Why do we do it?
Rivers and their tributaries in the Canberra Capital region are the lifeblood of the community, an important source of income for farmers, water supply for rural towns and essential habitat for native plants and animals. The area is home to endangered ecological communities and species including the Southern Pygmy Perch, Superb Parrot and Scarlet Robin to name a few. Our work to restore and protect waterways is a critical link in preserving biodiversity and water quality in the Murray Darling Basin and Sydney water catchments.
What do you do?
Working on projects in Naas, southern ACT, Boorowa and the Upper Shoalhaven/Goulburn areas we work in partnership with farmers to fence, install alternative stock water, plant native trees and shrubs, manage woody weeds and mitigate erosion by providing cash incentives and technical support to help them restore and protect riparian areas. A collaborative approach with the government and Landcare we develop projects that a practical, help farmers achieve their management goals, while delivering first rate environmental outcomes through improved water quality and biodiversity offsets. By designing workshops, planting days and extensive online resources to extend the theory of riparian restoration our reach is far wider than the local farming community.
What have you learnt?
Farmers have big hearts and commitment to change, they can achieve wonderful riparian restoration outcomes when offered a small amount of financial and professional support. By facilitating connection between government agencies, Landcare and community partners we can achieve better results through knowledge sharing and collaboration.
Why does it matter?
One fence, one plant, one trough, one farmer at a time, this approach slowly becomes a connected thriving landscape that benefits everyone including the humans who engage in this work and the environment we seek to restore. By providing opportunities for farmers to showcase their achievements through community engagement activities our work is changing attitudes towards the plight of rivers in urban and rural communities.