ThursdayMarch 10, 2016 THELAND 69theland.com.au

Landcare In FocusMarch 2016 ~ www.landcareonline.com.au

Peel anabranch healing

EFFORTS to stabilise atributary of the PeelRiver in northernNSWhighlight the

power of Landcare to drawtogether funding sourcesand on-ground agencies.

More than $1.2million infunding has been committedto vital remediation work onthe invaluableWallamoreanabranch and themainchannel of the Peel River,near Tamworth in North-ern NSW.

Landcare Australia willcoordinate the partnershipbetween the AustralianGovernment, NSWGov-ernment Department ofPrimary Industries (DPI),NorthWest Local LandServices, WallamoreLandcare Group, Lion Dairy,and the 20Million TreesProgramme to complete theremediation work over thenext three years.

Dr Shane Norrish, Head ofLandcare Services, LandcareAustralia, said, “The projectpartners are committed tomaking this an excellentexample of how Landcareand resourcemanagementgo hand in hand withagricultural productivity.”

“Thework will stabilisethe eroding areas and re-es-tablish the native habitatthat has disappeared frommuch of the riparian zone.”

Over the past decade, theWallamore anabranch hassuffered from the effects of

ongoing and serious bankerosion, affectingmultipleagricultural properties,mostly dairy farms.

At high flows landholdersexperience significanterosion, farming land lossand reduced productivity.

“The anabranch has beeneroding for a number ofyears. Originally you couldstep across the gap, nowit is about 150mwide inplaces,” Mr David Gowing,Wallamore Landcare GroupChairman, said.

“Very little land in thisregion has the same agri-cultural carrying capacity.These properties are someof themost fertile available,with invaluable access towater for irrigation.”

“It is therefore very im-portant that we protect thesesites from further degrada-tion and erosion. We’ve been

trying to organise themoneyto remediate the anabranchfor several years.”

“Thankfully funding hasnow come down from theFederal government, andNSWDPI. Our local mem-ber, Barnaby Joyce, has beeninstrumental in helping us tosecure funding for this vitalproject,” Mr Gowing said.

Deputy PrimeMinisterandMinister for Agriculture

andWater Resources,Barnaby Joyce, said address-ing issues like erosion wasone of the strategies used tobuild the overall health oftheMurray-Darling Basin.

“We’re working withLandcare Australia and theNew SouthWales Govern-ment to deliver this reme-diation project – they havealready implemented similarprojects downstream andare well-placed to deliverthesemeasures effectively,”Mr Joyce said.

“Thesemeasures arecomplementary to thesignificant investmentswe’re making under theMurray-Darling Basin Plan,and all our efforts towardshealthy waterways areaimed at the triple bottomlines of economic, social andenvironmental benefits.”

Mr JimMcDonald, a

former Chairman of theNamoi CMA, has beenappointed as the Chairmanof the independent SteeringCommittee, which includesrepresentatives from allproject partners.

The committee, which hasmet three times since No-vember, will provide projectoversight andmonitoringto ensure the project meetsits targets.

“This is a wonderfulexample of collaborationbetween a number offunders including the land-holders directly affected,” MrMcDonald said.

“This is a very large andexpensive project thatwill reduce soil and bankerosion, improve the streamconditions as well as provid-ing water quality benefits tothose downstream.

“There are a diverse set of

outcomes being sought bythose funding and under-taking this project, and theSteering Committee hasalready shown its determi-nation to achieve them all.”

Murray Jeffrey, Agricultur-al Procurement Director, Li-on Diary said, “Lion is proudto support this importantproject, and we are reallylooking forward to seeingsignificant improvements tothe bank of theWallamoreanabranch project over thecomingmonths and years.”

Lion is an active contribu-tor to Landcare as part of itsprogram to support sustain-ability among its suppliers.

With the addition ofin-kind contributions overthe three year project length,the total project valuation isexpected to reachmore than$1.5 million.

A set of recommendationsfor bank stabilisation worksalong the anabranch havebeen reviewed by stakehold-ers, and have undergonemodifications based onsite visits and consultationdiscussions.

