously surveyed using the same methods in the 1980s and 1990s so the project will provide a good indication of how the area's biodiversity has changed over time.
Re-establishing these sites as permanant survey sites will enable the WOC and ALOC teams to better monitor and evaluate the effect of their feral animal control, weed control, revegetation and fencing activities.
The program is a partnership between Ngopamuldi Aboriginal Corporation, Natural Resources SAMDB, TAFE SA Aboriginal Access Centre, Biosecurity SA and Greening Australia SA. The project is supported through funding from the Australian Government.
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Protecting plants at Ramco
The Kungun Aboriginal Learning on Country (ALOC) team has been working closely with Riverland West Landcare to fence off an area of threatened riverine flax-lily (Dianella porracea) at Ramco Lagoon near Waikerie.
This plant is listed as vulnerable in South Australia and is generally found growing in sandy areas on River Murray floodplains.
As well as protecting the species, the project has added to the ALOC team's skills and knowledge and has helped to form links with other environmental groups in the local area.
The Kungun ALOC team is employed by the Aboriginal Lands Trust, and the project is supported through funding from the Australian Government and the SA Murray-Darling Basin NRM Levy. |
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Monarto Zoo and Murray Bridge ALOC teams working together to protect threatened fish habitat along the River Murray
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Saving threatened fish
The Monarto Zoo and Murray Bridge Aboriginal Learning on Country (ALOC) teams recently joined forces to protect habitat for the southern purple-spotted gudgeon (Mogurnda adspersa), a small native fish which is listed as critically endangered in South Australia.
The species was thought to have gone extinct in this state in the 1970s, until it was rediscovered at one wetland in the Lower Murray in 2004.
The ALOC teams have been working with the Natural Resources SAMDB Wetlands and Floodplains team and the Eastern Hills and Murray Plains Catchment Group to remove willows and clear out reeds which are choking up a key wetland that the species relies on.
The project is supported with funding from the State NRM Program Community Grants and the SA Murray-Darling Basin NRM Levy.
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Recent fires at Katarapko in the River Murray National Park (Photo: Callie Nickolai)
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ALOC fights fires
The recent fires across the South Australian Murray-Darling Basin burnt an estimated 244,000 ha of native vegetation and farming land.
The impact of these fires has been enormous and potentially includes the local loss of some species of fauna such as the mallee emu-wren (Stipiturus mallee) and western whipbird (Psophodes nigrogularis leucogaster).
The Natural Resources SAMDB Riverland Aboriginal Learning on Country (ALOC) team played a critical role in fighting these fires. As members of the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources (DEWNR) Fire Crew, they attended most of the fires within the region and also assisted with others across the state, including Bangor in the Southern Flinders Ranges.
The Riverland ALOC team undertakes annual fire fighting training and is involved in a range of other fire management activities. In the future it is hoped that all other ALOC teams across the region will be trained in fire fighting and can assist with fires when needed.
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Participants on a tour discussing the native vegetation of Chowilla
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Yarnin' on Country tours
A recent two-day workshop and tour of the Chowilla Floodplain Icon Site and neighbouring Calperum Station provided representatives of the First Peoples of the River Murray and Mallee Region (First Peoples) with a great opportunity to get involved in two large-scale environmental projects.
At the Chowilla Floodplain Icon Site, a program of works is being implemented through The Living Murray initiative to ensure environmental water is used to maximise ecological benefits for this significant area.
At Calperum Station, Lakes Mereti and Woolpolool will have regulators upgraded under the Riverine Recovery Project to restore natural wetting and drying cycles of the wetlands to improve ecological health.
These on-country tours enable First Peoples to reconnect to the river and wetlands in a meaningful way to properly understand the goals of the projects and effectively represent their interests in the planning and implementation processes.
Day one included a tour of the Chowilla floodplain including two environmental watering sites, Werta Wert wetland and Lake Littra. Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources (DEWNR) ecologists explained the monitoring of fish, frogs, birds, tree health and water quality that is undertaken around the environmental watering wetland sites.
A picnic lunch was enjoyed by all at Lock 6 where the Chowilla Creek environmental regulator, which is under construction, was discussed. The regulator will allow flows to be managed to enable flooding across the floodplain under relatively low river flow conditions.
Day two included a tour of Lakes Mereti and Woolpolool where Aboriginal rangers from the Calperum Station Working on Country Program discussed the cultural significance of the sites and the development of guided Aboriginal Heritage tours on the station and in the broader Riverland region.
For DEWNR, the Yarnin’ on Country tours give a clear indication of First Peoples’ connection to Country and their role in managing the Country and Waters. The tours are supported through funding from the Australian Government.
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Turtle monitoring at Lake Bonney
Aboriginal groups across the region are becoming involved in a community turtle monitoring program which aims to assess turtle populations along the River Murray and assist in their management.
During monitoring around Lake Bonney in December, the Kungun Aboriginal Learning on Country (ALOC) team came across a Murray short-necked turtle (Emydura macquarii) near Pelican Point. The distinctive notches in its shell indicated that it was a marked turtle that had been caught in the past. After some investigating it was discovered that she was first caught in Lake Bonney in February 2007, as part of a PhD research project.
The next stage of monitoring will take place during April, which is the nesting period for the broad-shelled turtle (Chelodina expansa).
The project is being coordinated by the University of Sydney and the University of Western Sydney and is being supported in South Australia by Natural Resources SAMDB and a range of local groups along the River Murray. |
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Opening the wetland structure at Sugar Shack to re-flood the wetland
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Sugar Shack Wetland Complex planning
The Ngarrindjeri Regional Authority (NRA) have entered into a partnership with the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources (DEWNR) to assist in the delivery of the Riverine Recovery Project (RRP). The NRA have named their involvement in RRP as Murrundi Recovery, using their language name for the River Murray and its associated floodplain.
