Soil conservation professionals, John Day and Geoff Titmarsh, provided a wealth of information to the attendees at the recent Soil Conservation Field Walk.
The event, which was held at Jeppesen Farming Co. at Bloomsbury, concentrated on practical applications of how overland flow could be managed, stored, and disposed of safely in agricultural lands.
The field walk provided attendees with an insight into common soil conservation problems and also with practical solutions.
Reef Catchments has multiple roles available and is seeking expressions of interest. All the details are here.
An expansion of the Coral Nurture program is proposed for three sites in the Whitsundays and the proposal is now open for public consultation until 1 July 2022.
You can access the public information package below which contains full details on how to submit comments.
Almost half of the fish species in the Mackay Whitsunday region can live in both freshwater and
saltwater environments. They move between these habitats for a variety of reasons including to
feed, reproduce and avoid predators. Ideally, fish should be able to move freely and easily between
different habitats. Unfortunately, barriers like dams, weirs, road crossings and other man-made
structures can prevent or inhibit the movement of fish throughout the catchment.
This is a concern for the fish population, and locally important species such as barramundi, sea
mullet, mangrove jack, jungle perch, tarpon and long-finned eels, which are significantly affected if
they’re unable to access breeding and feeding habitats. In many cases the fish are unable to
complete their life cycle and sustain a healthy and resilient population.
Reef Catchments, with funding from the Australian Government’s Reef Trust, contracted local fish
experts at Catchment Solutions to update a fish barrier prioritisation report from 2015. The current
study identifies 9,738 potential fish barriers, more than doubling the number found in 2015 (3974).
Only a small fraction of the increase was attributed to new barriers, with the bulk resulting from the
use of better satellite imagery, improved stream mapping and addition of wetlands to the study
area.
This study not only identifies the locations of barriers, but also includes an analysis to rank the
barriers in order of importance for fish passage. The barrier ranking process determined the extent
to which barriers affected the sustainability of fish communities, with barriers top ranked having the
worst impact on fish communities.
Key criteria included:
Reef Catchments Conservation and Communities Officer Carlos Bueno, said that the purpose of the
prioritisation was to identify key sites for investment, which is an ongoing priority for Reef
Catchments and local governments.
The updated report identifies Stafford’s Crossing (O’Connell River), Vitanza Road (Saltwater Creek),
Marklands Wetlands, Flaggy Rock and Andromache Weirs, and many others, as top priority for
remediation. The next step is to fix the highly ranked barriers to improve fish movement and habitat
availability.
Catchment Solutions Fisheries Ecologist Trent Power, said that the current prioritisation took a big
leap forward in terms of being able to remotely identify barriers to fish passage. This will help Reef
Catchments, Mackay and Whitsunday Regional Council and other catchment groups focus their
funding on sites which will deliver the greatest benefit to local fish stocks.
Reef Catchments is working to protect and restore wetlands south of Mackay, assisting
landholders in the Sandringham Wetland Complex to manage their land and improve grazing
practices.
As part of this project, which is funded by the Australian Government’s Reef Trust, a
long reach excavator has been brought in for a trial to mechanically remove water hyacinth
and put it into the adjacent fallow cane paddocks as mulch, as an alternative to spraying vast
amounts of herbicides to control this localised infestation.
Reef Catchments and the landholder are investigating if the mulch layer of aquatic weeds in
the paddock will improve soil conditions and benefit the next cane crop, optimising the balance
between production and ecosystem protection, promoting a health environment for the native
birds and fish species, and reducing pollutants running off to the Great Barrier Reef lagoon. The
potential for biocontrol releases is also being investigated, which could deal with the infestation
long-term, since the seed bank can be viable for up to 25 years.
The Plane Creek catchment, in which the Sandringham Wetland Complex is located, covers
2,539 square kilometres, and 28% of the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac (MWI) region. Reef
Catchments is partnering with landholders in the Sandringham Wetland Complex to improve fish
habitat, restore native vegetation and improve water quality.
Reef Catchments has already assisted local landholders to implement over 6.5km of new wildlife
friendly fencing and 11 additional off-stream watering points to manage stock access in sensitive
ecological areas. Wetland habitats are an important part of many grazing properties in
Queensland. Most wetlands in Queensland are on private land, and many are on properties that
run grazing businesses.
Reef Catchments Project Officer – Conservation and Communities, Carlos Bueno, said, “The
Sandringham Wetland Complex provides many vital functions to the local coastal area due to its
unique soil types and water holding capacity.
“Improvements and adoption of best management
practices on these critical ecosystems can enhance the ecosystem and improve grazing
productivity.
“Graziers value the Sandringham Wetland Complex for providing water and feed for stock, and
reserves during the dry season or droughts. The impacts of grazing on wetlands can include
reduced water quality from additional nutrient inputs, increased soil compaction and reduced
native vegetation.”
Wetlands are the boundary between two different ecosystems, dry and wet, which means they
have a unique role in nutrient exchange and water supply to surrounding lands. They also provide
habitat, food, and shelter to many different plants and animals including endangered, vulnerable,
and migratory species.
The 2021 Healthy Soils Symposium will broaden your ability to read your land’s geography while deepening your knowledge of the microbial world underfoot. We will take you below the surface to understand the chemistry of healthy soil, while demonstrating solutions to improve soil health and fertility. Local farm management examples and demonstrations will share issues, mitigations, and successes in creating vibrant, healthy soils.
Healthy, fertile soils drive pasture productivity and deliver environmental benefits through improved water and nutrient use with less risk of surface run-off, erosion, and deep drainage. Soil health and fertility can be broadly described as: physical fertility – soil texture, structure, and resilience.
Presentations
01-1 Gwyn Jones – Reading the Landscape
01-2 Gwyn Jones – Reading the Landscape
Gwyn Jones – Reading the Landscape
02 Daniel Gonzalez – Soil Mineral Balancing
03 Gonzalez and Marcus Bulstrode – Cane Case Studies
04 Mark Sugars – Soils and Landscape
06 Gwyn Jones – Weeds Succession
Gwyn Jones – Need to Read the Weed
Gwyn Jones – Reading the Landscape
Understanding Sodic Soils
Understanding Soil Colour
Understanding Soil pH
Understanding Soil Structure
Understanding Soil Texture
Qld Globe Guide How to Access Soils Information
Reef Catchments proudly presents our Annual Report for the 2020-2021 Financial Year. We invite you to read about the projects and achievements we have worked on in our region during this period.
Resilient ecosystems, engaged community – Reef Catchments is your Natural Resource Management (NRM) group for the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region.
Treatment trains use natural processes to eliminate runoff pollutants like sediment and nutrients, ensuring cleaner water to the catchment, rivers and ultimately the Great Barrier Reef.
Constructed wetland treatment trains use multiple chambers to treat water as it moves through the individual structures or basins. Included within the structures is a shallow macrophytes zone where reeds take up nutrients for their own growth. A biofilm, similar to an algae around the reeds, and the reeds themselves, also use nutrients for their growth, removing excess from the water. Within the design can be a deep chamber which landholders can utilise to pump extra water to irrigate crops, providing good production benefits. A larger biodiversity wetland area also provides a native wetland improving ecosystem services and detains water on the property for as long as possible before entering the receiving waters.
JCU Tropwater researchers collated and Interpreted the dataset from this project and identified improvements to water quality.
Here is a recently published paper by Carlos Bueno using the deidentifield water quality data from the treatment train projects at Bakers Creek and Brightly areas.
Further information from Carlos Bueno
More information on the effectiveness of these treatment systems.
Students from Sarina State High School were treated to a trip of a lifetime aboard SV Whitehaven out to Scawfell Island to better understand threatening processes and management of the Great Barrier Reef.
Over three days the students were involved in practical and theoretical activities revolving around reef health assessments, native plant and weed identification, marine debris beach clean ups, and audits.
These activities directly improve the ecological condition of the Island and importantly, encourage and empower students to adopt everyday actions to reduce threats to the reef, biodiversity, and how to lessen the source of contaminants such as plastic.
The Reef Catchments Marine Classrooms program is supported by funding from the Australian Heritage Grants Program, the charter vessel component was funded through the Queensland Government’s Reef Assist Program and delivered by Reef Catchments and SV Whitehaven.
Reef Catchments worked with the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac community to develop a Community Action Plan to protect the Great Barrier Reef.
You can read all about it here, in this Story journal which covers the work undertaken to develop the action plan.
Community
Reef Catchments worked with a range of stakeholders to identify what was important to the community, and to map out potential projects. We look forward to working with the community to implement these projects, and we encourage you to read more about them in the Project Prospectus document.
Reef Catchments proudly presents our Annual Report for the 2019-2020 Financial Year. We invite you to read about the projects and achievements we have worked on extensively in our region during this period.
Resilient ecosystems, engaged community – Reef Catchments is your Natural Resource Management (NRM) group for the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region.
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Reef Catchments has worked alongside landholders and partner organisations since 2000. We are proud of our regional footprint – every goal achieved represents collaboration, commitment, time, and energy, from all involved.
Change is more than a one-step process and we think we’re heading in the right direction. Check out our key achievements below.
One Mackay hotel is using an unusual device to help keep pollutants out of our waterways.