Once consultation hasbeen completed, stabili-sation specifications andvegetationmanagementplans for each of the 10properties will be finalised,in conjunction with stockexclusion zones.

Initial revegetationplanning for the area hasbeen completed, with prop-agation of the initial order of21,750 seedlings currentlybeing carried out by threesuccessful tenderers.

The Steering Committeehas appointed an experi-enced on-ground projectworksmanager to ensurethat appropriate levels ofon-ground support for theproject are available.

Member for New England, Barnaby Joyce, and Wallamore Landcare’s David Gowing.

$1.2m infundingfor NSWproject

■ Australian Government:$632,000

■ Landcare Australia:$350,000

■ NorthWest Local LandServices: $155,000

■ 20 MillionTreesProgramme: $100,000

■ Lion Dairy: $20,000

CONTRIBUTIONS

ThursdayMarch 10, 2016THE LAND70 theland.com.au

Landcare In FocusMarch 2016 ~ www.landcareonline.com.au

Arlparra builds a utopian vegie gardenIN THEmiddle of the North-ern Territory, amongst therichly red yet barren soil ofthe Utopian Homelands,there lies a small flourishingvegetable garden.

Through the aid of $627.20worth of Coles Junior Land-care funding, and keen senseof creativity, the studentsand staff from the ArlparraSchool have managed tocreate a thriving vegetablegarden in the middle of thedesert.

Arlparra School had to becreative to ensure the via-bility and longevity of theirgarden.

Once the irrigation infra-structure was in place, mid-dle-years students workedto improve the soil beforeplanting, which taught themthe value of soil health andlaying the new garden bedswith mulch to avoid evapo-ration.

Benjamin Forbes, an As-sistant Principal at Arlparra,

said students were taught tomix local soil with compost,peat and coir to producenutrient rich garden soil andensure long term viability ofthe garden.

Thefirst vegetables to fruit,zucchini, were promptlyharvested and used for theschool’s healthy eating cook-ing program.

Not only has the gardenbecome a source of freshfood to supplement theschool’s healthy eating pro-

gram, but it has proven avaluable educational toolfor students, as they studysoil science, irrigation con-struction, plant science andsustainability, and the bio-logical interactions betweenvegetables and insects.

Looking forward to the2016 school year, Arlparraplan to diversify the crops,visually enhance the gardenwith student made art in-stallations and potentiallyconstruct a chicken coop.

The first stage of Arlparra's vegetable garden, made withthe help of a Coles Landcare grant. The produce is usedin the school's "healthy eating" program.

IN WHAT may be anAustralian first, a five-kilo-metre long Bellyache Bushinfestation along the CorellaRiver is on the verge of com-plete eradication.

Bellyache bush has beendeclared a weed of nationalsignificance in Queensland.Originating from tropicalAmerica, the weed is poi-sonous to native animals,livestock and humans, andhas a tendency aggressivelyout-compete other riv-er-front vegetation.

The weed was first identi-fied on the Corella River, innorth-west Queensland, in2005. It had the potential todevastate 700km of down-stream area towards the Gulfof Carpentaria.

Since 2005, Southern GulfCatchments Ltd (SGC), locallandholders and Mount IsaLandcare Group volunteershave coordinated controlmeasures and ongoing mop-up work to chemically treatthe weed, or hand-pull up to15,000 bushes a year.

If you see Bellyache bushon your property or near awaterbody, call your localgovernment office, or Bios-ecurity Queensland on 1325 23.

Treatinga badbelly-ache

Mount Isa LandcarePresident, Mark van Ryt,with bellyache bush.

Spatial tech for betterfarmmanagementTHE latest spatial technolo-gy is revolutionising the waybeef and sheep farmers planfor the future, and droughtproof andmonitor their land.

The Natural ResourceManagement (NRM) Spa-tial Hub uses exciting cut-ting-edge geospatial tech-nologies, satellite remotesensing, and rangelandsciences to provide farmerswith practical tools that dra-matically improve access tofarm-scale information.

The technology hasbeen rolled out to over 100

demonstration propertiesacross Australia and is draw-ing worldwide attention.

