Are we going to drown in waste or plan for the future?

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Over the last three decades the bin with the yellow lid has become a common sight in the streets of our towns and suburbs. After the introduction of kerbside recycling in the 80’s and 90’s, it took some training but Australian households have become pretty good at separating trash from recoverable materials.

According to the latest national waste report, we generated 64 million tonnes of waste in 2014-15, that’s 2.7 tonnes each! But we did recycle 60% of that.

That means waste streams such as paper, various types of plastic, glass, aluminium and steel aren’t ending up in landfill and recycling produces less greenhouse gas emissions and uses less raw resources.

With the decline of manufacturing and reprocessing industries in Australia, we have been relying more and more on exporting our recyclable material overseas.

Up until last year China was the world’s largest importer of recyclable material, and for the last 10-15 years we have been shipping our recyclable waste there for sorting and reprocessing. In mid 2017 China announced a ban on 24 categories of solid waste to protect their environment and public health.

This has had major repercussions for the recycling industry globally, with prices paid for recyclable material greatly reduced and access to markets diminished. Cheap prices for virgin plastics and metals have also shrunk the margin out of recycling and reprocessing, with the cost of obtaining recyclables often more expensive than buying virgin materials. Some waste streams are even being stockpiled as they are currently unsaleable.

With China no longer buying our reusable material, picking up recycling bins from the roadside is no longer the profitable business it once was.

At this stage there’s no sign of the yellow lidded bin disappearing from our kerbsides but the Australian recycling industry is certainly facing some challenges. But there is also an opportunity here, not only to close the recycling loop by establishing new onshore recycling facilities and developing novel, innovative uses for these waste streams but also to have a national discussion about the waste we generate and how we deal with it.

For more information on what your council does with your recycling and how they plan to limit the landfill visit http://www.midwestern.nsw.gov.au/resident-services/Wastemanagement/.

Helping to tackle Serrated Tussock

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As part of the Nasty Nassella Serrated Tussock project, which is working on a new approach to serrated tussock, Watershed Landcare is inviting local landholders to a workshop to help them get the upper hand on this weed of national significance.

Serrated tussock

Watershed Landcare has partnered with Central Tablelands Local Land Services (CT LLS) and Mid-Western Regional Council (MWRC) to deliver the Nasty Nasella Workshop on Monday, 5 March.

The workshop will feature presentations from Clare Edwards, CTLLS Senior Land Services Officer (Pastures), who will discuss proactive whole-farm strategies to manage serrated tussock; Aaron Simmons, NSW Department of Primary Industries, will speak about the practicalities of serrated tussock management strategies from his perspective as a landholder and researcher; Matt Anderton, MWRC, will discuss landholder responsibilities and the new biosecurity legislation.

The Nasty Nasella workshop will be held from 9am-12:30pm, 5 March at The Stables, Market Street, Mudgee. This event is free to attend with lunch provided, but please RSVP to assist with catering by Friday, 2 March.

The Nasty Nassella Serrated Tussock project is also looking for farmers interested in developing a serrated tussock management plan for their farm.

“The project is capturing and building on the knowledge of experienced landholders as well as supporting those who have had limited experience with serrated tussock,” said Watershed Landcare Coordinator, Claudia Wythes.

“Rather than focusing only on chemical control, this project will deliver a broad range of practical management options that cater to landholders with different experience levels in dealing with the problem.”

“Pasture species, alternative control strategies and the scale of the problem all need to be considered,” she continued.

“Whether you are actively managing serrated tussock on your property, you have just spotted a few isolated plants, or you would like some help with identification, we want to hear from you,” said Ms Wythes.

To RSVP to the workshop or for more information about the Nasty Nassella project, contact Watershed Landcare Coordinator Claudia Wythes on 0412 011 064 or email: claudia.wythes@watershedlandcare.com.au.

This project is supported by Watershed Landcare through funding from the Central Tablelands LLS from NSW Catchment Action and the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme and is a part of the NSW Government’s Local Landcare Coordinators Initiative, supported through the partnership of Local Land Services and Landcare NSW.

