MANY PUBLICS PARTICIPATION · 2016. 9. 14. · 07-11 Feb 2011 Mildura to Macedon 11-15 Apr 2011...

07-11 Feb 2011M

ildura to Macedon

11-15 Apr 2011

Orbost to Korum

burra

23-27 May 2011

Kinglake to C

orryong

20-24 Jun 2011Portland to M

t Moriac

06-09 Sep 2011

Staw

ell to Kaniva

28-29 Nov 2011

Horsham

to Nhill

//////////////////////////////////

two thousand and nine>ten>eleven>twelve> > >

PARTICIPATION

MANYPUBLICS

INVENTIVENESSANd ChANgE

Vic Map pagefold-out on separate artworkFile name:CUT115_CPreport12_Cover_art297x685mm size has been confirmed by printer with stock dummy supplied to Room44This page does not print in this format

Whatpeoplesaid ...“ ”

‘Wefeelthatourcommunitiesareuniquebecause ofthestrongbondswithinfarmingfamiliesand

thestrongconnectionsbetweenpeople…thisisavaluableresourceandanemotionthatcouldbeutilised.’

ParticipantfromBoort,PyramidHill,WedderburnandWycheproofSecondarySchoolforum.

‘IwassodelightedthatOrbostwaschosen becausewe’renormallyleftoutoftheloop.’

LizFalkiner,OrbostNeighbourhoodHouseCoordinator.

But, we also know that local knowledge is often not well understood - ‘Communitynarrativesaboutwhathappenedthe lasttime,whatwillwork,andwhythisdoesnot

makesenseareoftendifficulttoarticulatetooutsiders,andwhentheyarespoken,theytendtotranslateas‘attitudes’or‘opinions’ratherthanknowledge;‘anecdotal’ratherthanproven,and,thus,ultimately,ofless,weight.’1

”

”

”