Smokers at McGuire’s CBD Hotel can now use their finished cigarette butts to vote on a question put to them by the hotel management. In doing so, they ensure that their discarded butts, a major pollutant of Mackay’s waterways, are properly disposed of.
The idea for this bin came from Sunshine Coast Council, but it is the first in Australia to be made almost entirely of recycled materials.
Cigarette butts can take at least eight to 10 years to break down in the environment. It is a common misconception that they are biodegradable, but the plastic in the filter prevents that. Unfortunately, here in Mackay, many thousands of cigarette butts enter our storm water regularly.
Reef Catchments has been auditing stormwater drains in the Mackay CBD, identifying that cigarette butts are by far our biggest pollutant. To try to combat this, Reef Catchments have installed the butt voting bin at McGuires, with the help of Cleanwater Group.
Other pollutants, such as plastic fragments and plastic food packaging have also been identified as high priority items.
Reef Catchments Coastal Project Officer Cass Hayward said: “The cigarette butt voting bins have been shown to reduce cigarette butt litter in other places around the world. I hope that Mackay can similarly benefit. It is hugely important to start reducing our impact on the oceans, and reducing the amount of waste that ends up there is a good first step.
“Many don’t realise that the stormwater drains wash straight into the ocean, so what you throw on the ground or throw out your window ends up there too.”
The ‘What a load of rubbish! Sorting out its source’ project is funded by the partnership between the Australian Government’s Reef Trust and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.
Read all about it! The Water Quality Summary for 2017-2019 for the Bakers Creek repair site is now available.
Bakers Creek System Repair Site – Water Quality Summary 2017-2019
Reef Catchments is undertaking a four year study of the water quality benefits of a constructed wetland treatment train at Bakers Creek. Treatment trains use natural processes to eliminate runoff pollutants like sediment and nutrients, ensuring cleaner water to the catchment, rivers and ultimately the Great Barrier Reef.
Constructed wetland treatment trains use multiple chambers to treat water as it moves through the individual structures or basins. Included within the structures is a shallow macrophytes zone where reeds take up nutrients for their own growth. A biofilm, similar to an algae around the reeds, and the reeds themselves, also use nutrients for their growth, removing excess from the water. Within the design can be a deep chamber which landholders can utilise to pump extra water to irrigate crops, providing good production benefits. A larger biodiversity wetland area also provides a native wetland ecosystem for fishing and detains water on the property for as long as possible before entering the receiving waters.
Further information is available from Carlos Bueno
This is a Reef Catchments initiative, made possible through funding from the Queensland Government Department of Environment and Science.
Stewart and Sarah Borg’s grazing property “Marklands” in the Rocky Dam Creek sub-catchment is impressive. Home to wallabies, barramundi, and more than three hundred bird species, these wetlands are an important habitat.
The ponded pastures serve primarily as cattle fodder, but the Borgs are proactive andn align their grazing requirements with positive environmental outcomes.
“Financial farmers are environmentally sustainable farmers, but it’s hard to be green when in the red,” said Stewart.
We aim to be at the forefront of environmental practices with carbon sequestration, containing sediment, and managing nutrients being our main priorities.
Thanks to funding through the Queensland Government’s Natural Resources Investment Program (NRIP), local NRM group Reef Catchments is now working with the family to reduce threats to native vegetation, encourage regeneration and remove barriers to fish passage. Additionally, the installation of off-stream watering points will allow for periodic rest of wetland paddocks.
“These works translate directly to outcomes such as improved condition and extent of native vegetation and wetlands, improved aquatic connectivity and a reduction in sediment flowing into waterways,” said Reef Catchments wetlands officer, Jessica Sabatino.
“The Rocky Dam Creek area is a bio diverse and productive sub-catchment. It contains valuable agricultural land and the Ince Bay Aggregation, a DIWA nationally important wetland.”
The sub-catchment, about 70km south of Mackay, contains estuarine, riverine and palustrine wetlands (56km2, 16.4km2 and 14km2 respectively). It contains national parks and is part of the Great Barrier Reef Coast Marine Park. The vulnerable water mouse and near-threatened coastal sheath-tail bat can be found locally.
Despite Stewart’s admission that he already contributes to healthy fish populations by being a less than average fisherman, the Borgs are looking to improve fish habitat and passage.
With one fish ladder successfully in place, the Borg’s are looking into the feasibility of installing an additional fish ladder through NRIP. Popular in the fish-focused region, these ladders promote fish connectivity and passage; in this case specifically into Rocky Dam Creek. They encourage healthy native fish populations by allowing important diadromous fish species to move between fresh and saltwater to breed and complete their lifecycle.
Cyclone Debbie and recent weather events have impacted the farm, however the Borgs have a substantial budget allocated for weed control, both pastural and riparian.
The wetlands project will improve native vegetation by assisting with threat management and by actively revegetating priority sites within the sub-catchment. NRIP funding will allow the Borg’s to enhance their wetlands without reducing productivity, an important factor in many natural resource management projects.
The cost of fertiliser, chemicals, fuel, and power are four costs which are seriously compromising our local cane farmers.
Because of this, a group of growers is moving toward what they hope will be a more efficient future – one that helps the environment and our ‘backyard’ as much as their back pocket.
Through Reef Catchments and the Australian Government’s Reef Trust program, 244 growers (farming 35,587 ha of cane) in Mackay, Sarina, Proserpine, and the Whitsundays are taking steps toward change, particularly nutrient and herbicide management.
“The days of putting on too much fertiliser are long gone – it’s very expensive if you don’t get the tonnes per hectare,” said Graeme Blackburn, a cane farmer based in Mirani who this year harvested 90,000 tonnes.
Graeme and his family are looking ahead to try and see where cost and environmental savings can be made.
“For me it’s the future – we want to grow the cane as efficiently as we can and remain viable.”
He said that meant making hectares work smarter. Thanks to co-funding from Reef Catchments via the Australian Government’s Reef Trust 3 program, Graeme this year decided to match funds and purchase what is known as a bed renovator.
The renovator essentially can turn an old farm (with narrow rows) into a more modern controlled traffic based farm with wide rows.
“In a matter of two passes, Graeme can convert old ratoons and change 1.5m rows to 1.8m rows, for example ready for a soybean fallow,” said Reef Catchments sustainable agriculture officer Ian Brooks.
Mr Brooks said a wider row and GPS controlled traffic farming system were “incredibly important” to improve production and water quality to the Reef across the state.
“This idea of row conversion is really getting traction. There are still a lot of narrow rows out there.”
Graeme said they were already seeing some major benefits from the renovator since June this year.
“With this bit of equipment we can do up to 28 ha – 30 ha a day. Using the same amount of horsepower in a tractor, you’d only do half of that. So it’s less fuel to the hectare and we’re going twice as wide as what we’d do normally.
“It’s tidy, it’s all on GPS and it’s all repeatable. So in five years, ten years time we’ll know where that row will be.”
Graeme said cane farming had undergone big changes over the years.
“I know that when it comes to fuel, twenty years ago I might have used up to 200,000 L for 40,000 tonnes of cane. Now, to produce 90,000 tonnes I’ll use about half that around 100,000L – 120,00L. We’re seeking efficiencies wherever we can.”
But he said change took time.
“Our next big project will be a soybean fallow crop, put in on beds made by the renovator. What we’re hoping is this will help soil nutrition, put more organic matter into the ground and it should lead in time to better crops.
“Once you’ve got a better crop, you’ve got more trash on the ground, you can equip yourself better for drought.
“And as you go on and on you find more benefits.
“I’m hoping we’ll be able to get away with less chemical. My soil tests are saying we need a bit less nitrogen here or a bit less phosphorus here. We’re still learning all this and it takes time. But for me, it is essential.
“Even before we purchased the renovator I started with a one-row system that was homemade. You can start from something in your backyard that you can modify.”
Graeme is part of the wider Reef Trust program in Mackay and surrounds. The program saw farm extension officers work with hundreds of growers to improve nutrient and herbicide management.
Through Reef Trust 3, more than $800,000 has been locally distributed to assist with equipment upgrades to fast-track practice change. Small grants ($1500 p/grower) were additionally provided for spray equipment, soil tests, EM mapping and G-Dots.
Examples of equipment upgrades include
Interested growers can read the case studies.
Reef Catchments is pleased to present its Annual Report for the 2017-2018 Financial Year. We invite you to view some of the Natural Resource Management (NRM) projects and achievements in our region.
Because the best NRM outcomes are achieved together, always. Resilient ecosystems, engaged community – Reef Catchments is your Natural Resource Management (NRM) group for the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region.
Oaky Creek was a torrent of water as flooding associated with Tropical Cyclone Debbie ripped down the channel and spilled over the banks. Multiple landslides at the top of the catchment added gravel loads into the creek which were then spread across adjacent cane land.
At some sites the creek moved more than 10 meters, taking away arable land and leaving vertical drops of more than six meters. The movement and changes of the creek has landholders and stakeholders concerned for their farmland, infrastructure, and the safety of operations around the creek. The remaining bare and unstable riparian areas are highly prone to future erosion if they are not stabilised.