Improve your land

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Do you want to increase productivity, reduce operating costs and improve the land value of your farm?

Landholders can achieve all this by encouraging native vegetation on their farms:

  • Farms with shade trees and shelter belts are more aesthetically appealing and attract a premium over average land values. A survey conducted in the Central West indicated that farms with good quality native vegetation have a 15% increase on capital value compared to those without.
  • Crop and pasture productivity is increased by remnant native vegetation and established shelter belts. Native trees and shrubs provide habitat for birds, lizards and bats, the natural enemies of pasture pests.
  • Pastures and crops with some tree cover experience less soil moisture loss than those exposed to the full force of the wind.
  • Cold and heat stress in livestock can significantly reduce farm income by reducing stock fertility, weight gain, wool growth, milk production, and increasing the mortality rate of calves and lambs and the susceptibility of stock to disease.

Paddock Trees Project: Providing funding to landholders to enhance and protect farm vegetation. Individual landholders able to apply for up to $2,750 in funding.

Scattered paddock trees also serve an important function for native wildlife, providing a food source and nesting sites. They also act as stepping stones for animal movement between other patches of vegetation and water sources.

Many existing mature trees on agricultural land in temperate Australia are in decline. This is not isolated to paddock trees, mature trees in larger stands of vegetation are also disappearing, but often the effects are more pronounced in isolated trees.

There are a number of things landholders can do to help protect paddock trees and help their regeneration. Fencing around selected trees will help to protect them from stock and limit detrimental agricultural practices such as applying fertilizer in the root zone and reducing herbicide spray drift. Planting additional shade trees for stock can also take the pressure off the old giants.

Watershed Landcare is currently running a Paddock Trees project which aims to enhance areas of highly cleared ecosystems in the Central Tablelands Local Land Services region by increasing the extent of paddock trees and clusters.

We are seeking expressions of interest for funding from landholders in our region to conduct on-ground works to improve linkages between remnant native vegetation on the land they mange. Funding is available for materials or labour for protection of existing remnant vegetation and/or new plantings.

The project is supported by Watershed Landcare and Central Tablelands LLS through funding from the Australian Government. Total funding of $16,500 is available, with individual landholders able to apply for up to $2,750 in funding.

For further details visit our website.

Applications close 23 February 2018. Please contact Agness Knapik, Watershed Landcare Coordinator on 0435 055 493 or info@watershedlandcare.com.au for further information or to discuss your project idea.

Workshop for your livestock in dry times

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There’s been some patchy rain over the district with some areas receiving greater falls than others, but overall the season hasn’t been great. The dry conditions are presenting a challenge to producers with livestock nutrition and management.

The Central Tablelands LLS will be running an interactive information session for producers of the Central Tablelands in Rylstone next Tuesday, 13 February focusing on the current seasonal conditions and livestock management in dry times.

“It’s been a hot and pretty dry summer around the Peel and Rylstone districts and we’re getting a lot of inquiries from landholders about livestock management and feeding,” said Senior Land Services Officer (Livestock), Brett Littler.

“Local Land Services is holding these meetings so we can get together with farmers and share information on the best options for working with these dry conditions.” he continued.

The Seasonal conditions: Feeding & weaning workshop will cover early weaning, creep feeding, supplementary feeding and animal health problems in dry times, as well as pasture management and fodder options.

A lot of landholders have been seeking advice about managing weaners so Brett Littler’s presentation will target this specifically.

Central Tablelands Local Land Services Team Leader for Animal Biosecurity and Welfare Bruce Watt and Senior Land Services Officer (Pastures) Clare Edwards will also be on hand at the interactive session, and farmers are encouraged to come with questions.

“It really is just a chance for us to catch up with farmers and help them with their decisions, to look at health issues and let them know what we have found that works.” said Mr Littler.

The evening will conclude with a question and answer session and attendees will have an opportunity for one on one discussions with the LLS staff over supper and drinks.

