Cradle to Coastlines - Edition 3, 2015

Cradle to C oast l i n e s Newsletter of the Cradle Coast Natural Resource Management Committee

Edition 3• 2015

In this issue: News & Events Community Activities Project News

2-3 4 6-7

Feature Story GIS technology helps local communities Page 5

Image: Fungi (Mycena subvulgaris), Kaare Wind

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News & Events

Upcoming events Free Community Events: These projects are supported by Cradle Coast NRM, through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme

Coastal Garden Workshop with Island Seeds’ Ruth Mollison Date: Saturday 19 September Location: Frederick Street Hall Wynyard 1.30pm to 4.30pm Learn how to grow natives from cuttings and seeds, identify local species and understand the basics of garden design. All materials provided.

The workshop will include an excursion to Murnong Wild Food Garden.

Tea and coffee provided.

Workshop is limited to 15 people.

RSVP to Sherrie on T: 6433 8449 or sjaffray@cradlecoast.com Image: Raelee Turner

Coastal Garden Workshop with Island Seeds’ Ruth Mollison Date: Sunday 20 September Location: Camp Banksia (main hall) 11am to 1pm

2015 Tasmanian Landcare Awards and Conference Registrations are opening soon!

Learn how to grow natives from cuttings and seeds, identify local species and understand the basics of garden design. All materials provided.

The Awards and Conference are being held in the Huon Valley on 10 and 11 October, and the theme for the 2015 is “Taking Charge of Change”.

Tea and coffee provided.

Convened every two years, the event brings Tasmanians together from across the state to discuss current projects, meet new people, see local sites, share experiences and acknowledge the huge achievements of the Landcare community.

Workshop is limited to 15 people.

RSVP to Sherrie on T: 6433 8449 or sjaffray@cradlecoast.com

Penguin Guide Training Saturday 12 September Burnie Volunteer Penguin Guides are needed to Friends of Penguin Groups at Burnie and Lillico. If you are interested in Little penguins, like to talk to people, and have some spare time in the evening, we’d like to hear from you.

Registration essential RSVP by 6 September to Evelyn DeVito, Secretary, Friends of Burnie Penguins T: 6435 1102

Sulphur Creek Coastcare Working Bee Saturday 26 September & Saturday 24 October Meet at 10am at the Penguin Surf Club Can you lend a helping hand to remove sea spurge?

For further details, contact Frank Wilson T: 6435 4285

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Field trips on Saturday 10 October will showcase the D’Entrecasteaux Channel and Huon Valley areas – with participants visiting local project sites, visiting farming and coastal areas, and hearing all about local restoration projects.

On Saturday evening, the 2015 Tasmanian Landcare Awards and Dinner will be an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of Landcarers from across the state. The Awards presentation will be followed by a dinner featuring local produce and live music.

Stay informed on all Conference and Awards news via our new Facebook page www.facebook.com/ TasmanianLandcareConference These projects are supported by Cradle Coast NRM, through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme

Events and News

Second Annual Cradle Coast Kids Teaching Kids Event Date: 9th September 2015 Location: Yolla DHS, School Lane Yolla.

Our second annual ‘Cradle Coast Kids Teaching Kids’ event will be held at Yolla District High School. It is held as part of the ‘National Kids Teaching Kids’ Week.

Some of the workshops the kids will present include ‘Look out for the Green and Gold’, Water Bugs, Sustainable Electricity, Threats to wombats at Narawntapu, Marine Debris and Coastal Awareness.

The day will finish with Yolla students taking the other schools on a tour of their school farm.

“The kids have been working really hard for months on their workshops. They have been busy researching their topics, working with mentors, organising hands on activities and practicing! They are all getting very excited,” said Sherrie Jeffrey, Project Officer at Cradle Coast NRM. Kids Teaching Kids is an education program that uses local environmental issues as a theme for learning.

The program starts in the classroom and extends into the community where students become leaders focused on finding solutions to local environmental issues.

Yolla District High School, Boat Harbour, Somerset, Cooee, Port Sorell and Sassafras Primary Schools will be participating on the day.

