Local landholders working together to connect and expand rainforest

Environment

STAFF WRITERS

Email
Last updated:
Mt Louis station near Wujal Wujal. Image: Mt Louis Station


Landholders between Daintree and Hinchinbrook are working with Douglas Shire Council to connect and buffer forested areas thanks to an initiative by Terrain Natural Resource Management.

Bloomfield’s Mt Louis Station manager Ben Morley is one of two Daintree graziers targeting weeds on the edge of the rainforest, while Douglas Shire Council has planted more than 10,000 trees in the Wangetti area.

They are among 250 property owners in important cassowary, Mabi forest and littoral rainforest areas who, along with members of threatened species recovery teams, were contacted by Terrain NRM last year and invited to apply for grants. Projects have ranged from revegetation and weed removal work to nature refuge applications.

Ben and Courtenay Morley said getting involved had allowed them to create buffer zones for world heritage rainforest, by removing woody weeds along Gap Creek and at the base of Mt Louis and Mt Annie.

“The results have been fantastic. We usually only focus on the paddocks but after getting support, we’ve cleaned up 10-12km around the base of the hills and about 12km on both sides of the creek," Ben said.

“Among other environmental benefits, the cassowaries now have easy access to water and feed. We’ve learned more about them too, and we document sightings on the station.”

The Douglas Shire Council has planted 1000 trees and managed weed outbreaks in open areas around Wangetti to connect littoral rainforest patches and extend habitat for cassowaries. Both littoral rainforest and cassowaries are listed nationally as endangered.

Terrain NRM’s Tony O’Malley said grants have ranged from $1000 to $25,000. More will be available later this year.

Terrain NRM’s Tony O’Malley (left) with Mt Louis Station’s Ben Morley. Image: Supplied

“We contacted 250 landholders from across the Wet Tropics region whose properties border world-heritage areas,’’ he said. “These properties also meet criteria ranging from being within the region’s top-six cassowary corridors to being a potential littoral rainforest refugia from sea level rise and storm surges.

“We also give project grants to members of the region’s cassowary, Mabi forest and littoral rainforest recovery groups. The overall goal is to support landholders with the most important habitat for endangered species and ecosystems, in order to maintain that habitat.”

This project is supported by Terrain NRM through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program. For more information, visit the website.

Thank you!

Newsport thanks its advertising partners for their support in the delivery of daily community news to the Douglas Shire. Public interest journalism is a fundamental part of every community.

Got a news tip? Let us know! Send your news tips or submit a letter to the editor here.

* Comments are the opinions of readers and do not represent the views of Newsport, its staff or affiliates. Reader comments on Newsport are moderated before publication to promote valuable, civil, and healthy community debate. Visit our comment guidelines if your comment has not been approved for publication.