The hub recently featuredin a NASA publication as anexample of advances amongglobal efforts tomonitor landcover, and to understand theeffects of land managementpractices over time. The Hubis a central element of the 15year Australian RangelandsInitiative blueprint devel-oped by the National Range-lands NRMAlliance.

The first stage of theproject focuses on on-lineproperty planning and infor-mation tools to help farmerscollect and map data, whichcan be used for a range of ap-

plications. Data can be usedfor water infrastructure plan-ning, assessing ground coverchanges and analysing stockcarrying capacity.

The NRM Spatial HubProject Manager, Mr PhilTickle, said the hub will givefarmers access to a hugeamount of land informationand tools, allowing them tomake more informed man-agement decisions.

‘This includes the abilityof farmers to monitor theirgroundcover and pastureconditions over time andcompare their propertieswith their neighbours,’ MrTickle said.

‘The hub provides 30

years of satellite data held bygovernment. New imagerywill be available monthlyfor farmers to monitor theirproperties, and apply thisinformation interactively.

‘Information from the hubwill be used by farmers tobetter manage their pasturesand to plan other farm man-agement activities, such aswater and fencing plans.’ saidMr Tickle.

‘Another application forfarmers is to manage stock-ing numbers in relation towater storage and groundcover, which will help themimprove the productivityand condition of their coun-try over time. The hub also

allows them to understandthe impact of various man-agement practices on landand water resources.’

Farmers are getting in-volved with this project be-cause theywant to leave theirland in better condition forthe next generation, and thehub will significantly helpachieve this goal.

The NRM Spatial Hubproject is funded through theAustralianGovernment’sNa-tional Landcare Programme.

For more information onthe hub visit www.nrmhub.com.au or visit www.nasa.gov and search ‘satellite dataAustralia’ to read the NA-SA article.

When satellite data is integrated with on-ground knowledge, new ways of interpreting the landscape emerge.

NEWTOOLSFROM MERGER OFSATELLITES ANDRANGELANDS SCIENCE

Landcare In FocusMarch 2016 ~ www.landcareonline.com.au

New-age satellite imageryMONITORING changes inland cover, including vegeta-tion, has been routine sincedigital satellite imagery be-came available in the 1970s.However, satellite imageshave traditionally been toocoarse to monitor complexenvironments such as cities,horticultural areas, plan-tations and mine sites, soaerial data is often acquired.

With digital aerial pho-tography it is now possibleto monitor changes as smallas 10-20cm in both landuse and vegetation, in threedimensions. Digital dataallows changes over timeto be measured with muchgreater accuracy and effi-ciency thanwhen comparingfilm images.

Our research aimed tosee if the advantages of sat-ellite monitoring could beincorporated into the annualaerial photography of thePerth Peel region, carriedout by Landgate, to detectchanges in land use and

vegetation condition at thesub-metre level.

We developed a digitalaerial photography method,through the Urban Monitorproject, that records red,green and blue bands oflight, and a near infra-redband was also included be-cause vegetation health isbest measured at this wave-length.

The elevation of theground, buildings and treesis estimated each time, witha similar resolution as thepixel size making the image-ry three-dimensional. Beingdigital, it is easy to count pix-els to quantify changes.

Standardised images en-sure that a change in digitalreflectance represents a realchange and not a change inthe atmosphere, sun angle,camera type or a shadow.Each image also needs to bevery accurately aligned.

Reflectance targets wereplaced on the ground to en-sure images were standard-ised during the acquisitionas well as between years.

After trials, we determined

summer images were thebest at providing qualitydata for multiple stakehold-ers. Summer is a time whenun-irrigated plants are moststressed. This enables mon-itoring of soil water deficits,groundwater-dependentvegetation and an assess-ment of irrigation efficiencyat the individual-sprinklerscale.

There is also less cloudand the impact of recentrainfall is less evident, giventhat the capture can take sev-

eral weeks. To limit shadows,capture times were restrictedto two hours each side of so-lar noon.

In time it is anticipatedthat UrbanMonitor productssimilar to Land Monitor willbe made available on theLandgate website.

Good monitoring neednot be expensive if thought-ful acquisition methods areused and products meetmultiple user needs.