To assist in stabilising the creek, Reef Catchments was successful in obtaining National Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangement (NDRRA) funding to remediate and build resilience into Oaky Creek. Alluvium Consulting was engaged to undertake a stability assessment and hydrological modelling of a priority nine kilometers length of Oaky Creek.
Three community consultation events were held to engage with landholders and stakeholders and to draw out information on the history, current uses, and future requirements of the creek.
The consultation and assessment highlighted that more than 60,000m3 of sediment has been lost along the creek during the past nine years, with historical flood-driven straightening of the channel, and vegetation loss from disease along sections of the creek during the past 50 years.
Alluvium’s assessment has provided prioritised sites for rehabilitation including bank re-profiling and rock reinforcement. Alluvium has also recommended a comprehensive and structurally diverse revegetation program to complement other works to join up and improve riparian vegetation along Oaky Creek. Once vegetation has become established it will help to bind sediments, buffer water flowing past, and reduce future erosion.
“The right catchment vegetation and riparian management can reduce the speed and volume of water entering the river system and the speed at which water drains from an area. This greatly reduces flood heights and speeds in downstream catchments.” Ref Qld Gov Wetland Info.
Works, planned to begin during the coming months, are to be completed before the end of December 2018. The project is expected to see up to 4 000 tonnes of rock armouring and 50 large woody debris structures built to stabilise the channel and more than 10,000 plants will be planted along the creek.
This project has been completed.
Reef Catchments and growers in the Mackay Whitsunday region are part of Project Catalyst – a leading sugar innovation program. Watch this video to find out more. This video features numerous interviews with growers who discuss questions such as new innovation including drones, succession plans, and the importance of technology. This Project Catalyst 2018 Forum was held in Townsville and was attended by growers from all over Queensland. The forum provided growers with the chance to mix with others and to discuss common problems and innovations.
Tens of thousands of fish have been recorded flowing through constructed fishways in Mackay.
Fisheries ecologists say the soaring numbers are proof the fishways are playing a vital role in providing clear passage through a formerly disconnected aquatic ecosystem.
Recent monitoring (funded by local NRM Reef Catchments and the Australian Government) show huge numbers of fish streaming through the underwater environment.
The fish count is above published figures for previous fishway monitoring in the Murray and Burnett rivers, prompting researchers to ask if it could be among the highest recorded in Australia.
“The results have shown unbelievable numbers of fish migrating through the system,” said fisheries ecologist Matt Moore, from Catchment Solutions (fisheries research consultancy contracted to deliver the monitoring).
“We thought our initial catch was pretty good, with 3,653 fish recorded successfully ascending the fishway at the Mackay Gooseponds wetlands.
“However, this was trumped the following day at the same site with over 18,000 fish captured in four hours in the morning, and over 13,000 fish in the afternoon – bringing the total to over 31,000 in 8 hours.
“This is by far the most fish we have ever recorded in any local fishway, and would be up there with the highest ever recorded in Australia that we know of – fishways in the Murray River have recorded up to 4,415 fish per day and in the Burnett River 4,500 fish per day.
“These are exciting results that demonstrate the importance of facilitating connectivity past fish barriers, particularly the first barrier located upstream from the estuary, even on small ordered streams.”
Thanks to the fishway, the Mackay Gooseponds constructed wetlands (located in the Mackay urban area) is now better connected to Janes Creek and the wider Pioneer River Basin.
Some of the species recorded included juvenile barramundi, red scat, crescent perch, sea mullet and empire gudgeon – all valuable environmental and socio-economic species.
Significantly, further monitoring at Boundary Creek wetlands captured 43 barramundi fingerlings, including the smallest barramundi ever monitored locally at 30 mm.
“These little guys must have moved out of their coastline habitats behind the mangroves and then migrated upstream to the wetland via the fishway,” Mr Moore said.
“This is extremely significant because small fish possess weaker swimming abilities than larger fish… at 30mm they have only just started swimming, as opposed to hitching a ride with the currents and tides prior to this”.
“This demonstrates that the fishways provide suitable conditions for weaker swimming juvenile fish species. This is great news for Queensland’s most important commercial inshore net fish species.”
Reef Catchments general manager Katrina Dent said it was essential organisations like Reef Catchments could continue to fund environmental monitoring.
“These are fantastic results that really contribute to our knowledge of the aquatic ecosystem, both in Mackay and nationally.
“Reef Catchments is pleased to have helped drive this research. These are the kind of figures we need to continue to secure funding to construct more fishways in priority areas.”
This project was supported by Reef Catchments and delivered by Catchment Solutions, through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme.
It’s not everyday you employ an English Springer Spaniel to tackle the big jobs.
But that’s just what Reef Catchments has done, in a win-win for the environment and local landholders.
Rocky, a specially trained conservation detector dog, has assisted Reef Catchments, Queensland National Parks, and local property owners (Mackay region) to locate fox dens throughout the Slade Point and Cape Palmerston areas.
Reef Catchments Officer, Cass Hayward said while they kept a low profile, foxes were a significant threat to the many species in our region.
“Foxes are smart, and they’re difficult to manage. They are known to prey on native birds and mammals, turtle eggs, and human rubbish, anything they can get their paws on! Knowing where they den gives us the best possible chance to trap and remove the animals,” Ms Hayward said.
In just one day throughout Slade Point headland Rocky found 13 fox dens, all with multiple entrances. He also visited Cape Palmerston National Park, where rangers had noticed fox prints along the beaches.
“At the moment, we don’t think there is high density of foxes in the region. However, armed with detailed information about den locations, land managers can now carry out more effective trapping programs to protect local wildlife,” Ms Hayward said.
It’s not just foxes this clever canine can find – Rocky can locate a wide range of animals in a landscape, including dingoes and wild dogs, rabbits and even cats.
Rocky’s handler Tom Garrett (Queensland Murray-Darling Committee) said Rocky had assisted farmers, landholders and conservationists throughout his career, with an impressive list of achievements to his name.
“Farmers have enlisted Rocky’s help if livestock is predated, and conservation groups if native animals are declining. If a landholder has already taken control action (e.g. baited or trapped), Rocky will be able to check the impact by detecting if lairs, warrens and dens remain active,” Mr Garrett said.
“This provides a measure of success. During the 90’s in Mon Repos, Bundaberg, up to 70% of turtle populations were being lost to fox predation. Since bringing Rocky on board to help find dens, they now report no predation in that area at all.”
Rocky has also recently detected at the Mt Etna bat caves near Rockhampton, home to the endangered ghost bat (Macroderma gigas).
“There are plenty of signs of foxes in the area, but not in the bat cave itself. What you often see is foxes eat all the other food and small mammals that would generally support our natives, which can also knock populations down,” Mr Garrett said.
He said foxes could often be present in areas people didn’t suspect, including urban and peri-urban environments, as they only require a den in the breeding season and otherwise freely move about.
Ms Hayward said the success of the project in the Mackay region had been thanks to the willingness of local landholders, QLD National Parks, QLD Bulk Ports and the Mackay Regional Council.
“Without their assistance and permission for Rocky to detect on their land, we wouldn’t have been able to gain this level of insight into local fox activity,” she said.
For more information, please contact Cass Hayward at Reef Catchments on cass.hayward@reefcatchments.com or (07) 4968 4206.
If you are interested in engaging Rocky, please contact Tom Garrett from the Queensland Murray-Darling Committee or 0427 291 155.
This project was supported by Reef Catchments, through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program.
Soil science can be fun and interesting! Come along to the Innovative Grazing Network, Neighbours Unite, on 8 May for a get-together of extension staff, community groups, and landholders from neighbouring NRM regions.
If you are wondering how drones can assist you, wonder no more as Whitsunday Regional Council will demonstrate how drones can help in both mapping and treating weeds.
Reef Catchments and NQ Dry Tropics are collaborating with this free day to help landholders and community groups to build their knowledge of soil health and innovative technologies.
Agronomy expert, David Hardwick, will be on hand to talk about assessment of soils and the importance of multi-species pastures.
This event is proudly supported by Reef Catchments through funding from the Australian Government National Landcare Programme, and with support from event partners NQ Dry Tropics.
Reef Catchments presents its Annual Report for 2016-17. Our new look 2016-2017 Annual Report is available in an online version and printable PDF.
The report provides an overview of the ongoing and wide-ranging work being undertaken in natural resource management across the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region in collaboration with land managers and stakeholders. We hope you enjoy it.
If you missed out last year you can still download the Reef Catchments Limited Annual Report for 2015-2016
Native fish in Mullers Lagoon are vulnerable to the noxious Tilapia species. The pest was identified in the Bowen waterway by our Catchment Solutions water sampling team.
Tilapia displace and prey on local species and have been observed to spread disease in waterways where they have been previously found.
The Whitsunday Regional Council has plans to remove the pests, ensuring the eggs are destroyed and cannot repopulate.
It is a timely reminder on why it’s so important to monitor and address pest fish in our waterways. Increasing awareness of the threat Tilapia pose to our native species and ecosystems is on the council’s agenda however you can help too. Share this photo on social media with your fishing fan friends to do your bit.
More than 30 farmers in the region took up the offer of $6,000 in agronomic support and advice in the Reef Trust 3 programme.