The Seasonal conditions: Feeding & weaning workshop will be held from 4-6pm on Tuesday 13 February at the Rylstone Club, finishing with drinks and supper. Attendance is free but please RSVP for catering purposes.

For further information or to RSVP please contact Brett Littler on 0427 007 398 or brett.littler@lls.nsw.gov.au.

Planning in paddock planting

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Have you got a succession plan for your paddock trees?

Paddock trees have many production benefits but many of these majestic giants are reaching the end of their life span, with some estimates predicting that in 40 years all the paddock trees could be gone.

Standing Tall: Paddock trees have many production benefits including providing shade and shelter to livestock.

Paddock trees supply production benefits by providing shelter for stock and crops, habitat for pollinators as well as birds and bats beneficial for pest control, improve soil structure and fertility as well as aiding in the management of salinity. Farms with shade trees and shelter belts also attract a premium over average land values.

There are a couple of funding rounds currently open providing a great opportunity for local landholders to help protect existing paddock trees and help their regeneration on their patch.

Watershed Landcare have launched our Paddock Trees project which aims to enhance areas of highly cleared ecosystems in the Central Tablelands Local Land Services region by increasing the extent of paddock trees and clusters.

We are seeking expressions of interest for funding from landholders in our region to conduct on-ground works to to improve linkages between remnant native vegetation on the land they mange. Funding is available for materials or labour for protection of existing remnant vegetation and/or new plantings.

The project is supported by Watershed Landcare and Central Tablelands LLS through funding from the Australian Government. Total funding of $16,500 is available, with individual landholders able to apply for up to $2,750 in funding.

For further details visit our website.

Applications close 23 February 2018. Please contact Agness Knapik, Watershed Landcare Coordinator on 0435 055 493 or info@watershedlandcare.com.au for further information or to discuss your project idea.

Applications are also open for Mid-Western Regional Council’s Roadside Reserve Extension Grants which aim to plant 4,000 tubestock trees along areas of high conservation value roadsides or roadsides with habitat characteristics for threatened species.

Eligible property owners in the Mid-Western Region who wish to create wind breaks along their boundary fences can apply for free native tree plantings.

Applications close 16 February 2018. Application forms can be downloaded from Council’s website.

Helping frog research

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There are over 240 frog species recorded in Australia, many of which are unique to this continent.

But Australian frog numbers are declining and many are endangered.

The Australian Museum has launched the FrogID count, a national citizen science project that aims to count Australia’s frogs and learn more about what is happening to them.

Everyone is encouraged to get involved, discover which frogs live around them and contribute to research which will help scientists learn more about our frogs.

There are two ways you can get involved and find out which frogs live around you.

Grab your smartphone, download the FrogID app, register as a counter, head out in the field and record frog calls.

Once you’ve found some frogs and recorded various croaks, whistles, bleats and barks, match the calls to different frog species.

And if you can’t get out and about you can still contribute from right behind your desk by becoming an Audio DNA expert and validating frog recordings from the field.

By matching frog calls to weather and habitat, the data collected will help herpetologists to build a picture of how different frog species are responding to a changing environment.

The data will also be used to track the Cane Toad and to identify where frogs are thriving and where they are not.

What’s that sound?

Croaks, whistles, bleats and barks – every frog species makes a different sound!

By recording a frog call with our new app, FrogID, you can discover which frogs live around you and help us count Australia’s frogs!

To find out more about Australia’s frogs, or to get involved in the Citizen Science project visit the website: www.frogid.net.au.

Find out what frogs are found in NSW

There are 24 frogs listed as occurring in the region of Central.

Please bear in mind that frogs listed may not be found across the whole region and, in some cases, may only have been recorded on the very edge of the region.

Continuing to improve our awareness

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Local landcare group, Watershed Landcare, continues to be strong and active with this year’s activities focusing on working with it’s members and the community to improve knowledge and awareness, and to increase the uptake of sustainable land management practices.

Watershed Landcare held it’s Annual General Meeting on Friday 24 November. The meeting was well attended and gave members an overview of Watershed’s activities over the past year as well as an opportunity to mingle and chat at the supper afterwards.