At the heart of the Kids Teaching Kids program is a belief that peer education is one of the most effective ways to encourage students to take responsibility for their learning and actions.

The program fosters a deep understanding of local community issues and offers students the opportunity to develop a wide range of lifelong learning skills including research, teamwork, external mentoring and community engagement.

Through the education techniques in the program, students are encouraged into thinking, feeling and developing practical ways to respond to the challenges facing our environment.

For more information on the Kids Teaching Kids program you can visit www.kidsteachingkids.com.au or contact Sherrie Jaffray: sjaffray@cradlecoast.com

Beekeeping information evening – Image: Will Hogg

Tasmania needs more beekeepers Becoming a beekeeper is easy The NRM ran a free information session about beekeeping in Burnie on 5 August, which was well received by over 60 attendees.

Charlie Trafford, a beekeeper with over 20 years’ experience, hosted the session, and explained why bees are important to Tasmania.

‘We’re desperately short of beekeepers in Tasmania.

We’re about 2,000 hives short of our pollination requirements,’ said Charlie.

‘Even hobbyists with a small number of hives at home can make a difference. They’ll definitely improve the yields in your and your neighbours’ gardens.’

‘Keeping just a few hives will keep you in free honey, but it’ll also help all the surrounding farmers by increasing the number of bees pollinating plants.’

It’s estimated that one third of worldwide food production is pollination dependent. Honey bees are very efficient pollinators. Tasmanian crops including stone fruit, pome fruit, berry crops, vegetable crops and pasture crops depend on honey bees for successful pollination, fruit set and economic yields.

‘I’ve been training beekeepers for about 12 years,’ said Charlie.

‘I teach people how to look after their bees and to be on the look-out for problems, so they keep their bees healthy and disease-free.’

Interested in becoming a beekeeper?

Cradle Coast NRM is supporting two practical beekeeping training workshops which will teach you everything you need to know to get started.

For more information contact Tom O’Malley, Regional Landcare Facilitator (Cradle Coast NRM) T: 0408 055 272 E: tomalley@cradlecoast.com

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Community Activities

Friends of Fernglade Launch Friends of Fernglade held a launch for their recently formed community group at the Cradle Coast Offices on Monday the 15th of June.

Almost 60 people turned out to hear Guest Speaker Nick Mooney present his talk on raptors. He provided insights into the different traits and characteristics of various raptor species, in turn helping community members with the identification of local bird species.

The group raised $250 from gold coin donations and fundraising on the evening and also gained 4 new members for their group.

A sensational hot dinner was served on a cold evening to all community attendees. Friends of Fernglade currently have 26 members in their group and welcome new members at any time.

Friends of Fernglade are focussing on looking after the Fern Glade reserve, found on the Emu River just out of Burnie. The community group are concentrating on protecting and surveying the plants and animals found within the reserve.

Activities undertaken include bird surveys, platypus monitoring and the general up keep

and maintenance in and around the reserve from vandalism, rubbish and environmental weeds. The group also supplies Birdlife Tasmania with bird data and provides data of any notable fauna in the reserve to the Natural Values Atlas.

The group also has a focus on community environmental education with various other events to be held in the near future. They will also be undertaking a water quality monitoring program for the Emu River in the coming year.

The Friends of Fernglade are receiving support from Cradle Coast NRM and also collaborating with local land managers such as Burnie City Council and Parks Tasmania and are always looking for new local community involvement.

For more information on the group or if you want to join the group please look up Facebook, Friends of Fernglade or contact Friends of Fernglade Coordinator Viv Bozoky via email: friendsoffernglade@gmail.com

Workshops results in Art Exhibition for Primary School Students As part of the Cradle Coast NRM School Education program, marine scientist Heidi Auman from UTAS and artist Maree Baker from the EPA delivered science and art inspired workshops to four local schools.

These educational workshops were held at Boat Harbour, Somerset, Cooee and Port Sorell Primary Schools. The workshops were split between a science focus and an arts focus. The science component gave students the facts and figures, while the art allowed the students to express their understandings and knowledge in a creative way. The science workshop was given by Marine Scientist Heidi Auman, who is also the author of the book “Garbage Guts”.