CONTENTSPARTICIPATION 8

CHAPTERONE 12Inquisitive and spontaneous – young people inventing the world 12

Introduction 12

From Sale to Swan Hill 14

The places we visited 14

Kaniva College: peer learning and participation 14

Kinglake Middle Primary School: communication grows confidence 17

Narrawong: sustainable programs 18

Boort, Pyramid Hill, Wedderburn and Wycheproof: respect for the environment 20

Beyond the schools 22

Summary 23

Statewide Natural Assets 24

CHAPTER TWO 26

The Wimmera: a river, a region 26

Introduction 26

The Wimmera 27

Environment in the Wimmera 28

The torrent 32

Resilience and responsiveness 36

Participation and communication promotes insight 37

Landcarer conversations and participation 37

Local and active inventiveness 40

Inventiveness in the face of uncertainty 42

Issues on the ground 45

Dependency, partnerships and change 50

Summary 53

CHAPTER THREE 54

Many Gippslands: change across the region: Orbost to Korumburra 54

Gippslands: cultural and environmental facts 54

Getting to East Gippsland 58

Rural Women Leading Change 59

Support for a change agenda 60

Better communication and respect for knowledge 62

The power of local agency: getting to change 63

Accepting and promoting change 66

Change and change management 68

Breadth of issues: working with complexity 71

Common threads: complexity and collaboration 73

Reflections after the tour: participation and change 77

Summary 79

CONTENTSCHAPTER FOUR 80

Corryong to Kinglake: climate change, drought and fire 80

Statistics of engagement 80

Engaging background 80

Corryong – where blackberry is a ‘people issue’ 82

Practicalities 84

Looking for solutions and learning to adapt 84

Evident change 86

People acting for themselves and government failures 89

Participation and cooperation 92

Trail blazers and leading practices 95

Blending participation and communication 96

Participation, dialogue and solutions 96

Community building and dealing with frustration 99

Summary 101

CHAPTER FIVE 102

Convincing Ground to Moriac 102

The rivers and wetlands 102

Local initiatives: programs, developments and awards 106

Case studies and context 108

Planning for change 110

Local government challenges 112

Layers of learning 114

From tree reserves to kitchen tables: the value of conversation 117

Carlisle River 120

Summary 120

CHAPTER SIX 122

The View from Mount Wycheproof 122

Mildura to Macedon 122

The Mallee 123

North central catchments 125

Resourcefulness 126

Sharing the load: strength and knowledge 129

How best to report and inform 133

Inevitable change 134

Small, local and achievable 134

Obstacles to get around while getting on with it 136

Change built on relationships 143

Operational issues and the long haul 147

Change and diversification 149

Summary 151

CONTENTSCONCLUSION 152

APPENDIXES 154

Appendix One 154

Methodology: Participation – our way 154

Appendix Two 158

International Participation – some background theory 158

Appendix Three 159

Brisbane Declaration 159

Appendix Four 162

Portland Field Naturalists’ Club submission on controlled burning 162

ENDNOTES 165

MANy PuBLICS PARTICIPATION INVENTIVENESS AND CHANGE8

Many places, many peoplePARTICIPATION

OneofmystatutoryobjectivesastheCommissionerforEnvironmentalSustainabilityistoenhanceknowledgeandunderstandingofissuesrelatingtoecologicallysustainabledevelopmentandtheenvironment.3

In 2011, many people across regional Victoria came to meetings we convened and talked to us about environmental issues. We had specifically sought out regional views about environmental aspirations.

This report reflects our discussions. I have compiled it specifically to report back to those who joined us in this enterprise.

People were generous, and they told us they were simply delighted to be included in conversations about the environment. They shared their views. They spoke of their knowledge about places of social, economic and cultural importance, and about localised environmental action in places they love and respect, however unremarkable these places might or might not be to others. This report celebrates their commitment.

For those who pick up this report but who were not participants in our environmental conversations, I expect you will find the sheer extent of the community’s exuberance, some of which is described here, inspiring.

Fundamental messages from this work are:>Thereisanastonishingamountofinventiveandintelligentenvironmental

workbeingdoneinthecommunity,oftenbyvolunteers,acrossgenerations,socialandculturalbackgrounds,geographiesandsectors.

>Therearemanypublics,acrossthestatedeeplycommittedtoenvironmentalsustainabilitywhorecognisetheneedforchangeandwhowanttobepartofthateffort.

>Thosedrivingchangearebothplanningcarefullyandactingspontaneouslyand,whilesupportisalwayswelcome,theyarenotwaitingforoutsidedirection.

>Communitiesandindividualsaredrivingchangeinplacestheyknowandcareabout,andtheyarecollaboratingextensivelyandbuildingnetworkscommittedtosustainableefforts.

>Muchofthebaselinelocalknowledgeunderpinningthiscommitmenttochangeisoflongstanding,sometimesintergenerational,anditwouldbeconstructiveifitwasaffordedrespect.

>Meaningful,nottoken,participationinformaldiscussionsaboutenvironmentalissuesandsolutionsisabasicrequirementforinventivenesstothrive.

>Supportfor,andthenurtureof,networksbuildscommunitycapabilityandindividualandcollectiveconfidence,andthisinturnpromotessustainableoutcomes.

>Aparticipatingcommunitywillbebetterabletodealwithextremeeventsandcalculateriskandrespond,reducingrelianceuponexternalintervention.

>Environmentalreporting,theworkofmyoffice,mustbeaccessibleandresponsivetobeusefulandeffective.

PAR

TIC

IPAT

ION

9

We met people in a range of settings, from Corryong to Port Fairy and Orbost to Mildura, in a program that exposed all of my staff to the insights and long local environmental histories of highly motivated, inventive and resourceful people.4

People spoke to us in halls, clubrooms, neighbourhood houses, council chambers, university boardrooms and research facilities; at field or tree planting days; at the end of a road or in a paddock; in national and state parks; by the side of a river or ephemeral wetland; under a red gum or on top of a ridge or granite rock; in kitchens and health services.

We invited ‘citizen scientists’, volunteer recorders, school students, farming men and women, business people, people who were simply interested and those who were highly motivated, to meet and talk. People from widely divergent backgrounds – the many publics – participated in conversations about the environment and human interaction with it.5 People talked about the many ways they made room to manoeuvre, cleverly and collaboratively, about environmental matters. We heard about success stories and frustrations, halting first steps and the confidence that comes when action produces good outcomes.