One-on-one consultations help farmers to develop management plans for nutrients and herbicides, specific to their property.
Current participant responses have been positive so far, saying another set of eyes over the input figures can help to work out if you are spending more than you need to get effective results.
The additional $1,500 worth of upgrades to application equipment or activities are a bonus to support implementing the suggested upgrades in the plan.
For more information visit www.reefcatchments .com.au/land/care/
A wide range of regional stakeholders attended a Climate Adaptation workshop at Proserpine including Biosecurity, Queensland Police, Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, local government, Traditional Owners, members of conservation organisations, tourism representatives, and energy providers.
The workshop, which covered topics including adapting to a variable and changing climate, managing risks, and identifying opportunities, also saw the launch of the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac (MWI) Climate Sustainability Plan.
“The event drew together stakeholders and provided tools and resources to promote action in climate mitigation and adaptation planning in the region,” said Olivia Broadhurst, Reef Catchments Project Officer for Coasts and Biodiversity.
“One of the points raised was the need for regional targets, including mitigation, and support for adaptation planning through ongoing workshops to refine and implement actions set out in the regions climate plan.”
Participants, who learned about various tools including a risk matrix, workshopped some of the key actions to determine the next steps to plan the implementation.
Olivia said stakeholders would use the climate plan as a tool to write their own climate plans, and for further refining and setting of targets for adaptation and for rolling out implementation in the region.
A dung beetle breeding trial is being considered, with involvement from Reef Catchments, Dung Beetle Solutions Australia, Sarina Landcare Catchment Management Authority, and Sarina Rural Skills Centre following a Dung Beetle Day event.
Local graziers heard of the many benefits of dung beetles from speaker, Dr Bernard Doube who further involved his audience with a practical demonstration of surveying dung beetles where, within a matter of moments, hundreds of the beetles were scurrying around.
Dr Doube said four species of dung beetle had been found during the event which was held at Roxanne and Dan Morgan’s property at McEwens Beach.
He outlined numerous benefits of having dung beetles including a reduction in reliance on chemical fertilisers, a reduction in soil compaction, an increase in earthworms, creation of more pastures and helping to control intestinal parasites.
This project is supported by Reef Catchments , through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme.
More than 55 growers from Mackay and surrounds plus a further 25 industry representatives, flocked to the Western Suburbs Leagues Club to learn about the benefits of legumes to soil health and to take part in discussions ranging from variety selection and insect management, to harvest preparation and markets.
Expert presenters and Mackay-based growers provided numerous trial findings which explored what had, and hadn’t, worked at the local level.
Reef Catchment’s project office for sustainable agriculture, Juliane Kasiske, said she was delighted to see such strong interest by local growers to improve soil health and management practice.
“Farmers are willing to learn and implement changes and the legume day hopefully encouraged them by providing expert knowledge and experience,” she said.
“The day aimed to explain the benefits of legumes to soil health and also talked about how profitable legume cropping could be. The strong turn-out at the event highlighted the intent of local farmers to improve land management practices.
Oakenden growers Joe and Steve Muscat discussed their cutting edge trial with the Amuza planting system which is the first trial of its kind in Australia. Joe and Steve have experimented with rotational crops for more than fifteen years, bringing new crops to the region, and finding new markets for legume, fibre, seed, and oil crops.
“Growers generally don’t just do things for the sake of doing them, you take on change because there is potential to improve and you see things that need to be addressed,” said Joe.
“Amuza incorporates underground application of compost, mill mud and tissue cultures, using this pre-treatment and preparation as a plant source for the entire block, with a legume crop then incorporated into the soil.”
Presenters included Daniel Zinga from New Edge Microbials, Ian Morgan from PBAgrifood, and Andrew McDonald from Bean Growers Australia.
The event was hosted by Reef Catchments, through funding from the Australian Government, and supported by partners Farmacist, MAPS and local growers Joe and Steve Muscat.
Fishways are essential to improve connectivity and to build a more sustainable and healthy native fish population.
Fish migration is essential, particularly for important diadromous (migratory) species such as; barramundi, mangrove jack, giant herring, tarpon, jungle perch and Australian bass. All these fish species breed in estuarine or marine environments, before their off-spring migrate into freshwater rivers and wetlands to feed, grow and evade predators.
Often, there are barriers to fish attempting to migrate and this can significantly impact our native fish population. For example, any barrier restricting or preventing barramundi from reaching important nursery grounds is going to have an impact on barramundi numbers into the future.
If the barrier cannot be removed, to overcome this an appropriately designed fish ladder (fishway) is the best rehabilitation strategy.
Here, we look at a fishway in photos to help showcase the elements involved.
The fishway at the lower end of the Gooseponds in Mackay was built in 2000 and has helped support fish passage for important species for many years. Over the last decade there have been many improvements in fishway design that increase functionality and service life, and make them more aesthetically pleasing. When funding became available to do some repair work to this fishway, new design elements were built in. As you can see the results speak for themselves.
Funding was provided by Reef Catchments in partnership with Mackay Regional Council. Design and on-ground works were undertaken by Catchment Solutions.
Read more about fish ladders here: http://catchmentsolutions.com.au/fisheries-aquatic-ecosystems/
The newest sustainable agriculture team member at Reef Catchments, Juliane Kasiske, has set her focus on increasing community and industry awareness, and on encouraging the adaptation of best practice in land management and natural resource management.
Juliane is happy to be a point of contact for anyone with a direct interest in sustainable agriculture. She can provide information on latest practice standards in all the fields including sugarcane, grazing, horticulture, forestry, and fisheries
and can facilitate learning through working groups, and through educational events.
Juliane considers farmers have a central role in the sustainable management of natural resources.
“We can help farmers to establish innovative trials on their properties and, as Reef Catchments is a conduit for certain funding, we can provide them with support to guide them through the eligibility criteria, and to help them to plan their proposal to improve land management practices on their farms,” said Juliane.
“Monitoring trials is vital to identify progress, and this information can then be exchanged and discussed at working groups or at similar events.”
Juliane says an important part of her role is to increase community and industry awareness, and the adaption of best practice in land management and natural resource management.
Her background includes working for an engineering consultancy where she undertook BASIX assessments for energy and water efficiency, undertook water and soil quality sampling, and researched suitable cost effective technologies to manage erosion, dune stabilisation, stormwater drainage, and bio-filtration tanks.
She has also worked on a mine rehabilitation where the aim was to re-establish the site and create a habitat as close as possible to its original undisturbed state. Various rehabilitation techniques were used and their relative effectiveness was analysed. Juliane was also involved in an ecological survey with National Parks and Wildlife Services (NPWS) to monitor fauna abundance and behaviour following habitat loss.
It sounds obvious, but it’s a feat of nature few of us witness – small fish need time, uninterrupted access to our waterways and a whole lot of good quality habitat to become the big catch that sends tingles through an angler’s spine.
In the quiet of the creeks and rivers, if there’s something getting in the way as our juveniles struggle to the next stage of their life, the inevitable result? Far fewer good sized, healthy fish in our future.
It’s the equivalent of an underwater horror show for keen fishers – the idea that the next generation will have access to a significantly reduced pool of fish stock and diversity. Who wants to sit in a river mouth ten years from now reflecting on the kind of fish you used to be able to catch?
Now is the time to give it some consideration, according to the latest research. A recent report by Queensland based environmental consultants has identified thousands of potential barriers stopping our native fish in their tracks. Both manmade and natural, these barriers are interfering with our native fishes’ ability to manoeuvre through vital water courses to complete their life cycle. It’s a particularly pertinent issue for diadromous (migratory) species who need to transition from salt to freshwater over the years.
We’re talking some big name breeds – depending on your location, barra, mangrove jack, sleepy cod, jungle perch, tarpon, Australian bass, sea mullet, long and short-finned eels to name a few.
Depleting our waterway health also increases the likelihood of a slow invasion by pest fish who are less sensitive than our natives and who thrive in poor conditions – for example the notorious tilapia, cane toad of the water.
The fish barrier report identified 13,000 potential fish barriers in South East Queensland alone, just the tip of the iceberg. Another report in the Mackay Whitsunday region uncovered 3974 potential in-stream barriers.
While it’s not possible to tackle every barrier, these reports also ranked barriers in order of priority, marking out the top trouble spots to focus on. Here, we introduce you to what fish barriers are and why they matter.
Keep an eye out for part two in this series, which will look at the design and construction of fishways and how we can overcome fish barriers moving forward.
In particular, diadromous (migratory) species which need to transition between waterways, including salt and freshwater, to complete their life cycle. As previously mentioned, that includes key species like barramundi, mangrove jack, sleepy cod, jungle perch, tarpon, Australian bass, sea mullet and long and short-finned eels.
Many of these much-loved fish species require unimpeded access between freshwater and estuarine habitats to maintain sustainable populations.
Diadromous – Diadromous fishes are truly migratory species and whose distinctive characteristics
include that they:
Migrate between freshwaters and the sea;
The movement is usually obligatory; and
Migration takes place at fixed seasons or life stages.
There are three distinctions within the diadromous category:
Catadromous – Diadromous fishes that spend most of their lives in fresh water, and
migrate to sea to breed.
