BURDEKIN DRY TROPICS NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN 2016-2026
28 and contribute towards environmental stewardship, they can better support the resilience of our natural resources, and in turn enhance their own wellbeing.
Adopting sustainable agricultural practices in the region is strongly influenced by family, the local community and networks( Pahl, 2015). Trust and confidence in new practices often only occurs when other producers or trusted people in wider networks can give reassurance. Taking up innovative practices is also linked to increased levels of formal and informal training, and financial capacity, with the driver being financial sustainability and gaining knowledge( Greiner, et al., 2003).
Industry, government and researchers have demonstrated that adopting longterm sustainable NRM practices correlates to long-term productivity and profitability( O’ Reagain & Bushell, 2011),( McIvor, 2012)( Poggio, Page & Grieken, 2010)( Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, 2010). A key goal is to establish landholder confidence in this information and provide them with the support to adopt new practices.
Urban NRM
Urban communities make up over 75 per cent of our region’ s population. It is important that they have opportunities to connect with their surrounding natural environment and understand how lifestyle and purchasing decisions impact on natural resources and surrounding rural areas. This can be achieved in many ways, including:
• providing public natural environmental areas;
• maintaining or reestablishing connectivity between important core habitat areas;
• carefully using resources, including adopting domestic water efficiency practices in the home and garden( such as water-saving devices);
• planting native and habitat-promoting garden plant species; and
• reducing pollution and litter from urban areas entering surrounding natural environments and impacting native species.
Active urban landcare initiatives focusing on biodiversity include protecting and revegetating habitat and riparian corridors, and improving water quality flowing into wetlands and the GBR. Other initiatives that focus on sustainable urban lifestyles include James Cook University’ s‘ TropEco’ programme for students and staff, Townsville’ s Permaculture group, and‘ Food for Thought’, which shares information on our food choices from a sustainability perspective. People who reside in the region’ s urban areas may also be involved in the rural industry and NRM research, policy development, administration and financing.
A number of local councils have agreed to work together to improve the health and resilience of the GBR by joining the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority’ s‘ Reef Guardian Councils’ programme, which includes initiatives for urban water, waste and land management, climate change, community education and capacity building. Additionally, a number of urban businesses, schools and fishing operations also participate in the‘ Reef Guardians’ awareness programme.
NRM Community Groups
NRM community groups play a significant role in our region by bringing people together to improve land management practices, restore our landscapes and conserve natural resources in their local area. NRM community groups include volunteers affiliated with Landcare groups, other community‘ care’ groups( environment and NRM collectives), Indigenous groups and not-for profit organisations.
Our region has a network of over 25 active NRM community groups, which covers the majority of our area including:- BirdLife Townsville- Bowen and Collinsville Landcare Group- Burdekin Bowen Integrated Floodplain Management Authority Committee( BBIFMAC)- Central Highlands Regional Resources Use Planning Cooperative( CHRRUP)- Coastal Dry Tropics Landcare Inc.( CDTLI)- Conservation Volunteers Australia( CVA)- Dalrymple Landcare Committee( DLC)- Desert Uplands Build-up and
PEOPLE CONNECTIONS