Somerset Primary School students used this book to inspire their writing and their art work.

Di Kalweit, teacher at Somerset Primary School, described the workshops as “a fantastic opportunity.

It was the icing on the cake for the students learning.”

The workshops resulted in the thought-provoking art exhibition titled Little Critters which was displayed at UTAS. The exhibition featured artwork composed entirely of marine waste. Their artwork exhibition was a feature of the University Open Day held on August 30th. Special storytelling sessions were also

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held on the day. All teachers, friends and family were invited to attend. The exhibition continued until 6th of September.

For more Information contact Sherrie Jaffray on T: 0429 166 949 or E: sjaffray@cradlecoast.com Funding from National Landcare Program

Feature Story

GIS Technology helps local communities Satellites now providing images to help with natural resource management Circular Head Landcare Group has a long term project of rice grass eradication in Duck Bay to protect natural resource values such as migratory shorebird feeding habitat, nationally vulnerable saltmarsh communities, fish breeding grounds and the local oyster industry.

Tradition methods of mapping and monitoring the locations and control of rice grass included using volunteer time and energy, pencils, maps, cameras, hand held GPS and even helicopter mapping. But now the picture just got a whole lot more interesting with the support from Cradle Coast NRM and Geographic Information Systems or GIS technology.

GIS technology provides the ability to analyse satellite imagery which can be utilised to extract information.

A remote sensing technique called ‘Image Classification’ helps to identify rice grass infestations throughout the satellite imagery. We can use this technique because the rice grass has been verified in the field, we know its characteristics and what it looks like, now we get the software to do the searching for us. “Because of the size of Duck Bay and some of the access issues we have around the coast, this use of technology excites the group” explains Sue Jennings.

This project has not only gained support from the regional natural resource management body, but a world leading satellite provider DigitalGlobe, is now supporting the project. DigitalGlobe has provided archive imagery to Cradle Coast NRM to support with rice grass identification and analysis and will also

commission their latest satellite, WorldView-3 to capture imagery over Duck Bay this summer. “It’s exciting now, because the current imagery from the WorldView-2 satellite is detecting areas of saltmarsh communities being invaded by rice grass”, I cannot wait to see what this summer reveals explains Mark Wisniewski.

By having a complete picture of rice grass infestations of Duck Bay, Circular Head Landcare Group can now plan more effectively for rice grass control and implement a strategic management approach to reduce its threat. “This is a long term project with high community engagement and environmental outcomes and meets multiple region strategic outcomes, it’s important for Cradle Coast NRM to support it” says Mark Wisniewski.

Mark Wisniewski has been invited as a guest speaker at Esri Australia’s 2015 national GIS conference.

His talk, titled “Protecting nationally threatened coastal ecosystems through supporting volunteers” discusses this project and how the community in North West Tasmanian is implementing GIS technology.

See more at: https://esriaustralia.com.au Cradle Coast NRM Project Officer, Mark Wisniewski assists the community with their GIS requirements.

For More Information contact Cradle Coast NRM Project Officer Mark Wisniewski T: 6433 8444 or E: mwisniewski@cradlecoast.com

Image provided courtesy of DigitalGlobe, Inc. (C) 2015

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Project News

Funding for Community Groups: Natural Connections Grants Cradle Coast NRM has increased the level of Natural

There are now three different levels:

Connections funding available to community groups.

• Level 1: $500 to $2,000 for projects that will be completed within 12 months.

Cradle Coast NRM, through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme, is supporting activities that enhance the ecosystem services provided by our natural landscapes, coasts and waterways.

Grants are open to all Landcare, Coastcare, Aboriginal, and Friends of groups working on projects that benefit the environment in the Cradle Coast region. Grants are aimed at supporting groups that contribute to restoring and maintaining urban waterways and coastal environments and/or conserving and protecting threatened species and vegetation communities.

Projects can be focused on increasing community groups skills, knowledge and participation, on-ground works or a combination of both.