Together we explored perspectives, aspirations and action about biodiversity, water conservation and floods, drought, growth, energy efficiencies, waste management, skills and careers, and the challenges and opportunities that climate change presents.6

We heard about data gaps, community action, reporting problems, and positive and negative outcomes. We found that a great deal of highly localised and inspiring applied environmental effort was taking place among people who understood the ‘big picture’. Our conversations were intense, often unguarded and, on our part, deliberately open-ended.

We actively sought broad observations and case studies of environmental practice rather than opinions on policy positions. We did not limit our consultations to a fixed method of inquiry but adopted a broad-based approach to elicit the widest possible input.7

A serial inventiveness, robustness and persistent resourcefulness typified the people who met with and talked to us. People are not simply waiting for knowledge deposits from bodies such as ours. People are acting to protect and care for the environment and position themselves for change.8 As they do so, they want timely, accessible and understandable information about the environment, biodiversity, climate change and risk management.

Nardoo in hand

Wattle seeds in the

hand of

a Narrawong Prim

ary student

No-Till worm in hand

What climate change means to me – Aleisha Mahony

Photo courtesy of South West Climate Change Forum


Beyond those opening remarks, this report reflects the community’s insistence on the intrinsic merit of people involving themselves in environmental works and participating in discussions about the physical, social, cultural and economic value of those works.

Participatory processes are a powerful driver of the changes that many people believe to be essential if we are to become a sustainable society, ready and willing to deal with climate change, and able to arrest environmental degradation.

Focusing on the value of participation, as this report does, reflects the growing acceptance of the value of engagement and interaction in all its complexity: in wide-ranging discussions, in policy determination, and when used to inform choices about environmental management. Promotion of participatory processes, particularly in environmental contexts, has become the norm internationally, nationally and locally.9

Networks and the alliances that authorise and support innovation and promote the autonomy that is pivotal to action have been apparent everywhere. People spoke expansively about the environmental benefits of intra-group participation and external stimuli in animated, candid, thoughtful and analytical ways. It was involvement, sometimes with our assistance, which appeared to encourage people to build on collective understandings and action. Sometimes these collaborations appeared to simply extend possibilities and numerically increase groups, but they always linked people and aided cohesion, opening up lines of communication and the possibilities of sharing deep insights and measured and urgent proposals for action.

Effective participation, because it is a dialogue between insiders and outsiders, has the potential to fundamentally shift discussion.10 Subtly, it can be highly effective in changing the power dynamic by eroding hierarchy and negotiating and cultivating new, ‘other’ relationships and understandings upon which people are already, because of the dialogue, poised to act.11

PAR

TIC

IPAT

ION

Barmah Forest National Park

Narrawong Primary

No-Till Wimmera

Kings Billabong Mildura

Grampians National Park

11

Professor Kate Auty PhD, MEnvSc, Dip Int Env Law (UNITAR), BA(Hons)LLB, MAIcDcommissioner for Environmental Sustainability

Paul Jackman checking his rehabilitated wetland site at clear Lake

Because participation opens up a complex web of interactions, exposure to other meanings and intellectual cross-currents, and because it invites surprises and interruptions, introducing the possibility of both positive and negative unintended consequences, it is an essential ingredient for change.12 Its promise is the intensification of inventiveness and the nurturing of resourcefulness.

New scholarship tells us that participation, as purposeful and enabling ‘social learning’, builds resilience and resourcefulness, equipping people to ‘adapt and respond’ to transformative and extreme events.13 Studies of disaster responses have shown that those who start with a participation ethic will respond more effectively to the challenges of ‘rapid onset emergency interventions’, resisting dependency. Further, these sorts of collaborations, introducing different ways of thinking and ‘social’ or ‘active’ learning, have the potential to produce creative and compelling outcomes.15

A community that is networked and communicates, that is forged on relationships, and that innovates as a function of sharing insights, becomes more confident. This community will be the one we need to both adapt to and militate against climate change.

Our discussions across Victoria caused us to consider the comment:‘…whenthebestdevelopmentprogramsaredone,thepeopleallsay,“wehavedoneitourselves”.’16

Many of the stories we record in this report are a compelling illustration of just this.