Amphidromous – Diadromous fishes in which migration between freshwater and the sea is
not for the purpose of breeding, but occurs at some other stage of the life cycle.
Anadromous – Diadromous fishes that spend most of their lives at sea, and migrate to
freshwater to breed.
Migrations can vary – some are short and confined wholly to freshwater habitats, while other migrations occur across vast distances and between varying habitats, including between freshwater and near-shore marine environments.
Our native fish can’t jumpForget the famous images of Atlantic salmon leaping upstream in Canada – our juvenile native fish aren’t even remotely in the same boat. Australian native species are easily knocked back by velocity and brought to a halt by even minor barriers. Historically, Australian waterways have been accessible and they rely on a smooth and comfortable passage between salt and freshwater.
Migration is an essential life history adaptation for many native fish species. Migration strategies between key habitats have evolved for a variety of reasons, including for feeding and reproduction purposes, to avoid predators, remove parasites, to utilise nursery areas and maintain genetic diversity.
Put simply, fish barriers (natural or manmade) are any barrier deemed to prevent, delay or obstruct fish migration.
Natural barriers can include weed chokes, waterfalls, low dissolved oxygen slugs and high water temperature. Manmade barriers however are more common.
Culprits include culverts, pipes, road crossings, weirs, dams, flow gauging structures, bunds (or ponded pastures) and sand dams.
These structures can be built for a variety of purposes like irrigation supply, flow gauging and regulation, urban and industrial development, road crossings or simply urban beautification and recreation facilities.
Barriers impact fish communities in many ways. Some barriers such as high dams form complete blockages. Other structures like culverts present partial or temporary barriers, restricting fish movement during particular flow events. Even small vertical drops downstream of road crossings and culvert aprons are enough to form barriers for many fish, particularly juvenile and small bodied species.
There’s one area in town that’s not been hit hard by a real estate downturn – and it’s underwater.
For the first time, there are fish hotels in Mackay. It’s good news for targeted tenants, including barramundi, mangrove jack, and sleepy cod, to name a few.
Catchment Solutions aquatic ecologist, Trent Power, said the installation of ten fish hotels in two priority sites at the Mackay Gooseponds on was exciting news – “We’re looking to attract a variety of fish to our new ‘real estate’ by creating the kind of habitat they love to live in,” Mr Power said.
“It is important to cater for the different habitat preference of our native fish. Currently in the Gooseponds there are ample weeded areas, rock walls, open water and muddy banks, but virtually no snags.
“The fish hotels will help increase the habitat for the fish species that prefer these areas, particularly predatory species, like barramundi, sleepy cod and mangrove jack.
“We will be catering to a diverse crowd – smaller fish are able to hide away in the nooks and crannies, while large predatory fish can wait in the shadows. By increasing habitat availability, our native fish communities can become more resilient and are better able to cope with threats, like the pest fish Tilapia.”
Fish hotels are engineered wooden structures, built to emulate what naturally occurs in rivers and streams when trees fall into the waterway (snags/woody debris). Unfortunately, in areas that have been cleared or developed, this natural process is interrupted. The hotels create spaces that provide habitat, refuge and a living and breeding area for important fish species. Fish hotels provide additional level of complexity to the habitats available for native fish and other aquatic fauna.
The fish hotel project is proudly supported by Reef Catchments in collaboration with Rio Tinto, through funding from the Hail Creek Mine Community Development Fund and the Australian Government. The hotels were designed and delivered by environmental consultants, Catchment Solutions.
The project is strongly supported by in-kind partners including Mackay Regional Council, Mackay Recreational Fishers Alliance Inc, and the Mackay Area Fish Stocking Association.
Hail Creek Mine’s general manager – operations, Rowan Munro said, “We are proud to support this important project to help improve the water quality and habitat for native fish and other aquatic species in the Gooseponds Wetlands area. The Hail Creek Mine Community Development Fund continues to provide opportunities for local projects to deliver real benefits and we look forward to seeing a stronger, healthier ecosystem in the Gooseponds wetlands that community members can treasure into the future.”
Mackay Regional Councillor and Economic Development and Planning Committee member, Fran Fordham, said the installation of log hotels at the Gooseponds would help build the resilience of native and iconic fish species such as barramundi.
“Juvenile barramundi willingly move into these freshwater environments, via fishways, from the estuary and use this environment as a nursery habitat before returning to estuaries as sub-adults,” she said. “Creating favourable habitats for these higher order predators will give them a better chance at competing with exotic, invasive fish species such as tilapia.”
Fish hotel installation follows a comprehensive feasibility study, including flood modelling.
“Flood modelling was completed using the existing Gooseponds Catchment model as well as data provided by the Department of Natural Resources and concept designs,” Cr Fordham said. “This was done to ensure this project would not adversely impact the intensity or duration of flooding during high flow events. The results demonstrated that the log hotels would have an insignificant impact on flood conditions during 1 in 5 and 1 in 100 year flood event.”
Mr Power said ultimately, he had high hopes the fish hotel chain could be expanded throughout local waterways. “Our initial studies indicated four priority sites for fish hotel construction, but so far we have only secured funding for two – however, we have high hopes the hotels will expand in the future!” he said.
“They can be installed anywhere there is the need for aquatic habitat, including in urban and rural areas, in constructed wetlands and on private landholder property.”
Mackay Recreational Fishers Alliance Inc spokesperson, Lance Murray, said fish hotels were a strong step forward for the Mackay area. “Habitat protection and water quality are two essential ingredients of fish recruitment and sustainability, this initiative is a good step in the right direction,” he said.
CHANNEL 7 NEWS https://www.facebook.com/ReefCatchments/posts/1073790236024063
PROJECT PROFILE
Project? Lagoons Creek rehabilitation
Where? Lagoons Creek, Mackay Regional Botanic Gardens
What’s happening at this site? Creation of a naturalised waterway with two adjacent wetlands. Stage two includes creation of a corridor to the wetlands and installation of three fishways.
Who’s involved? Reef Catchments is working closely with Mackay Regional Council and the Department of Transport and Main Roads on this major project. Co-funding has been provided through the Australian Government Reef Programme. A big thanks also to Catchment Solutions, who provided the technical input for the design of the fishways, wetlands and in-stream habitat features.
Current activity:
The wetlands have now been connected for fish migrating from the Pioneer River Estuary to the Mackay Regional Botanic Gardens wetlands (Lagoons Creek) via the construction of three, two-ridge rock ramp fishways.
Fishways enable fish, such as barramundi, to migrate past barriers to breed and develop. If manmade or natural barriers obstruct fish, fish health and population will decline. Fishways provide a clear passage through our waterways to allow them to complete their life cycle.
The construction of the two large wetlands and meandering creek channel have also been completed.
The installation of large root balls will offer complex habitats for juvenile and small-bodied fish to hide and for large predators to feed.
Endemic native plants are still to be planted. These will offer shade and habitat.
What benefits does this project aim to provide?
The project will address issues through the establishment of a vegetation corridor, rock placement, filtration of water entering the waterway, and in-stream vegetation to treat pollutants. Installing wetland and submerged plants provides the retention time required by ‘biofilms’ to grow and treat pollutants. Water quality is key to the survival and health of diverse aquatic fauna and the flora on which they feed.
This project will reinstate habitat and establish a strong, healthy ecosystem – that means more fish, birds and fauna in our beautiful botanic gardens moving forward. Activity will facilitate a vital connection between saltwater and freshwater environments.
Traditional Owners reunite on Country in the beautiful Whitsundays and Cape Hillsborough region.
Traditional Owners from the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region came together on Country to meet, connect and have a say in the management of our natural resources.
The Traditional Owner Reference Group (TORG) is hosted by Reef Catchments. Bringing together mobs from across the MWI region, the group is an important platform to ensure TO views are represented in environmental planning.
The TORG also provides a point of contact for organisations and businesses who are seeking Traditional Owner representation and insight into their projects and activities.
Six mobs came together to make the trip with Reef Catchments staff, as well as representatives from the Mackay-Whitsunday Healthy Rivers to Reef Partnership (HRRP) and Queensland Parks and Wildlife Services (QPWS).
Represented were people from Ngaro, Gia, Juru, Yuwibara, Koinmerburra, Barrada and Wiri groups.
Country visited included Nara Inlet (Hook Island) and South Molle Island, which are both Ngaro land. The group also visited Yuwibera Trail, Mangrove Walk, Andrews Point Track (Cape Hillsborough), Finlayson Point (Seaforth) and Ball Bay.
Reef Catchments engaged Terra Rosa to develop the structure and capacity of the TORG and to develop initial capacity to oversee Aboriginal site recording and management, Natural Resource Management projects and training.
Importantly, the on Country visit will inform a new cultural indicator to be included in the Mackay-Whitsunday Healthy Rivers to Reef Report Card for 2016. Fieldwork measured the condition of some of our region’s important indigenous cultural heritage sites.
HRRP Chair, Diane Tarte, said the partnership was pleased to be working in collaboration with the Traditional Owner Reference Group, coordinated by Reef Catchments.
“We are working to develop an assessment of indigenous cultural heritage relating to our region’s waterways and marine environment.