Watershed Landcare continues to have strong support from our members, sponsors and partners and Landcare membership remains strong and enthusiastic.

“2017 has been a really busy year again, we have had lots of activity happening.” said Claudia Wythes, Watershed Landcare Coordinator.

“We have hosted a range of events including grazing tours, soil health workshops, spider monitoring, and beekeeping workshops just to name a few, plus developing our strategic plan.”

“We have partnered with a number of organisations including Central Tablelands LLS, Mid-Western Regional Council, the Australian Rural Education Centre, University of Sydney and the Rare and Heritage Fruit Tree Network to deliver events in our region.” she continued.

The election of office bearers for 2018 was overseen by returning officer, Bruce Christie.

Viviene Howard accepted the nomination for the position of Chairperson. Sonia Christie, Christine McRae and Hunter White retain positions as Vice-chair, Secretary and Treasurer, respectively.

The number of nomination received for positions on the executive indicate that members are keen to be involved in Watershed Landcare’s operation and 2018 will see the committee grow by one. Christine Corner and Graeme Anderson return to the executive and will be joined by new comers Rosemary Hadaway and Jane Young.

“We are able to do so much, thanks to the fabulous commitment and dedication of our volunteer management committee.” said Ms Wythes.

“It has been a busy year, and we have some exciting things planned for 2018.” she continued.

We’re actively seeking funding from various sources to continue to deliver training, workshops, seminars, field days, on-ground works and projects to protect and enhance the environment and sustainability of our region.

The new Executive Committee will hold it’s first meeting in February 2018. All Watershed Landcare members are welcome to attend.

Workshop to help our landholders team up

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The success of environmental management actions can be greatly improved when such projects are implemented across property boundaries. But starting and maintaining the momentum of a local group can be daunting and hard work. It helps to draw insight from others and receive good guidance along the way.

As part of the Landholder Collaboration Project, a workshop on ‘Everything you need to know about Local Collaboration’ will be held in Mudgee in December.

“Knowing about how to collaborate effectively can benefit all types of groups, whether they are informal or legally incorporated organisations.” said project researcher Dr Peter Ampt, Sydney Institute of Agriculture, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney.

Project researchers will share some key project insights, mapping information and guides, and cover some aspects that local groups need to consider in different circumstances and will be there to answer any questions you might have.

Come along and be part of a facilitated discussion on:

• Learning from local experiences: get inspired by the progress, achievements and aspirations of local groups in your area

• Demystifying legal frameworks: invited legal experts will help you figure out what is right for you

• Sharing monitoring data for landscape benefits: using the revamped Landcare Gateway group sites, and how GIS mapping info can help

Legal experts from the Australian Earth Laws Alliance will also be there to answer any questions about group governance, and will present their new handy guide which will be provided for free. It covers the advantages and disadvantages of incorporated and unincorporated structures, principles for successful collaboration, and what groups need to set up and think about at different stages of their collaboration.

The workshop will be held on Monday 11 December, 5:30-7:30pm, at the CWA Hall, 14 Market St, Mudgee. Attendance is free with light refreshments provided.

For more information contact Emily Berry on 0432 174 850 or e.berry@unsw.edu.au, or Alex Baumber on 02 9514 4671 or alex.baumber@uts.edu.au.

Please RSVP by 4 December to Emily Berry on 0432 174 850 or e.berry@unsw.edu.au.

This event is supported by the University of Sydney and the University of New South Wales and is a part of the Landholder Collaboration Project funded by the NSW Environmental Trust.

More information on the project is available on their website: https://landholdercollab.org/

Have your say on carp control

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The feeding habits of the European carp, Cyprinus carpio, have a detrimental effect on water quality and create an unfavourable environment for other species. Carp are benthivorous fish that feed in and on sediment; this is destructive to aquatic plants, which provide critical feeding, spawning and nursery habitat for native fish, increases turbidity by suspending sediments, and mobilises sediment bound phosphorus.

