Showcasing Eyre Peninsula NRM at State Landcare Conference

Eight Natural Resources Eyre Peninsula staff will be presenting at the State Community Landcare Conference in Clare this week.

They are showcasing a range of successful natural resources management (NRM) projects such as Eyre Peninsula’s Aboriginal partnerships in NRM, the WildEyre conservation through collaboration project, women in sustainable agriculture enterprises and an the ever-increasing network of local citizen scientists making important biological observations (birds, goannas, koala) on Eyre Peninsula.

Sustainable Agriculture Officer Mary Crawford said sharing knowledge across regional boundaries is critical to drive continual improvement and showcase positive changes in the community.

“David Person from Cockaleechie Landcare Group and I will present the ‘Restoring soil pH through farming acid soils champions’ story and highlight the success of this program, a doubling of lime sales on Eyre Peninsula in the last 12 months. More than 1,000 hectares have been mapped by sixteen landholders in partnerships between the Lower Eyre Agricultural Development Association, Cockaleechie Landcare Group and Rural Solutions SA,” Mary said.

“The Lower Eyre Agricultural Development Association support empowering Eyre Peninsula women on the land.

The ‘Understanding Crop Production for Women’ presentation by Megan Low will outline the 12-month programs tailored for women to have a better understanding of cereal production.

This series of workshops has expanded across Eyre Peninsula, with support from local businesses and agronomists, researchers, machinery dealers and farmers, many of whom give their time freely,” Mary said.

Aboriginal Partnerships Team David Farlam, Fred Pickett and Archie Saunders are pleased to be presenting two posters on the work done in partnership with the Green Army, WildEyre, Ceduna Aboriginal Corporation, Far West Coast Aboriginal Corporation and Natural Resources Eyre Peninsula.

“There’s good work to be shared, including the re-establishment of Australian Sandalwood, 20 Million trees revegetation projects through to thousands of hectares of aerial boxthorn control via helicopter and ground crew, stone masonry work at Donington Cottage in Lincoln National Park and seasonal calendar production at the Far West Aboriginal Women’s Council camp,’ David said.

The work presented is possible with community support and funding from the National Landcare Programme and the Eyre Peninsula Natural Resources Management Board. For further information call (08) 8688 3111.

Full list of presentations

• ‘Restoring soil pH through farming acid soils champions’ - David Pearson, Cockaleechie Landcare Group, and Mary Crawford, Natural Resources EP.

• ‘Empowering Eyre Peninsula women on the land’ - Megan Low, Lower Eyre Agricultural Development Association.

• ‘WildEyre: Conservation through Collaboration – 10 years of successful landscape-scale restoration’ - Andrew Freeman, Natural Resources EP, and Stuart Collard, Greening Australia.

• ‘Citizen Science on a shoestring: The Eyre Peninsula goannas project’ - Grant Lomman, Natural Resources EP.

• ‘Felixing feral cats: field trials of a new automated control and monitoring tool’ - Liz McTaggart, Natural Resources EP.

Posters

• Growing Indigenous Natural Resource Management on Eyre Peninsula - David Farlam, Natural Resources EP.

• A citizen science community bird monitoring project on Eyre Peninsula - Grant Lomman, Natural Resources EP.