A key activity being undertaken by the NRA is the development of a management plan for the Sugar Shack Wetland Complex, just above Swan Reach. The wetland area is owned by the Sugar Shack Aboriginal Corporation, and senior custodian for this part of Murrundi, Isobelle Campbell, is a driving force behind the plan's development.
The Ngarrindjeri objective for Sugar Shack is to return flows to what their ancestors would have experienced and through this improve the health of Murrundi. The objective integrates the Ngarrindjeri philosophy of Ruwe/Ruwar that relates the interconnectedness of Ngarrindjeri to all living things, including water. A healthy Murrundi means a healthy Ngarrindjeri.
DEWNR has out-posted wetland ecologist Ben Taylor with the NRA to support the development of the plan and share his knowledge and experience of wetland ecology. Ben has delivered a number of information sessions explaining the ecological principles used by the RRP, particularly around the re-introduction of natural wetting and drying phases for floodplain wetlands. Ben has also worked closely with Isobelle and other representatives of the Sugar Shack Aboriginal Corporation to survey the wetlands and consider how to best re-introduce flows back across the floodplain.
Part of the Ngarrindjeri proposal is improving water flows through Yatco Creek and a smaller creek that branches off Yatco. The creek system starts at one end of Sugar Shack floodplain and re-enters Murrundi at the other end, effectively nine river kilometres. Water currently flows through these creeks and Ngarrindjeri want to see flow improved by upgrades to causeways and sills.
Ngarrindjeri currently regulate the Sugar Shack wetland, but are considering the installation of regulators at 3 other wetlands on the floodplain to re-introduce wetting and drying phases. Ngarrindjeri are also investigating opportunities to pump water into two other temporary wetlands that are not directly connected to Murrundi or the Yatco Creek system.
RRP is part of the Australian Government’s Murray Futures Program, Water for Good initiative.
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A beaded gecko (Diplodactylus damaeum) that was caught in the small vertebrate survey of Calperum Station
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Riverland Working on Country survey
The Riverland Working on Country (WOC) Ranges, based at Calperum Station near Renmark, are involved in a wide range of natural resources management activities including feral animal control, weed control, revegetation, fencing, protecting Aboriginal heritage and a range of monitoring activities.
As part of their monitoring program, the team undertook a survey of small vertebrates on Calperum Station in November last year to assess populations of small native reptiles and mammals.
The data collected by the team is currently being analysed and the results will be used to inform how the property is managed into the future, particularly in relation to the feral animal control programs undertaken by the WOC team.
The project is supported with funding from the Australian Government.
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Local government partnerships
Local government plays an important role in the management of natural resources and a number of councils across the region are providing key support to the Aboriginal Learning on Country (ALOC) program.
The Coorong District Council helped to establish the first ALOC team at Raukkan and continues to be an important partner in the project.
In the Lower Murray, the Rural City of Murray Bridge is a partner in the newest ALOC program based in Murray Bridge and the team will work closely with the council on a range of projects around the town.
In the Riverland the Kungun ALOC team is working with the Berri-Barmera Council on the restoration of Martin’s Bend Wetland.
The ALOC program provides significant outcomes for the local environment and also for local communities and it is hoped that more partnership projects can be formed with councils across the region. |
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Members of the River Murray Youth Council (Lower Murray) visiting the Coorong as part of a cultural awareness trip
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Youth Council cultural awareness trip
The River Murray Youth Council (RMYC) is a program for students in years 8 to 12 who are interested in learning more about environmental projects, careers or taking part in local environment issues.
Recently seven students and three mentors from the Lower Murray RMYC spent two days immersing themselves in Ngarrindjeri culture and the beautiful environment of the Coorong.
Through discussion with Camp Coorong leaders and a visit to the museum they became more aware of the rich culture of the Ngarrindjeri people and their link to the area as custodians.
Time spent chatting and weaving with Auntie Ellen Trevorrow and her family was the highlight as it is such a relaxing activity and also opens up communication. Everyone went away with new skills and a fresh outlook.
The students camped at Parnka Point overnight and feasted on Coorong mullet. From there, on the second day, the group canoed across the Coorong and walked over the sand dunes to the Coorong beach.
The cultural awareness trip was provided by the Ngarrindjeri Regional Authority and was supported by the SA Murray-Darling Basin NRM Board Levy.
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Indigenous Community Volunteers
Indigenous Community Volunteers (ICV) is a registered charity and non-profit organisation working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities to help them achieve their goals.
ICV provides access to resources and highly skilled volunteers in urban, rural and remote communities. Communities are always in control: they tell us their vision for the future, what assets or skills they need, and they select the right volunteers for the project. We help communities shape their own future.
ICV volunteers have skills and experience across a wide variety of areas including environmental management, IT, strategic planning, hospitality, tourism, arts, trades and health. To see projects ICV have done with communities around Australia please see their website www.icv.com.au, Annual Report and newsletter Stepping Stones.
For more information or to talk about any potential projects please call Kate Braham in ICV's SA office on 0448 142 629 or email kbraham@icv.com.au. |
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For more information
For more information on the stories in this update, or to discuss submitting stories for future issues, please contact Chris Koolmatrie, Aboriginal Partnerships Project Officer, Natural Resources South Australian Murray-Darling Basin, on (08) 8580 1800.
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