”


1Inquisitive and spontaneous – young people inventing the worldChAPTER ONEIntroductionThepotentialforenvironmentallysustainableactionislocatedinmultiplesettings,isdrivenbymanyimpulses,hasmanychampions,andcanbebothfunandapplied.Youngpeoplehaveshownusthis.Theyhaveasignificantroletoplay,ingroupsandindividually.Theyarecuriousandinventiveandchallenging,becausetheyareintellectuallyunconstrainedandencouragingandbecausetheyareopentopossibilities.Riversofyouthfulenthusiasm17abouttheenvironment,fromwastereducing‘nudefood’daystotheprotectionofbiodiversityinschoolwetlands,haveflowedoverusinmyoffice.18

We have seen enthusiasm for environmental sustainability play out in many ways, for instance in the diversity of school programs. Children’s art as invitation to the vegetable garden of the KoroitPrimarySchool is a reminder of possibilities and of the productive fun to be had outside. Tree planting and ‘bug hunting’ days draw out interest and cultivate capabilities. MiddleKinglake’sPrimarySchool’s new administration building’s internal green wall sparks interest in green growth; MurtoaCollege’s wind turbine and straw bale classrooms are a reminder of alternative energy potential and other ways to think about green building techniques.

CH

AP

TER

ON

E

Murtoa college wind turbine

Kaniva college

Koroit Primary garden

Apollo Bay college

Kinglake Middle Primary

13

Young people respond in a variety of ways to this iconography and to school policies and programs. The lessons for us have been: there is no singular ‘authentic’, representative young person,19 and that, once engaged, young people have a vital and exuberant participatory role to play in all our sustainable efforts.20

Involvement promotes networks, teamwork and self-reliance, and it can productively unsettle ‘settled’ understandings. For instance, Frankston Secondary College’s sustainability team resists the characterisation of young men as uninterested in the environment, while demonstrating the power of peer learning.21

Schools’ sustainability conferences, held at Dookie College, Ballarat Grammar (Earthnormous Big Day Out) and Mill Park Secondary College (EarthAction 3) clearly show the importance of group work and the role of enjoyment in the attainment of good environmental understanding among youth.22

Members

of Franksto

n High

Environmen

t Committe

e


Rotary Warehouse Melbourne

CH

AP

TER

ON

E

Kaniva college bi

ke recycling

From Sale to Swan HillAt opposite ends of the state, at WellingtonShire and at SwanHill, we know that participation is creating potential. In very diverse situations, groups of young people have come together to learn, teach and effect change where they can. In Sale, the Shire of Wellington Youth Council promotes two-way learning about respect, stewardship and participation. Practical efforts involve support for Earthfirst bushfire recovery and better transport management, reducing isolation and carbon kilometres. Youth Council promotes the local government Environmental Sustainability Strategy.

In SwanHill, disabled young people, retired farmers, the Green Corps, TAFE and Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) all collaborate to share and build skills – among the teachers and the student group. OzGreen hosted YOUth Leading Australia there in 2010, which they then YouTubed.23

The places we visitedYoung men and women who came out to meet with us introduced us to many fresh, inventive and personalised environmental stewardship efforts. Every conversation taught us something about participation, resourcefulness and local understandings of environmental complexities. Change, continuities and environmental stewardship were everywhere in seemingly simple conversations about what was being, and could be, done.

Kaniva College: peer learning and participation

Multiple connections have been made with students of KanivaCollege in the Wimmera catchment.24 This illustrates the ways in which connections and participation expand networks and provide openings for action.

These young people have internalised a number of sustainability messages. They do so in groups and singly. Their collaborations, understanding of the importance of teamwork and desire to live sustainably was evident in their actions and their talk. Kaniva College is not formally a ‘sustainable school’. Its success is driven in a highly localised way, out of community.

Meetings with participants in the Hindmarsh Project and the Environmental Farmers Network gave us depth by introducing us to some parents. Next, our first visit to the school provided the conditions for promoting the connection of Sustainability Victoria, the Kaniva Neighbourhood House and the school community. After that, the students connected us with the Green Team at Rotary’s international aid warehouse in the western suburbs of Melbourne, when they delivered their recyclable goods. Information exchanges as a result of this have their own ripple effect.