A new biocontrol agent to control this aquatic pest, which is now ubiquitous in all but the uppermost reaches of NSW waterways, is currently under investigation. Australia’s history of biological control hasn’t been unblemished and the public are being invited to have their say on the possible use of the use of a species-specific virus, Cyprinid herpesvirus 3.

Central Tablelands residents are invited to attend a community briefing session to find out more about the National Carp Control Plan (NCCP), the research underpinning the biocontrol agent and how potential risks are being identified and mitigated, and to provide their feedback.

The community briefing session will be hosted by the NCCP and Central Tablelands Local Land Services on Monday 27 November from 6-8pm at Bathurst Panthers Club.

NCCP National Coordinator Matt Barwick says waterways are the lifeblood of many rural and regional communities and they need to be rehabilitated.

“While these community briefing sessions are important for us to share the background, context and desired outcomes of the NCCP, they also provide an opportunity to hear from community members about how the prevalence of carp impact on them, their lifestyle or their business,” Mr Barwick said.

“We want to work collaboratively with the local community – as healthy river systems and waterways result in healthier communities.”

“We value the opinions and beliefs of people in the Central Tablelands region and we want to understand the ecological values of affected river systems and waterways and any likely direct or indirect impacts, be they social, environmental, economic or cultural, that may eventuate,” Mr Barwick said.

Central Tablelands Local Land Services is working with the NCCP to ensure local issues are considered in the National Carp Control Plan.

“We encourage all members of the community to participate in this briefing session and ask any questions they may have in relation the plan. The NCCP is a process, not a foregone conclusion so we encourage residents to share their thoughts and opinions and help shape the recommendations to government,” said Senior Land Services Officer, Casey Proctor.

This event is one of more than 40 community briefing sessions which will be held in NSW, Victoria, South Australia, the ACT, Queensland and Western Australia in coming months.

To find out more about the NCCP visit www.carp.gov.au.

For further details about the Bathurst Community Briefing Session contact Casey Proctor at Central Tablelands Local Land Services on 0429 110 072.

The importance of marking pollinators

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November 12 to 19 marks Australian Pollinator week, which acknowledges our important and unique insect pollinators. To raise awareness of the essential role of pollinators in our environment and what you can do to support their needs, Watershed Landcare hosted a Native Bee Motel workshop.

Presenter Liz Davis, Central Tablelands LLS Regional Landcare Facilitator, guided participants through the building of their own bee motel to take home, as well as highlighting the function of native pollinators to ecosystem services and our environment.

Eighteen participants, including 5 children, attended the 2 hour workshop held at the Australian Rural Education Centre (AREC) last Sunday.

“It’s great to see children getting involved and learning about the important role native pollinators make to our plants.” said Claudia Wythes, Watershed Landcare Coordinator.

“It’s such an easy thing for anyone to make and put in their back yard to provide a home for the native bees.” she continued.

The Lucknow Men’s Shed made the boxes for the motels for a series of workshops held across the Central West as part of National Pollinator week activities. Workshop participants used common materials such as dock, carrot weed stems, hemlock and old thistle to fill the boxes and provide lots of nooks and crannies for the native bees to nest in.

“Anything that has a hollow core makes a great home for native bees, it’s just a matter of using your imagination and being creative. Such a small thing makes a big difference to the population of native bees.” said Ms Wythes.

This event is supported by Watershed Landcare and is a part of the NSW Government’s Local Landcare Coordinators Initiative, supported through the partnership of Local Land Services and Landcare NSW.

Missed out on the workshop? It’s not too late for you to get involved in National Pollinator week.

Despite there being around 2,000 native bee species, as well as a couple of thousand butterfly, wasp, fly, moth, beetle, thrips and ant species, some of which are documented pollinators, very little is known about their ecology, where they are found or what plants they pollinate.

By simply watching any flowering plant for just ten minutes you can help to build a picture of wild pollinators in your local environment and help to build a database on wild pollinator activity.

To contribute to this citizen Science project visit: wildpollinatorcount.com.