See more onThe Conversa-tion: bit.ly/csiroconversation

By recording different bandwidths of light and digitisingimages, the ratio of vegetation to infrastructure can bequickly calculated.

High-resolution satellite imagery used to quickly identifyand digitise elements of the built environment.

Eye in the sky getsmore accurate

BY DR DONMCFARLANE ANDDR PETER CACCETTA, CSIRO

THE Surf Coast NatureSearch (SCNS) aims toreverse the migration ofexotic plants out of gardensby encouraging gardenersto grow native plants.

SCNS is a new inter-active online search toolfor identifying plants forthe coast between PointImpossible and Bells Beach.It’s not just for gardeners:anyone who wants to learnmore about the nativeplants of the region cannow just go online.

The website www.scnaturesearch.com.au hasbeen developed by Coast-care group Jan Juc CoastAction (JJCA) to provide adetailed database of hun-dreds of indigenous plantsand environmental weedson the coast between PointImpossible and Bells Beach.

Users are able to searchfor plants based on a rangeof criteria: plant type, flow-er colour, size, leaf shapeand more.

To date, JJCA volunteers

have added over 200 plantspecies to database, whichis expected to grow as itcovers more areas of theSurf Coast species andthe tool extends to includefauna.

JJCA worked with localweb design experts Boojumto ensure the platform wasas interactive and as easyto navigate as possible.Now the template has beendeveloped, JJCA is makingit available to other groupswith similar aspirations.

The template can beadapted for other purposesby Boojum: www.boojum.com.au

The project was sup-ported by a $5000 StateGovernment CoastcareGrant, $2500 Great OceanRoad Coast CommitteeCoastal Grant and $1000Surf Coast Shire Grant.

If anyone wishes to usethe website template fortheir organisation, contactLuke Hynes at luke@beaconecologicalcom.au

ONLINE TOOL ENCOURAGES MIGRATION OF NATIVE PLANTS TO THE GARDEN

■ Online database helpsidentify native plantsand weeds

■ Aims to encouragepeople to plantmore natives

■ Helps people distinguishbetween weedsand natives

■ Database template isavailable to other groups

Support for gardenersto grow natives

PLANT DATABASE

]ADVERTISING FEATUREThursdayMarch 10, 2016THE LAND72 theland.com.au

Landcare In FocusMarch 2016 ~ www.landcareonline.com.au

Help defend the Earth

MID-afternoon on February8, 1983, the bush came toMelbourne.

The 300-metre-highdust cloud represented theprecious top soil of Victo-ria’s Mallee and Wimmera,carried away on the windfollowing what was thenthe worst drought in the re-gion’s history.

“It felt like an event ofawful significance. I knewit would scare people, yetspeak volumes about whatwas happening on the land,”recalled Pam Robinson,a wool producer from theState’s north-east then visit-ing the city.

Pam and neighbouringfarmer Angus Howell had al-ready conceived the ground-breaking idea of unitingfarmers to work cooperative-ly on land conservation.

“There were dying treesand patches of bare groundin the countryside. The land

was in trouble. We workedwith district soil conserva-tion officers and developed aconservation planI.”

In 1983, that effort wasconsolidated into the War-renbayne Boho Land Protec-

tion Group Inc. It served as amodel that helped Victoria’sConservation Minister, JoanKirner, and Victorian Farm-ers Federation presidentHeather Mitchell conceiveLandcare as a partnership

between community andgovernment.

“Its power is as a socialmovement, bringing peopletogether to gain strength andpleasure through attendingto our land, water and air,”

Pam says.The Landcare Australia

Defenders of the Earth ini-tiative aims to reinvigoratethese strong roots.

The campaign seeks toraise enough money by April

2016 to provide innovationgrants for Landcare groupsin each State or Territory.

Becoming a hero can be assimple as joining the Land-care ‘Defender of the Earth’initiative by sending an SMSwith the word ‘DEFEND’ to0498 663 360 to donate $5ormore.

Or donate to Landcare’sDefenders of the Earth initi-ative at: www.defendersofth-eearth.org.au

With your $5, we can giveour Australian environmenta future.