15

Kaniva college’s husbandry project

At the school, students talked excitedly and thoughtfully as they guided us around their vegetable garden, showed us the wetlands that had struggled through the drought, and justifiably skited about their animal husbandry and the numerous awards they had won.25 Some students were mulching vegetable gardens with straw from the animal holdings. One young woman was using the school greenhouse to propagate local seed stock for farm plantings.


Instituting agricultural recycling/circularity meant that their lettuces were given to the local hotel in exchange for kitchen scraps, which were fed to the school’s chickens. We were given packets of the chick peas the students grow and have processed and commercially packaged.

It took us a while to tour their extensive recycling storages – from the woodwork shed to the bottles, cans, bikes, books, bibles and old spectacles and computers.

While the talk was about a curriculum concentrated on ‘agricultural science’, everything they did and showed us mirrored, in all but name, ‘sustainable practice’.26 Farming men and women say sustainability is core business for farming families. Kaniva’s school promotes this through peer learning, participation and thoughtful consideration of issues in active programs. If clearing practices were once the norm, promoting ‘loss of biodiversity and a degradation of water quality through over-extraction, saline discharge and soil erosion’,27 the future has the potential to be very different.

After ‘walking the walk’, a select group, across all years, talked to us about sustainability and their role in it. Weather and climate impact their town as much as their garden and livestock. Drought had affected the ‘mood’ as well as the economy of the district. Watchful, they were aware of associated health issues. Climate was not an abstraction. They spoke about tracking, making and accommodating change, monitoring the weather, and more mechanically, testing soil health.

Our second connection with the Kaniva students came when they delivered their recycling in Melbourne. A long drive concluded with the handover of books to Rotary in Somerville Road, the students themselves lumping the consignment onto pallets for storage prior to shipment.

At a later stage, Kaniva’s bicycles will join recycled Australia Post motorcycles for a new life somewhere else.

CH

AP

TER

ON

E

Kaniva students and teachers at Rotary Warehouse Melbourne

Australia Post mot

orbikes at Rotary

Warehouse

17

”

”

Kinglake Middle Primary School: communication grows confidence

Burnt down in 2009, KinglakeMiddlePrimarySchool has physically and emotionally re-created itself on the old site, re-enrolling many of the students from the time before the fire. Painful memories of twisted wreckage have been displaced by new water tanks, new garden beds and new plantings.

Visible manifestations of good practice are introduced to the students by the sustainable building, which was designed with local input – heaters that automatically shut off, light sensors, more effective use of natural lighting, and an internal garden wall. Gardens and grounds have been re-established by students, families and teachers. At morning assemblies, supportive, informed and involved parents provide public affirmation of waste reduction strategies, and students told us that their 2011 Nude Lunch rubbish weighed in at 55 grams, 15 grams more than the year before.28 This may seem like a trifle in the scheme of things but it is an indication of group interest and priorities – these young people care to do better.

Serious thought, preparation and planning had gone into all the student presentations about energy reduction, water conservation, biodiversity protection and waste management.

Teamwork drove change. Energy team members not only had light bulb replacement projects, collected data and learnt how to understand it, but they also understood the importance of communication, producing a newsletter. Energy beyond the school grounds was saved by walking or riding to school.29

One child told us that Kinglake’s single set of traffic lights:‘…wastealotofenergy’.

Biodiversity was reflected in dirty hands, worm farms, water watch on the creek, planting trees, the green wall, and sponsoring the Leadbeater’s Possum. They knew that Phascogales, secretive and threatened, had to be protected from foxes; shooting in the Mount Sugarloaf Reserve should not be permitted as it impacted native species; Kinglake National Park, which had burnt so catastrophically in 2009, should be cared for notwithstanding its dangerous potential; bush tracks should not be overused as they became eroded, and that this impacted fire truck access.

Water team members focused on conservation: using water bottles, stopping dripping taps, and having dual-flush toilets, tanks and rain gauges at home.

Universally they liked the taste of rainwater:‘…betterthantownwater.’


”

Junior and senior waste teams helped each other. They encouraged the reuse of scrap paper, composting, and recycling toner and mobile phones (a Zoos Victoria program).

And they:‘…likebinduty.’