“For the first time in our region, information on the health of these sites, their relationship with each other (connectedness), level of protection and significance will be converted into a report card grade which we hope to compare over time.
“Along with the report card’s environmental indicators, the cultural heritage indicator will assist in prioritising management responses for the region’s waterways and marine environment in future years,” she said.
Traditional Owner input will also be included in the MQI Reef Recovery Plan, currently under development by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA).
Reef Catchments is working at this site with a landholder to improve fish passage and habitat through waterways in the Rocky Dam Creek Catchment. A partial width rock ramp fishway was constructed on an existing fish barrier adjacent to a large wetland area near Koumala. A Hymenachne infestation in the wetland was also sprayed, to improve the water storage capacity and improve dissolved oxygen levels.
This is a Reef Catchments project, with co-funding from the landholder and through the Australian Government Reef Programme. It is part of the wider Rocky Dam Basin System Repair program.
Project: Fishway construction and Hymenachne spray: Wetland, Koumala
Project Goals: To improve fish passage and habitat of important migratory species through the Rocky Dam Basin.
With assistance from the Australian Government Systems Repair funding (Reef Programme), a partial width rock ramp fishway was constructed on a priority barrier, connecting salt and freshwater environments. During flows migratory fish such as Empire Gudgeon, Barramundi, Crescent Perch and Giant Herring are able to move though the fishway. The design has small drops and deep pools to reduce turbulence and provide suitable conditions for movement of juvenile fish and small species.
The wetland is infested with Hymenachne.
This is reducing the water capacity within the wetland and impacting on dissolved oxygen levels. During monitoring in April 2016, dissolved oxygen levels in the wetland were recorded at ~4% for the open water channels. These levels are critical and very little life can be sustained. It has been demonstrated in other wetlands that controlling Hymenachne has improved dissolved oxygen levels within waterways. The control will also have added benefits of increasing the water storage capacity for the landholder. Reef Catchments has funded the aerial spray of 30ha of the Hymenachne, focusing on the old channels and deeper water, which is not suitable for grazing.
The fishway was constructed in late 2015. It was apparent from later fishway monitoring that diversity and numbers were lower than in nearby wetlands without major Hymenachne infestations.
Practices that can make a real difference to growers’ bottom line and our environment are in demand.
However, more research and resources are needed to help growers identify and adopt changes that are right for them and financially viable, finding out where real gains can be made.
To support this challenge, Reef Catchments is coordinating the GameChanger program for growers in the Mackay-Whitsunday region.
The GameChanger program is an extension of Project Catalyst activities – read more here. GameChanger supports farmers to adopt strategies where evidence has shown they can be applied across farms with sound economic outcomes while significantly increasing the cuts to sugarcane pollutant run.
The GameChanger project has developed and trialled management practices in the Mackay Whitsunday, NQ Dry Tropics and Terrain NRM regions with a focus on the use of precision agriculture technologies and advanced planning to provide opportunities for cane farming to be more economically and environmentally sustainable.
In total, seventy (70) growers are engaging in trials of several key farm management practice changes, including:
One of the key goals of GameChanger is to support wider practice uptake by sharing trial learnings. All growers are encouraged to access a new range of case studies outlining trial details and early-stage results.
Grower led and grower driven with practical farming outcomes aimed at improving water quality is the primary focus of the Game Changer project. To achieve this, the project seeks to expand on the success of Project Catalyst and engage with a wide selection of growers throughout three key NRM regions to search for innovative ideas on nutrient and chemical management that also addresses improved water quality entering the Great Barrier Reef lagoon.
GameChanger is supported by NRM Groups across Queensland, through funding from the Australian Government Reef Programme.
In the Mackay-Whitsunday region, the GameChanger program is managed by Reef Catchments.
In the Dry Tropics, the GameChanger program is managed by NQ Dry Tropics NRM.
In the Wet Tropics, the GameChanger program is managed by Terrain NRM.
ABOUT GameChanger
The GameChanger project has developed and trialled management practices in the Mackay Whitsunday, NQ Dry Tropics and Terrain NRM regions with a focus on the use of precision agriculture technologies and advanced planning to provide opportunities for cane farming to be more economically and environmentally sustainable.
GameChanger is supported by NRM Groups across Queensland, through funding from the Australian Government.
GameChanger supports farmers to adopt strategies where evidence has shown they can be applied across farms with sound economic outcomes while significantly increasing the cuts to sugarcane pollutant run.
CONNECTED to Project Catalyst
The GameChanger management practices are an extension of the Project Catalyst activities where technologies and techniques are generally at a higher level than the best management practices identified in the regional ABCD frameworks.
This project has generated evidence for these practices to be promoted to the greater industry for wide scale adoption and integration into the Reef Programme Water Quality Improvement Grants, where they have the potential to significantly reduce anthropomorphic runoff whilst maintaining farm productivity and profitability.
For more information contact us: 07 4968 4200.
LINKS to new Mackay Whitsunday case studies
Tony, John and Mark Bugeja
Phil Deguara
Thomsett Bros
Ron Telford
Rodney Hindle
Paul Borg
Malcolm Langdon
Gerry Deguara
Adam Keilbach
From pasture management, to herd nutrition and climate forecasting – graziers in the Mackay-Whitsunday region can now easily access the information they need with the launch of the new Mackay-Whitsunday Sustainable Grazing Guide.
The Sustainable Grazing Guide was designed to help graziers find information quickly and simply.
The Sustainable Grazing Guide is an easy-to-use booklet to point graziers in the right direction when they are looking for information to support decisions about their property, and how to best go about changing and updating their practices.
It provides information and tools to assist graziers in achieving sustainable management of their land, while also maintaining or enhancing farm productivity.
The guide covers a range of topics, providing links to areas including:
The Guide was prepared by Reef Catchments, through funding from the Queensland Government Regional Natural Resource Management Investment Program.
Reef Catchments wishes to acknowledge the technical input from: Jim Fletcher, Phillip Trendell, Neil Cliffe and Ross Dodt, DAF, Mackay; Jacob Betros and Claire Mahony, Catchment Solutions; and Bill Davies and Bob Bennet, Mackay Whitsunday Grazing Working Group.
Reef Catchments has launched a new suite of guides designed to be an important tool for landholders in the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region. Alongside the Mackay-Whitsunday Sustainable Grazing Guide, the suite also includes new guides for horticulture and forestry.
While less practiced in the region, these sectors offer strong potential for diversified operations, value-adding and enhanced farm efficiencies. The guides have been designed to support the identification, validation, implementation and review of practices that can improve productivity and land and water health. The guides outline different levels of management practices for varying water quality parameters, including sediment, chemicals and nutrients. They are designed to be a jumping point to further information and a useful tool for informed decision making.
The full suite of guides is available at no cost by request from Reef Catchments:
There are many ways to improve productivity and yield on farm, however there is a growing movement of producers who look at their soil condition as the place to begin.
Central Queensland Soil Health Systems (CQSHS) is a not for profit group of farmers seeking new and improved ways of growing crops and pasture whilst reducing costs over the long term.
It is widely recognised that soil biology needs soil carbon levels of 3% or more to become fully active. The calcium/magnesium ratio also needs to be correct so that soil PH will be at the desirable level. The group have also found compaction is a widespread issue for good water and air infiltration, vital for healthy soil.
Believing farmer-driven research and trials can address multiple issues at any one time through multiple science disciplines, the aim of CQSHS is to have all landholders involved, regardless of land use. Home gardeners, graziers and growers of crops were certainly given an education at the 3rd Soil Health Symposium April 26/27.
Leading experts and scientists like Dr Greg Bender, Dr Neil Wilson and David Hardwick introduced the concept that soils, like us, need to be treated holistically – addressing the importance of organic matter, mineral levels, pH and microbiology to support optimal growth in plants.
Farmers and garden enthusiasts alike, may have found the scientific information intense, but came away understanding the complexity of soil management.
Fortunately David Hardwick was there to help them understand what they’d learned in the forum by ‘role playing’ in the field, and demonstrations of the latest technology and machinery made accurate lime application easy.
Local farmer Allan McLean has been on the land all of his life, working his property with cattle and cane for 67 years and was keen to share his experience with everyone.
Adaptations made on his property include reduced tillage, stool splitting and the use of legumes to improve pasture (signal grass) to name a few. Cattle have been an integral part of land management in rough terrain where fire can be an issue.
A founding member of CQSHS Allan feels collaboration is the way forward “Collectively we can come up with better strategies to improve practices, soil health is very important to remaining a viable farming enterprise. I’ve seen the benefits in soils becoming easier to till, hence less costs to work the soil and water retention from rain and irrigation greatly improved resulting in less runoff.”
Reef Catchments has been proud to support the event since it’s inception, thanks to funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme.
Regional Landcare Facilitator Jacob Betros understands optimum soil condition is essential to all forms of agriculture, and ensuring healthy soils can deliver greater production to producers in an environmentally conscious manner.
His job is to support groups and individuals to promote sustainable farm and land management practices.
“Not only do we work with sugarcane, but the programme also focuses on grazing, horticulture, and forestry. New scientific information regarding soil health is being generated faster than ever, and it’s important for local land managers, to adapt this information and implement new methods, to remain viable, and ensure sustainable production for future generations.”