Pam Robinson, who with neighbour Angus Howell conceived the idea of farmers working with the wider communityto preserve the health of the land. A driving force in Landcare for 25 years, Pam's work earned an Order of Australia.

‘‘Its power isas a socialmovement,bringing peopletogether to gainstrength andpleasure throughattending to ourland, water andairPam Robinson

IN 1983, DROUGHTINSPIRED A NEW IDEATO BRING FARMERSTOGETHER AROUNDTHE HEALTH OFTHE LAND INWHATWOULD BECOMELANDCARE

THE claypans that scarAustralia’s rangelandsrepresent areas of completewaste for farm productivityand biodiversity.

Dr John Bennett fromUSQ’s National Centre forEngineering in Agriculturehas been looking at cost-ef-fective ways landholderscan remediate claypans andmaximise pasture growthopportunities in the midstof a crippling drought.

The aim is to get aclaypan’s hard surface to

crack, either under theinfluence of plant rootsor wetting-drying cycles,so that plants can gain afoothold and further openup the pan.

Dr Bennett told the Clay-pan Rehabilitation and SoilHealthWorkshop at Char-leville that researchers hadstudied three treatments:ponding within a cultivatedring, blade ploughing, anddeep ripping.

The 127 hectare trial siteon Brock and Katrina Hind-

march’s property,Wallal,had received very little rain.In this case, ponding gavethe best result, providingan environment in whichpioneer species couldgerminate under difficultconditions.

But soil rehabilitationthrough ponding is a slowprocess. Blade-ploughingand deep-ripping, whilemore expensive, havethe potential to generatefaster and stronger pastureresponses after significant

rain, but the benefits needto be weighed up againstthe price of land and anypotential gains. Even if thecost of treatment is worthmore than the land value,Dr Bennet encourageslandholders to regenerateat least some of theirclaypan country so it cansupport grazing even afterlight rain.

For more information seethe Mulga Graze Handouthandbook at www.south-westnrm.org.au

WEIGHING UP THE COSTS AND BENEFITS OF CLAYPAN REHABILITATION

■ Ponding: $26.34/ha■ Cross-ripping: $141.32/ha■ Blade ploughing:$205.42/ha

■ Process are designedto crack soil and helpplants germinate

■ Even treatmentscosting more than theland value might bestrategically worthwhile

Techniques forreclaiming claypansvary widely in cost

CLAYPAN REHAB

]ADVERTISING FEATUREThursdayMarch 10, 2016 THELAND 73theland.com.au

Landcare In FocusMarch 2016 ~ www.landcareonline.com.au

Big results from zero-till atWernethWERNETH farming broth-ers, Troy and Grant Keating,have successfully convertedfrom conventional farm-ing practices to Zero-Till /Controlled Traffic Farming(CTF), pushed by extremeweather conditions, andencouraged by the demon-strable success of neighbour-ing farmers.

The fourth generationfarmers began their shiftaway from conventionalfarming techniques more

than a decade ago and havenow completed the transi-tion to a zero-till system.

Grant says although thedecision to switch to zero-tillwas a light-bulb momentthat led to ‘biting the bullet’,it came from a combinationof factors over time.

The increasing frequencyof extreme weather eventsplayed a large part in thebrother’s decision. Thechange in technique hasallowed the brothers to sus-

tainably increase the farmar-ea under crop, while achiev-ing their soil health goals inboth wet and dry years.

Over the past two years thefarm has experienced con-secutive dry years. But underzero-till, the soil was healthyenough for the Keating’s tosow an early March canolacrop on little moisture withtheir disc planter.

Before transitioning to thenew system, the brothersjoined the VNTFA commit-

tee and attended numerouszero-till farms and events tosee the process first-handand witness the challengesof zero-till farming.

As part of their ongoingcommitment they havehosted a VNTFA precisionplanter demo day, attendeda No-Till NSW farm studytour, attended their firstVNTFA conference, gone onseveral paddock walks anddemonstrated a Shelbournestripper front.

Brothers Grant and Troy Keating in a zero-till crop.Encouraged by members of the Victorian No-Till FarmersAssociation, they have got results in wet and dry seasons.