With ever increasing confidence, as the morning wore on, these young people told me my environmental reports should talk to local people about local matters, and that stories are important. All the media – books, movies, posters and photos, the internet and YouTube – should be used. Buoyant, light-hearted comments, however, could not be other than tinged with the gravity of the memory of the 2009 fires, even though this topic was not explicitly raised. Fire management underscored a conversation about local radio and better transmitters.

Demonstrating the interplay of my visit and their sense of importance in environmental stewardship, I have since been told that recognition of the work they have done ‘empowered’ the students.30 Affirmation is a significant enabler, and it only comes from communication.

Narrawong: sustainable programs

Travelling to Port Fairy and Portland, we called into the small beachside primary school at Narrawong in Gunditjmara country, just south of the culturally significant Lake Condah.

The lesson from Narrawong is about immersion and involvement. Programs work if they are cyclical: introduced and then reintroduced. Successful programs will be most effective if the hard localising work has been done in the beginning, as this makes them real, relevant and consequently sustainable.

Narrawong exemplifies the organic extension of the classroom into the environment. Some schools struggle with embedding ‘biodiversity’ in the curriculum. In this little school, with the aid of Coastcare, biodiversity as a team response was a core ‘subject’. Stepping out the front door, this group of young people, immersed in nature, bounced off each other’s knowledge and enthusiasm. Independence of thought and action was balanced with a team ethic.

Coastal plantings of endemic species behind the primary dune were the focus of our tour. Local seeds were collected in brown paper bags, chopsticks were used for ‘drilling’ holes, seedlings were staked and weed mats were positioned. Students demonstrated their knowledge of local flora and fauna and their awareness of erosion, feral rabbits and planning issues.

Indigenous people’s use of plants came as lessons through the relaxed and subtle involvement of local senior Indigenous people, and by parents and teachers open to other cultural understandings.

CH

AP

TER

ON

E

19

”

”

”

Richard Frankland, senior gunditjmara man, described the students learning about biodiversity and natural systems as:‘…foreverbusiness.’

A local Rainbow Serpent program concentrates on resourcefulness and self-reliance, and art is used to promote these values. Interest in the importance of Indigenous understandings of the world has extended to adding local language to the curriculum.

A feature of this thriving school community is that there are:‘…alwayslotsofideas.’

One of the parents who spoke to us when we visited commented:‘…ourprogramstartsfromanunderstandingofmulti-usesofland,involvestheincorporationofeveryone,andhumaniseswhathasbeende-humanised…goodcurriculumwillchangetheculturallandscapeandreinforcechange…’31

As a small community, the school exudes sustainability – environmental, social and cultural. Energy economies are also being internalised with the use of solar power to drive a computer. At Narrawong there is confidence that things can be done, locally, even though resourcing change provides challenges.

Narrawong Primary


Boort, Pyramid Hill, Wedderburn and Wycheproof: respect for the environment

Boort,32 PyramidHill,33 Wedderburn34 and Wycheproof35 secondary colleges agreed to a number of young women students coming to Boort to meet and talk to us during the 2011 floods. Water still washed up to the road verges, filled the gullies and listlessly rolled across paddocks as the students made their way to our meeting.

Each school group staged a presentation about sustainability, school gardens, drought, floods, climate, the environment, the life of a farming family, health, isolation, and social and economic opportunities.

Agriculturalists, they told us, are important: they have eyes and ears for environmental condition and they innovate to produce more sustainable practices. As young members of primary producing and regional township families, they reminded us that they clearly understood the issue of food and farm security.

CH

AP

TER

ON

E

Boort, Pyramid Hill, Wycheproof and Wedderburn

School students

21

”

”

”

”

One young woman said of her life in a farming community:‘…witnessingbirth,growth,death–ittoughensyouup.’

Paraphrasing her comments another student said:‘…yougettounderstandlifecyclesandtoappreciateandrespecttheenvironmentwhenyouliveinaplaceof…hothousesandhighwinds…’

Nevertheless, a genuine feeling of ‘freedom’, a word used a number of times throughout the morning, gave them the space to build character. Character, confidence, energy and a cheerful but nuanced openness, tempered by the lingering stresses of being dependent upon the environment for their worlds, typified their contributions. Like the Kaniva students, they spoke of the health implications of climate impacts, or the stresses and pressures they and their communities felt in times of drought, and then, almost immediately, of floods. Resourcefulness was a refrain across the presentations, a simple ‘getting on with it’, knowing the environment was not always your friend or benign.