According to Jacob, the most exciting change to date has been the improvement to soil compaction through remediation on Simon Mattsson’s cane farm.
“Intercropping with sunflowers has really given the soil a new lease on life. I was recently at his property and have seen how well the cane as done in the year following the sunflower harvest.” Jacob said. “Increased production means increasing economic viability. This ensures the Central QLD Coast region benefits environmentally and continues to offer stability to the community with employment, tourism, and agricultural industries.
More information about Central Queensland Soil Health Systems and National Landcare Programme
Following fishway monitoring in the Mackay-Whitsunday region, sampling on Boundary Creek in the Rocky Dam Creek Catchment in Koumala revealed juvenile barramundi as small as 43 mm were successfully ascending the fishway.
Catchment Solutions aquatic ecologist, Matt Moore, remains excited about the construction of purpose built fishways in the Mackay-Whitsunday area.
“Most fishways built in the past have not presented conditions favourable for weaker swimming juveniles – they only ever recorded larger 150mm +Barra – so scientists thought this was the minimum size – but really it was poor fishway design, and poor knowledge of fish biology/migration. Every fishway we build we gain new knowledge on migration.”
The numbers, and particularly the small size of the barra are significant, some of the smallest juvenile barra recorded migrating through fishways in Australia.
“This is an indication that our newly designed fishways are successful at passing fish- as in the past fishway designs, like Marian weir, Fitzroy river, were based on northern hemisphere designs- specifically for Atlantic salmon, which can jump, our fish can’t. So the velocity and drops between pools must be smaller, which is what we have done.” Mr Moore said.
The concrete-cone fishway consists of 75 mm drops between pools – whereby the fish use their ‘burst speed’ to swim through this small ‘drop’ before reaching the pool, resting, and going again, until they reach the wetland habitat upstream.
At their peak, 2 barramundi an hour were migrating through the concrete-cone fishway. The fishway was successful at passing other important fish species attempting to reach their nursery habitat, including giant herring, silverbiddy’s, mullet, crescent perch and banded scats.
Importantly, all these fish species are diadromous (migratory), migrating between the sea where they breed and freshwater habitats such as wetlands and rivers. These habitats have abundant food resources and good in-stream cover (habitat) which enables them to feed, grow quickly and evade large predators before migrating back downstream to breed. In just 2 days 4056 fish successfully migrated through the fishway.
Choosing locally sold and sustainable fish like Barramundi means not only are you buying fresh, but you’ll support your local seafood industry – providing a much needed boost.
“More Barra and mullet migrating upstream through fishways reaching their nursery wetland habitats, means more fish for anglers to catch. If they don’t reach wetlands they get eaten by the abundant predators that live in the estuary. This is why correctly designed fishways are so important, now and into the future.” Mr Moore said.
*Fishway: Many important commercial and recreational fish species require unimpeded access between freshwater and estuarine habitats to complete their life cycle or maintain sustainable populations. Fishways (also often known as fish ladders or fish passes) are structures placed on or around anthropogenic barriers such as dams or weirs to give fish the opportunity to migrate. Fishways are designed, constructed and maintained to facilitate aquatic connectivity between upstream waterways, wetlands and estuarine ecosystems and provide fish passage though barriers that could otherwise prevent, delay or obstruct fish migration.
Reef Catchments and local landholders are working to improve the health of the O’Connell River through removing barriers and improving in-stream habitat.
To many, paradise is living and fishing in and around the Mackay Whitsunday region with many visitors coming to the region each year for the opportunity to catch a Barra or Jungle Perch. The region is blessed with many beautiful streams and river to explore with the potential to catch a fish in the process. However, over a century of development has impacted on the ability of diadromous fish species migrating up through the river systems.
Diadromous fish move between the fresh and saltwater environments for some aspect of their lifecycle. The movement of Diadromous fish along our waterways is considered crucial to their life cycle and breeding patterns. In Mackay-Whitsunday there are 48 freshwater fish species and half of those are ‘diadromous’, Queensland’s two most important and iconic in-shore commercial net species, barramundi and sea mullet (Williams, 2002) require unimpeded access between freshwater and estuarine habitats to maintain sustainable populations (Mallen-Cooper, 2000)
Native fish species also require the right in-stream conditions to maintain populations including habitat complexity and deep pools for sustaining populations during the dry season.
With funding through the Australian Governments Reef Programme Reef Catchments has been working with Landholders to improve aquatic health and connectivity to implement activities along the regions rivers and waterways. Works being undertaken include revegetation along riparian zones, which will provide shade to cool the river, bank stabilisation and the removal of fish barriers and construction of fish ladders. Undertaking these activates is essential to sustain fish populations and ensure that fish are able to deal with any future pressures.
Fish movements within the river system
Native fish, such as Barramundi, swim up the creeks as small juveniles and then use that safe habitat to find plentiful food away from predators. They may stay there more than a year before they grow big enough to swim back downstream and, as bigger fish, prosper in the major estuaries opening into the sea and spawn. If those juveniles are blocked from migrating upstream, they must instead take their chances among the bigger predators downstream and are much less likely to grow to adulthood.
Taking this into consideration Reef Catchments has been constructing fish ladders on some of the rivers barriers to allow greater migration up and down stream. One fish ladder constructed was at Forbes Rd crossing.
Forbes Road Concrete Causeway Fish Barrier
A concrete causeway on Forbes Rd across the O’Connell River in Bloomsbury was preventing the migration of fish species and impacting local fish populations. The causeway barrier consisted of a series of pipe culverts which ‘dropped’ into the river below. The velocity of water flowing through these culverts was too fast for fish to swim through and the drop on the downstream side of the pipes into the river was too high – as native fish, unlike their northern hemisphere cousins; Atlantic Salmon, can’t jump.
So in November 2013, Reef Catchments funded Catchment Solutions to construct a partial width rock ramp fishway so that the fish can ascend through the fishway, negotiating the causeway barrier into important upstream habitats. Fish are then attracted to the fishway as flows pass through it. The fishway consists of a series of pools interspersed by rock ridges. The rock ridges consist of large 1.5 m boulders, with small gaps in-between. The drops between the pools are 75 mm. Fish use their ‘burst speed’ to negotiate each rock ridge in the fishway, before resting in the pool.
Aquatic habitat improvement on the O’Connell River
Reef Catchments has been working with local landholders to implement a range of activities along the O’Connell River to improve aquatic health and reduce the loss of productive agricultural land. Works being undertaken include revegetation, reprofiling and rock toe reventment to reduce eroding banks and imbedding large woody debris within stream to increase habitat complexity.
The activities being undertaken along the O’Connell River will provide significant benefit to native fish species opening up the rivers and providing habitat and good water quality to ensure healthy and sustainable populations for the years ahead.
Joe, Christine and Stephen Muscat | Oakenden
“We’re not about to do anything to jeopardise this piece of dirt, it’s our bread and butter. We’ve been farming the same block of land for 50 years and the proof is in the pudding, the environment definitely matters to me…”
Joe Muscat is a second-generation sugarcane farmer in the Oakenden region (Mackay), with passion to spare.
A cutting-edge grower with a head for innovation and a genuine commitment to a more viable future for the sugar industry, Joe takes a long term view to his farming operations.
“Growers generally don’t just do things for the sake of doing them. You take on change because there is potential to improve and you see things that need to be addressed. The whole basis of our business is our block of land and environmental benefits really do matter to us at a personal level,” Joe says.
“We’re not about to do anything to jeopardise this piece of dirt, it’s our bread and butter. I do not believe there is any grower who would deliberately set out to harm the environment, but the first stage of change is understanding and that is what this program (Project Catalyst) helps promote.”
Joe farms 265 ha of cane on a 415 ha property alongside his wife Christine and in partnership with his son Stephen, a third-generation grower.
“I work closely together with my son every day – this is a family operation, which is a real pleasure,” Joe says.
His farm was originally purchased by his father, who like many cane farmers in the region, worked hard to secure land after emigrating from Malta in the 1950s.
Joe’s involvement with Project Catalyst has seen him trial a wide range of innovative practices, some of which would have seemed the stuff of dreams in his father’s era.
Proof of his dedication to ‘doing it better’, over time Joe has implemented everything from centre pivot irrigation, to zonal tillage, EC mapping for soil and nutrient management, use of a recycling dam, rotational cropping and controlled release of inputs like urea and nitrogen.
But it was a trip to South America after receiving a Nuffield Farming Scholarship that now really has him excited.
While touring the sugar growing regions of Brazil, Joe came across a system known as Amuza. Relatively new to South America under that name, the Amuza method of farming has come to be almost common practice in parts of Brazil after being introduced just 10 years ago, round 2005.
The system has never been trialled in Australia cane before, making Joe’s work in this area truly pioneering.
The planting system is centred on investing time and effort into the block early (at pre-preparation stage) to deliver future benefit.
“Amuza incorporates underground application of compost, mill mud and tissue cultures, using this pre-treatment and preparation as a plant source for the entire block, with a legume crop then incorporated into the soil,” Joe says.
“There’s a whole range of things happening.