A NEW biocontrol agent,originating from Mexico, isbeing strategically used bythe CSIRO in partnershipwith land managers to tacklea tenacious and trouble-some weed.

The research project in-to the use of the rustfungus Baeodromus eupa-torii, as a biocontrol agentfor the Ageratina adenop-hora, or Crofton weed asit is commonly known, hasalready produced promis-ing results.

A partnership with landmanagers and communitygroups through NSW andsouth-east Queensland isenabling the fungus to becost-effectively releasedacross known Crofton weedinfestation sites.

Crofton weed is a seriousenvironmental pest that hasinvaded the NSW and QLDcoastal regions, includingagricultural lands, and morethan 150 reserves.

It produces copious quan-tities of wind-borne seedsand therefore spreads rap-idly.

Once established, it re-duces the ecological valueof bushland, but also affectsgrazing land on farms bydiminishing their carry-ing capacity.

The rust fungus infectsyoung leaves and stems ofCrofton weed, stunting de-velopment and disrupting itsability to reproduce.

It was first released at ahandful of test sites on theNSW South Coast in win-ter-spring 2014.

Within six to 12 monthsof these releases, the rustfungus had caused extensivedefoliation and naturallyspread to nearby infesta-tions.

In one case up it spread up

to 15 kilometres away fromthe release site.

In partnership with thecommunity, a large-scalerelease program of this newbiocontrol agent was madeacross NSW in autumn 2015.

The release program hadthe financial support fromthe Weeds Action Program(WAP) of the NSW Depart-

ment of Primary Industries.Rust-infected potted

plants, grown either in pas-teurised soil or in rock wool,are distributed to managersof private or public land atfield events or via the post.

Land managers are pro-vided with simple guidelineson how tomake the releas.

They then monitor estab-

lishment and spread of theagent, and are expected toprovide feedback to CSIROresearchers.

The community-basedrelease program in NSW iscontinuing in 2016 with sup-port from the NSW Environ-mental Trust.

The fungus was also re-leased in 2015 at 11 sites

in South-East Queenslandnational parks with supportfrom the Queensland ParksandWildlife Service.■ For more informationon this program, visitwww.csiro.au and search“Crofton weed”, or contactCSIRO scientist Dr LouiseMorin by emailing louise.morin@csiro.au

A biocontrol agent from Mexico is having promising results on the insidious Crofton weed in parts of NSW andQueensland.

Mexican rust fungustackles Croftonweed

HELPING to build knowl-edge of the importance ofbiosecurity in our youth,NSW Department of Prima-ry Industries (DPI) SchoolsProgram is starting in-schoolconversations aroundAustralia’s biosecurity,through classroom activitiesencouraging education, par-ticipation, and connection.

The DPI Schools Programaims to instil at all levels ofschooling the notion that bi-osecurity – the protection ofthe economy, environmentand community from nega-tive impacts of pests, diseas-es and weeds – is imperativeto the sustainability of theenvironment and agricultur-al production systems.

For more information onthe available programs andresources contact the NSWDPI Schools team at schools.program@dpi.nsw.gov.au

Landcare Australia hasalso developed the ‘YouthEngagement in Landcare’how-to kit and the Landcarein the Curriculum programto help engage Australia’syouth, from primary schoolto university, as the nextgeneration of Landcarers.Contact enquiries@land-careaustralia.com.au

Bio-securityforschools

New school resources fromNSW DPI for biosecurityeducation.

]ADVERTISING FEATUREThursdayMarch 10, 2016THELAND74 theland.com.au

Landcare In FocusMarch 2016 ~ www.landcareonline.com.au

GreenArmy Landcare

INCASE you still haven’theard, the AustralianGovernment’s GreenArmy Programme is a

hands-on, practical environ-mental action programmethat supports local envi-ronment and conservationprojects across Australia.

It’s an initiative thatprovidesmeaningful em-ployment opportunities andskills training for Australiansaged 17–24 years, who areinterested in protecting theirlocal environment.

Restoring rare specieshabitat –Woodlands &Wetlands Trust

Mulligans Flat andJerrabomberra Reserve inthe ACT are valuable eco-systems that provide habitatand refuge for a numberof migratory birds, nativespecies and threatenedecological communities.