As with Kinglake Middle Primary School, feedback reinforced for us the importance of these seemingly out-of-the-way conversations. We were told that it was:‘…importantthatyoungwomenaregivenopportunitiessuchasthis…asitstimulatedinterestandraisedunderstandingaboutissuesassociatedwithsustainability.’

and‘…thevoiceofyoungpeoplefromruralsettingsshouldbeencouragedinmattersrelatingtosustainability.’


Beyond the schoolsAs the regional tours unfolded, many families and mentors promoted an environmental discussion with their young people. Orbost, Yarram, and Bright all introduced us to young women who wanted to participate in our meetings.

At the OrbostNeighbourhoodHouse, two young women spoke about isolation and the need for good sustainability education. Connecting sustainability and the broader

environment in personal actions and in relation to jobs, university choices, and across schools and sectors was seen as important. Newly acquired skills needed to be returned to communities. Orbost school’s sustainability committee and activities were driving an understanding of the need for change

and the potential for technology to reduce greenhouse emissions and isolation.

On a rainy, windy morning Kayla Groombridge, YoungVictorianLandcareroftheYear, met us at Yarram’s Tarra River, a river restoration

site between Tarraville and Robertsons Beach. Kayla talked about addressing illegal dumping, illegal camping, deterioration of river banks and boat launching with this Landcare project, which she started by writing to CoastAction, DSE, local government councillors, Yarram Yarram Landcare

Network and the Robertsons Beach and Tarraville Communities Neighbourhood Management Group (which she now chairs).

Kayla met us on site because:‘…it’seasiertounderstandwhenyoucanseewhat’shappening.’

She knew the place itself would help us understand.

Frankie MacLennan,36 who organised this meeting, describes Kayla as:

‘…determined…andcommittedtoherownpathinLandcare,withoutdependenceonadultleadership[who,with]astrongbeliefinwhatsheisdoingmanagestofindwaystosupportherpassionwhenevershepossiblycan.’

At Bright, two young women attended an evening meeting with local small and medium business men and women. Their involvement in environmental issues was promoted through the Alpine Shire Youth Council’s Climate Change forum. Thirty young people and a panel came together to talk about climate change science, cut through the myths and formulate ideas and actions to safeguard the future of the Alpine Shire.

CH

AP

TER

ON

E

Orbost Rural Women’s Network

Kayla Groombridge

and Frankie MacL

ennan

”

”

23

”

One of the young women37 was able to take up work experience in my office, about which she made this comment:‘…I’vealwaysbeeninterestedintheenvironment…IspentaweekinMelbourneworkingwiththeCommissionerforEnvironmentalSustainabilityOffice…Iwenttoteammeetings…Imetsomeveryinterestingpeopleandlearntrealskillsthat IknowIwilluseinthefuture.Iwasevengiventhechancetoputsomeofmyownideasforward,whichwasarealhonour.’

The sharing of ideas about environmental issues and reporting is fundamental to finding other ways to deal with complex and confronting challenges. Confidence to do so will only come with involvement. A visit to Aitken College that later won multiple sustainability awards in 2011 also inspired this young woman to consider ways to expand sustainable activity in her school.

SummaryThe activities we were told about have initiated new behaviours or put in place new processes. These iterative processes are not trying to solve the problem (there is no right solution). Rather, success lies in the adoption of a process that can ‘propose interventions and resolutions that shift or nudge change.’38

The fundamental message from the meetings we had with young people across the state is:‘…Wediditourselves…withalittlehelpandahandupfromotherswhounderstoodtheimportance.’

The storyline is of young people sharing knowledge in and of local places and, by doing so, gaining knowledge, confidence and an ability to reach beyond the known.

That resourcefulness grows from participation was demonstrated to us by these young people while we learnt another important lesson: that offices such as mine can make a difference by encouraging involvement, respecting divergent views, acknowledging the need to be in the conversation, and taking the time to reflect upon outcomes. We are participants too.

