Invitation to throw your CAP into the NRM ring
Yorke Peninsula community members are being invited to participate in Natural Resources Northern and Yorke’s Community Action Planning (CAP) workshops to be held in Minlaton and Wallaroo in early autumn.
Yorke District Community Ranger Janet Moore said CAP provided communities with an opportunity for grass roots involvement in determining natural resource management (NRM) priorities for their district.
"We are asking community members to bring their voices to the table, so that the views of all sectors of the community can be heard," Ms Moore said.
"CAP is a little like a parliament, where representatives from diverse backgrounds and with different skills and experience, work together to reach consensus on natural resource management priorities and what needs to be done to implement and manage them."
"Through this process we can make the very best use of the resources we have available, and get the most effective results by identifying and managing issues at a landscape level, rather than property by property."
Community action planning is used internationally for developing and implementing large-scale management programs, with Northern and Yorke region the first in Australia to adopt it for NRM.
It brings together government agencies, non-government organisations like Trees for Life and Greening Australia, community groups and local landholders.
"We are looking for a good mix of expert knowledge and local experience so that projects not only improve the condition of local natural resources, but also bring social and economic benefits to local communities," Ms Moore said.
"Soil, water and biodiversity are important natural assets on which industries like agriculture, fishing, aquaculture and tourism depend, all of which contribute to the economic prosperity of Yorke Peninsula communities."
Ms Moore said that the long-term sustainability of, and quality of life enjoyed by, Yorke Peninsula communities depended very much on how the region’s natural resources were used and managed.
The Southern Yorke Peninsula CAP meeting will be held in Minlaton on Wednesday 16 March, with a Tuesday, 5 April meeting in Wallaroo for the Upper Yorke Peninsula CAP.
To learn more about CAP or to participate in Yorke Peninsula’s Community Action Planning workshops please contact the Natural Resources Centre in Clare on 8841 3444.