“There’s soil biology being activated with the compost and the associated anticipated increase in carbon. The clean plant sources also attribute to a pure line, so there’s no disease. And it operates in essence like skip row, which allows the crop more access to sunlight and in a better position to effectively utilise water.”
Joe says in areas where Amuza has been taken up in earnest, productivity has increased by 10 % – 15 %, with the big Brazil mills now on board supporting their growers to adapt.
“Amuza is about finding a method that delivers multi-pronged benefits and to me, that is what needs to happen in Australia for us to move forward,” Joe says.
“I really believe in the changes we are making and the potential to see real improvements – both in terms of water quality and farm runoff to the reef (the Great Barrier Reef), and economically.
“I do see a triple bottom line outcome as a big reason behind my decision to be a grower in the Project Catalyst program.”
Joe says Project Catalyst has given him the opportunity to make a difference where it really needs to happen – from the ground up.
“There’s two components to Project Catalyst that I believe aren’t duplicated elsewhere in our industry. The first is that if there’s a concept or an idea a farmer wants to trial, Catalyst allows us to do that. The Project Catalyst program becomes the vehicle that will provide solutions to specific issues within the farming enterprise. As a resource, that is invaluable to the sustainability and profitability of our industry.
“The sugar industry has a research arm, but typically, one farmer’s idea wouldn’t make the grade because growers aren’t all that involved at the research level. Through Catalyst, we have access to the support and resources we need to design trials and monitor and record information.”
Joe says key to Catalyst’s success is the collection of real operational data.
“It’s robust data that allows us to make decisions for change. On-farm adoption doesn’t become an issue if you’ve shown it works – if it delivers confirmed value, farmers will do it.”
The second major benefit Joe has seen from being involved in Project Catalyst is access to a wide network of involved partners, including WWF and the Coca-Cola Foundation.
“One thing that this program has done that no other program has considered is that as growers, we now have an open line of communication with one of the strongest environmental groups in the country, and one of the world’s biggest multinational corporations.
“And we’re all in a room, talking change together. That’s unique, and it’s very important.”
Joe is one of many cane farmers committed to change, flagging a turn in an industry now facing global competition and considerable pressure to improve its environmental footprint.
“I believe it’s very important that we’re not losing soil, we’re not losing nutrition and we’re not losing herbicides down the catchment. So we put everything in place to try to minimise that as much as possible. It is a win-win situation,” he says.
“There’s always ways to improve what we do – you just have to think about it and be ready to find them. It’s the change of mindset first that is most important.”
Joe, Christine and Stephen Muscat will be among more than 70 innovative farmers taking part in the Project Catalyst Forum at the Cairns Pullman International Hotel on 22/23 February.
For further information about Project Catalyst and Game Changer in Mackay and the Whitsundays go to www.reefcatchments.com or contact Reef Catchments on 07 4968 4200.
Farmers hope radio transmitters can better protect the Great Barrier Reef whilst reducing their own costs.
The transmitters and moisture probes which turn irrigation off at precisely the right moment to reduce runoff, save water, and potentially boost crop yield, are to be trialled on farm this year.
It’s just one innovation farmers learnt about at the annual Project Catalyst Forum in Cairns earlier this week, thanks to Terrain NRM. With more attention on the health of the Great Barrier Reef than ever, the forum is significant for sugar growers nationally.
Results and findings from innovation trials under Project Catalyst will be shared with the aim of improving water quality, limiting water use and reducing agricultural runoff. To date, Project Catalyst growers in Queensland have helped improve the quality of more than 150 billion litres of water flowing to the Great Barrier Reef.
Reef Catchments Manager Katrina Dent said, “This year’s forum comes at a significant time, as the sugar industry as a whole seeks to find ways to help meet ambitious reef targets to reduce sediment and chemical runoff from farms into river catchments that connect to the Reef.”
Project Catalyst** was established to help cane farmers develop innovative, economically viable and environmentally sustainable farming practices.
The program is a unique collaboration between cane farmers, The Coca-Cola Foundation, WWF, Bayer CropScience, NRM groups and the Australian Government. It currently involves more than 70 cane growers from the state’s major areas of sugar production – Mackay and the Whitsundays, Burdekin Dry Tropics, and the Wet Tropics.
Terrain NRM CEO Carole Sweatman said, “Project Catalyst is an agriculture program that is assisting over 70 innovative cane growers with developing, testing and validating new farming practices that are improving the quality of water running off into the Great Barrier Reef. These farmers are driving the adoption of cutting edge practices that will yield improved environmental outcomes.
“The Project Catalyst Forum is a fantastic opportunity to bring this network of farmers together to share knowledge and learn about new developments in the industry. Terrain is committed to fostering agricultural innovation so we are delighted to be hosting these innovative growers from the Burdekin, Mackay Whitsundays and the Wet Tropics.”
Tully Project Catalyst sugarcane grower, Ray Zamora said, “I look forward to the forums to catch up with our network of innovative growers and hear how their projects are going.”
WWF CEO, Dermot O’Gorman said, “Project Catalyst is making a valuable contribution to the effort to preserve the Reef. The lessons learnt are being passed on to the rest of the industry, with the aim that these become the best practice of tomorrow.
“These growers are taking responsibility and doing their part to safeguard and conserve one of the world’s natural wonders. Widespread adoption of best practice is a priority for the cane industry if we are to achieve the nutrient load reductions required to conserve the Reef. Best practices such as those trialled by Project Catalyst, if widely adopted, will deliver a more efficient, profitable and sustainable cane industry; WWF will continue its support for the industry to make this transition,” he said.
Roberto Mercadé, Coca-Cola South Pacific President said, “We are extremely proud of Project Catalyst, its achievements and the relationships developed between growers and program partners, including ourselves.
“By providing financial support to Project Catalyst growers, we can further develop and progress sustainable farming practices that will continue to improve the quality of water flowing into the Reef. Water replenishment is a key focus for The Coca-Cola Company, with the achievements of Project Catalyst to date directly resulting in the Coca-Cola Company accomplishing its 2020 water replenishment goal five years early. Our commitment to water demonstrates how investing in projects like Catalyst can positively impact the environment and local communities,” he said.
New developments and topics up for discussion at this year’s forum included automated irrigation, sub-surface (buried) soil ameliorants and soil health, improving nitrogen use, herbicide and pesticide resistance management and more.
John Markley, CEO Farmacist (on-ground agricultural extension officers for Project Catalyst) said, “A lot of people don’t realise that ordinary Queensland cane farmers are doing this kind of work.”
“Our sugarcane growers are really leading the charge in trialling cutting-edge concepts and ideas that are potential game changers, both for the health of our Reef and the long term viability of the sugar industry.”
He said outcomes were expected this year in several project areas, including automated irrigation trials.
Craig Davenport, Manager of Catchment Solutions (Project Catalyst coordinators) said Project Catalyst was about finding multi-pronged solutions to not only reduce the environmental footprint of cane, but also deliver economic efficiencies for farmers.
“If adopted more broadly, farming techniques tested under Project Catalyst will reduce runoff in sensitive catchments adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef, while also decreasing the cost of cane farming operations,” Mr Davenport said.
NRM Groups in all three regions are now also currently working with the Australian Government to support farmers to distribute change more widely.
Ms Dent said, “The good work being done under Project Catalyst is now being extended across Queensland through the Game Changer program, which is funded through the Australian Government’s Reef Program.
“Game Changer supports farmers to adopt strategies where evidence has shown they can be applied across farms with sound economic outcomes while significantly increasing the cuts to sugarcane pollutant run.”
Ms Dent said, “We want to now see this figure built on and amplified by wider uptake of practice change by our cane farmers.”
Teaching the next generation safe swimming may be the purpose of the Airlie Aquatic Reef Program, but thanks to the Federal Government National Landcare Programme (NLP), the students have the opportunity to learn about the importance of reef conservation and their role in it, whilst snorkelling in the pristine waters of the Whitsunday islands.
“Reef Catchments is proud to support the Airlie Beach Aquatic Reef Program. So far these school holidays 40 children have become ‘Reef Warriors’. To become a Reef Warrior the children must complete their Royal Lifesaving Certificate, learn to snorkel, clean up a beach, learn about our precious reef and how they can help conserve it and as a reward they get to experience the wonder of the reef on a snorkelling day trip! The kids all look like they have had a great time learning these skills and exploring the reef!” Olivia Brodhurst, Coastal Officer
Facilitated by Annie’s Swim School in Jubilee Pocket, the Reef Trip went to the outer reef one week, but the next stayed around the islands due to the weather, which meant they got to do an island clean up too!
“They clean up a beach and this is often a big eye opener for kids.”
Olivia is keen to see more students involved, “Kids are the environmental ambassadors of the future. They take these lessons with them throughout their lives.”
Parents can encourage kids by helping them understand the importance of all their actions on the overall health of the reef.
One more week of the program is being run in April over the easter holidays.
If you’d like to be involved keep an on our website and click on the calendar. https://reefcatchments.com.au/coasts-marine/coastcare/
Encourage your kids to explore the reef safely and help conserve it.
Visit the Airlie Aquatic Reef Facebook page to see more images and read what parents are saying about the program.
This project is supported by Reef Catchments, through funding from the Australian Government National Landcare Programme (NLP) .
