Burdekin Solutions Ltd AGM, 26 November Chairman’s, Mark Stoneman, report

I believe the Burdekin Solutions company is maturing and developing into a body that enables a broad base of skills to be embraced within its Board of Directors. A balance of professional skills, practical NRM experiences, social & cultural needs and good governance is the focus of re building the Board after the work and dedication of past Chairs & Directors. You can be assured we are well on the way to that balance.

Government Support:  It would be remiss of me not to note with appreciation the support given by both State & Federal governments during the past year. Ministers have been interested and involved at the more global level, while departmental officers from both governments have been a great source of support, advice (& at times constructive criticism) all to the betterment of our various capacities. Natural Resource Management groups across Australia will now be facing the challenge of working with a new Government at the Federal level and this will undoubtedly bring some change. However, I am confident that change will be more at the margin given that all Australians agree and understand that the twin issues of global warming & climate change are, and will continue to be, at the forefront of strategic planning and project development. We might individually argue about the impact & degree of these twin challenges, but with our collective knowledge I am confident the community – through governments – scientists and natural resource managers, be they urban, rural or industrial will find and apply practical and affordable solutions.

The Burdekin Dry Tropics Team: The final point I wish to make is to emphasise the importance of the Burdekin Dry Tropics most important resource: its people. Without the range of sub regional groups, government agencies, scientific bodies, local government and other stakeholder organisations and Individuals, we would not exist in any meaningful form. It is vital that our sub regional groups are both supported and encouraged, but not supplanted. We cannot hope to achieve the objective confronting us unless we develop even better cooperative arrangements with government agencies and bodies. Nor it is possible to move forward without increasing the liaison and partnership with the various industry bodies.

Above all, Burdekin Solutions & the Board would be a hollow structure without to people with the capacity to engage the community in the day to day sense and facilitate projects that in turn can deliver the outcomes we desire: our CEO and staff.

It is my view that we have a group of people within our staff structure of whom we should be very proud. That they work over and above their employment arrangements cannot be denied because they share with us a passion and desire to enhance our collective & individual decisions to make our region a more environmentally & economically sustainable place.

So, to the staff of BDTNRM I offer our collective thanks & appreciation for the work they do, or have done, in the case of staff members who have moved on. Appreciation and acknowledgement must also go to retiring Directors Beveridge & Bahr who retire at this AGM, along with former Chairman Mike Cannon & Directors Greiner, McDonald & Lukacs who retired during the past year. And welcome to Noeleen Ferguson, representing Dalrymple Landcare  and Chris Dell’Osto, the new socio-economic director.

To see the full report, go to our website www.bdtnrm.org.au

Celebrating Coastcare Week, 2-9 December

BDTNRM and our partners are celebrating Coastcare Week with numerous free events throughout our Region.
Come along and find out more, meet some of our coastcare volunteers and friendly staff who are working together to make a difference in our coastal environments.

• Sunday 2 December: Northern Beaches Lions Club Community Markets will be hosting a display stand for Coastcare, Seagrasswatch and Creekwatch where you can learn more about these well established volunteer groups and chat to the Coastcare Facilitator, Adam King. (8am - 1pm, Kilcora Park, Kilcora St & Frendon Parade off Mt Low Parkway)
• Sunday 2 December: Family Fun Day at Alva Beach to celebrate the Burdekin’s gorgeous beaches. BDTNRM's Leonie Maddigan will be there as well as the Gudjuda Reference Group, the Alva Beach Community Sport and Recreation Association, GBRMPA, and lots more. Come and join us for a great day at the beach. For more information see the flyer on our home page (www.bdtnrm.org.au) or contact Leonie Maddigan, BDTNRM Coastal and Marine Officer, Mobile: 0429 064 721 email: leonie.maddigan@bdtnrm.org.au
• Thursday 6 December: Bowen Coastcare Meeting. BDTNRM Coastcare Facilitator Adam King will be hosting a meeting to talk about the future of 'Coastcare' in the Bowen region. For more information see the flyer on our home page (www.bdtnrm.org.au) or contact Adam on 0429 418 884 or Email aking@cva.org.au
• Sunday 9 December: Coastcare & Creekwatch Tour & Lunch. Join volunteers and staff from GBRMPA; Creek to Coral; Thuringowa and Townsville City Councils; Conservation Volunteers Australia; BDTNRM; Ocean Watch; and all Townsville and Thuringowa Creekwatch and Coastcare Groups. For more information see the flyer on our home page (www.bdtnrm.org.au) or contact Adam King, Coastcare Facilitator for BDTNRM on 04 2941 8884 or Email aking@cva.org.au

Cleaning up the Coastal Saltpans. This is a collaborative effort between BDTNRM NRW, the Townsville Port Authority, OceanWatch, Main Roads. It has been timed to coincide with Coastcare Week. Heavy machinery will be brought in to clean up these saltpans south of Ross River, Townsville –this is not a public event. For more information contact Carla Wegscheidl, mobile 0431 277 7483 email: carla@oceanwatch.org.au

Sustainable Landscapes for Horticulture – Expressions of Interest

Sustainable Landscapes for Horticulture in the Burdekin Dry Tropics region is a joint initiative of Burdekin Dry Tropics NRM, Growcom and Mackay Whitsunday NRM funded by the Australian Government’s Natural Heritage Trust Program.

These incentives are for fruit & vegetable growers to implement activities that will improve the condition of the natural resources in the Burdekin Dry Tropics Region through Soil; Pest; Nutrient and Irrigation Management. For more information go to /downloads/EOI-Form-v1-19Oct07.doc

Seeking Irwin’s turtle

Photo by Jason Schaffer

The Elseya irwini is a rare turtle named after the late Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin and his father Bob, who caught one on a fishing line during a family camping trip in 1990, took pictures and sent them to John Cann, who identified it as a newspecies and named it E. irwini in 1997.

Its yellow head and pink nose make Irwin’s turtle a curious looking creature and it has an unusual breathing mechanism: it can breathe underwater by taking water into its cloacae, where a chamber with gill-like structures extracts oxygen. This enables the turtle to stay underwater for long periods without taking a breath.

Dr. Ivan Lawler from James Cook University and his team conducted a pilot study in 2006. Indicators are that Irwin’s turtle is in decline: 93% of the turtles located are adults and only two nests have been found. Dr. Lawler is now looking for the turtles’ nesting sites so they can be protected and the species given a chance at survival. BDTNRM is funding tracking equipment to help with this study.

For more information email Bronwyn Houlden, Biodiversity Programme Coordinator phone her on 4724 3544:

Serpentine Lagoon Field Day, postponed

Information day to review and discuss the removal of chinee apple at Serpentine Lagoon has been postponed (originally 29 November). An alternative date will be announced.