Community Groups now have the opportunity to access funding for both short and long terms projects.

• Level 2: $2,000 to $5,000 for projects that have high level of environmental outcomes and require more than 12 months to complete.

• Level 3: $5,000 to $25,000 for short or long term projects that have high level of community and environmental outcomes, meet multiple Cradle Coast NRM strategic objectives and are a high regional priority.

Note: All projects must be completed by December 2017.

All other aspects of the Natural Connections Guidelines remain the same. You can find the Guidelines on the Cradle Coast NRM Website. www.cradlecoastnrm.com/latest-news/naturalconnections-grants If your group has a project in mind that fits the eligibility criteria, talk to your lead contact at Cradle Coast NRM on 6433 8400 for assistance to develop your project.

Save Our Shorebirds – Stay on the Wet Sand To save our Shorebirds, stay on the wet sand.

We can enjoy the beach and they can enjoy their homes.

Our Shorebirds are in danger from our feet when we walk the beach.

Shorebirds make their homes on our beautiful beaches, building their nests in soft sand. Their nests are well camouflaged and small. This makes them undetectable to the average person. Shorebirds homes are often destroyed by us, and we don’t even realise we have done it.

Shorebirds could become extinct if we don’t do something. We can all do our bit to make sure their homes are safe. Shorebirds are most vulnerable when nesting over summer. Cradle Coast NRM has developed a brochure with funding from the National Landcare Programme to help keep Shorebird’s safe. The new educational brochure is available to educate the community on how they can help protect shorebirds without lifting a finger or donating a cent. You just need to know where to put your feet.

This project is funded by the National Landcare Programme.

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Background image: Red-capped plover

For more information and copies of the brochures contact Dionna Newton, Project Officer: Coast, Estuarine, Marine E: dnewton@cradlecoast.com T:03 6433 8440

Project News Image: Anna Wind

New life for the Jiloa Way Creek Success story of rehabilitation and co-operation An urban waterway near Jiloa Way is now restored thanks to the combined efforts of Cradle Coast NRM, Devonport City Council and Friends of Don Reserve.

The creek, located in the edge of the Don Reserve between Jiloa Way and Georgiana Street, is a little gem tucked in between residential properties. It is home to mature Swamp Paperbark (Melaleuca ericifolia), several species of Eucalypts, a variety of understorey species and is a haven for burrowing crayfish.

An assortment of rubbish had accumulated in the waterway area from nearby residential properties and weeds were choking the native vegetation which led to the waterway’s degradation. It was a challenging task to restore the area but the Devonport City Council, with the assistance of the Friends of Don took up the challenge. They coordinated the removal of weeds of national significance, which include blackberry, broom, gorse, and environmental weeds.

470 native rushes and reeds were planted to increase biodiversity and provide habitat for the threatened Central North Burrowing Crayfish (Engaeus granulatus).

The Devonport City Council also provided residents with information about the values of the bushland reserve. The area provides a well-functioning

environment for native plants and animals. The council invited residents to help protect the area and gave them information about the potential of garden plants jumping the fence and becoming weeds. The Council urged residents not to collect firewood or dump grass and garden clippings.

Cradle Coast NRM, through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme provided Devonport City Council $8,000 towards the project. Devonport City Council also contributed extra costs and provided project coordination.

Cradle Coast NRM would like to thank the Devonport City Council for partnering to deliver this project.

Particular thanks go to Phil Murray, Compliance and Biodiversity Officer for coordinating the project, who has recently retired from Council. Cradle Coast NRM would like to acknowledge Phil in making an outstanding contribution towards natural resource management in Devonport. We could always be confident that a project managed by Phil would be successfully completed.

Contact Anna Wind for more information T: 64 338 423 E: awind@cradlecoast.com.au

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Unless otherwise acknowledged, this publication and the projects featured are supported by Cradle Coast NRM, through funding from the Australian Government.

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ph: 03 6433 8400 fax: 03 6431 7014 email: nrm@cradlecoast.com Cradle Coast NRM is an independent committee hosted by the Cradle Coast Authority