In the first of four GreenArmy projects for the area,the 2015 Green Army teamwere successful in address-ing andmanaging noxiousweeds and feral animals,which complementedongoing revegetation.

These activities havesuccessfully reduced com-petition to box gum grassywoodland vegetation andimproved ecological health.Additionally, this projectoffered opportunities forthe team to engage with thecommunity, increase publicawareness on environmental

issues, and address tram-pling damage by imple-menting access controls andinterpretive signage.

Service Parks andConservation ServiceRangers, and project hostemployees provided theGreen Army teamwith sitespecific knowledge, ongoingsupport and training.Thiscollaborative approachensuredmilestones weremet, including effectivereduction of pest specieswithinMulligans Flat.

Restoring SnowyMountains riparian zones –Tumut Shire Council

To reinstate the chain ofoxbow and reconnect theTumutWetlands, McFar-lane’s Creek and PioneerPark systems to Tumut River,the Tumut Shire Councilworked with the Green Armyto remove environmental

weeds (including privet,blackberry and elm) andreinstate native endemicriparian species to filter andclean the aquatic system.

To stabilise banks, reduceerosion and improve waterquality, the Green Army

team installed jute mattingalong steep slopes andplanted sterile oats andnative grasses to reducesedimentation in waterwaysduring rain events.

They also teamed up withNSWNational Parks andWildlife Service Rangers fora plant identification andseed collection training day;and welcomed a group oflocal school students whovisited the project site tolearn about the importanceof wetlands.

Disaster Recovery inTwo States

Hepburn Shire CouncilOn the 28th February 2015

the Hepburn Advocate re-ported that a 'MINI tornado'had torn through Daylesfordovernight. The resultingstorm damage included theloss of a local landmark,destruction of a recreational

facility, extensive damageacross dozens of proper-ties, loss of existing nativehabitat, and an increase intree hazard and fuel loadsin highly used and valuedpublic areas.

As part of the specialNatural Disaster RecoveryRound, the Green Armyteam are working with Hep-burn Shire Council and localcommunity groups to ensurethe recovery of naturalassets and native habitat forthreatened species.

The project will alsoundertake weed control andrevegetation – to preventerosion, protect waterquality and support nativehabitat resilience againstthe impacts of future storms–install nest boxes, andundertake flora surveys.

Capricornia CatchmentsTo support repair and

recovery following theenvironmental damagecaused during TropicalCycloneMarcia, CapricorniaCatchments Inc joined forc-es with Landcare Australia,ManpowerGroup and theGawula Aboriginal LandTrust to deploy a GreenArmy team.

The team are currentlycontinuing their work toreduce fuel loads, removeweeds that establishedfollowing storm damage,collect native seeds that willbe stored for propagation,revegetate native reservesby installing 1,000 plants,and install barrier fences tosupport ecosystem rehabil-itation.

“TheDisaster RecoveryGreen Army team hascontributed significantly toaid the recovery of our localnature refuges,” Jeff Krause,Executive Officer, Capricor-nia Catchments Inc. said.

“The program alsoincreases knowledge in thewider community about theecological values of our nat-ural resources and the needto ensure the resilience ofthese assets into the future.”

Interested in hosting aGreen Army?

Landcare Australia, inpartnership withMan-powerGroup, has beenappointed by the AustralianGovernment as a ServiceProvider for the GreenArmy Programme.

Any groups interested inputting forward an idea forconsideration as a projecthost in the next round ofGreen Army applicationsshould register their interestwith Landcare Australia viagreenarmy@landcareaus-tralia.com.au or phoneLandcare Australia toll freeon 1800 151 105.

Green Army participants at work restoring a landscape at Tumut, NSW.

A newforce atwork onthe land

■ Federal programallocated $360m overfour years

■ Employs peopleaged 17-24

■ Work focused onlandscape rehabilitation

■ Participants earn anallowance of $10.24 to$16.61 an hour

■ Projects developedthrough five serviceproviders, includingLandcare Australia

THE GREEN ARMY