Bright Environmen

tal

Sustainability Dinne

r


BROKEN RIVER

KANGAROO LAKE

HOWQUA RIVE

R

MA

CA

LISTER R

IVER

WONNANGATTA RIVER

AB

ER

FELD

Y R

I VE

R

BEM

M R

IVER

ARTE

RIVE

R

ERR

INU

ND

RA

RI V

E R

LAKE HUME

LAKE TYRRELL

LAKE EILDON

LAKE KING

LAKE HINDMARSH

LAKE MOKOAN

WARANGA BASIN

LAKE BULOKE

ROCKLANDS RESERVOIR

LAKE DARTMOUTH

LAKE ALBACUTYA

LAKE COLAC

LAKE MULWALA

LAKE EPPALOCK

KOW SWAMP

LAKE COLEMAN

LAKE GNARPURT

LAKE BURRUMBEET

MURRAY RIVER

LOD

DO

N R

IVE

R

AVO

CA

RIV

ER

WIM

MER

A R

IVER

OVENS RIVER

HO

PKIN

S R

IVER

CAM

PASP

E RI

VER

GLEN

ELG

RIVE

R

YARRA RIVER

TAM

BO

RIV

ER

KIN

G R

IVE

R

SNOW

Y RI

VER

MO

UN

T EM

U C

REE

K

BULL

OCK

CRE

EK

WANNON RIVER

GO

ULB

UR

N R

IVER

AVON

RIVER

MIT

TA M

ITTA

RIV

ER

KIEWA R

IVER

THOMSON RIVER

BUCH

AN R

IVER

FIERY

CREE

K

CAN

N R

IVER

SEVEN CREEKS

BIG R

IVER

BET B

ET CR

EEK

MO

YNE

RIV

ER

DELATITE

RIVER

FITZROY RIVER

BUFFALO RIVER

TIM

BARR

A RI

VER

AC

HE

RO

N R

IVE

R

SALT

CRE

EK

SPRING CREEK

GENOA RIVER

BASS

RIVE

R

CURD

IES

RIVE

R

THU

RR

A R

IVER

MO

OR

AB

OO

L RIVER

PER

RY

RIV

ER

MACKENZIE RIVER

PLE

NTY

RIV

ER

AIRE RIVE

R

YAR

RO

WEE R

IVER

LANG LANG RIVER

DEDDICK RIVER

MU

RR

IND

AL

RIV

ER

LERDERDERG RIVER

BAR

KLY R

IVER

WE

NTW

OR

TH R

IVE

R

WATTS

RIVER

TARW

IN R

IVER

LOCH RIVER

TARAGO RIVER

AVO

N R

IVE

R

BIG RIVER

Wyperfeld NP

Murray - Sunset NP

Alpine NP

Yarra Ranges NP

Snowy River NP

Little Desert NP

Grampians NP

Wilsons Promontory NP

Corner Inlet Marine & Coastal Park

Barmah NP

Croajingolong NP

Mount Buffalo NP

Errinundra NP

Coopracambra NP

Wilsons Promontory MNP

Lower Glenelg NP

Hattah - Kulkyne NP

French Island NP

Baw Baw NP

Kinglake NP

Great Otway NP

Burrowa - Pine Mountain NP

Point Addis MNP

Nooramunga Marine & Coastal ParkTwelve Apostles MNP

Cape Howe MNP

Point Hicks MNP

Gunbower NP

Alfred NP

Warby-Ovens NP

French Island MNP

St Arnaud Range NP

Discovery Bay MNP

Bunurong MNP

Ninety Mile Beach MNP

Brisbane Ranges NP

Chiltern-Mt Pilot NP

Greater Bendigo NP

Heathcote-Graytown NP

Port Phillip Heads MNP

Terrick Terrick NP

Lower Goulburn NP

Corner Inlet MNP

Mornington Peninsula NP

Yaringa MNP

Churchill Island MNP

Port Campbell NP

Dandenong Ranges National Park

Brady Swam N.P.Organ Pipes NP

Black Dog Creek N.F.R

Yea

Ouyen

Nhill

Yarram

Orbost

Echuca

Cohuna

Stawell

Mildura

BendigoHorsham

Portland

Hamilton

WarragulTraralgon

Swan Hill

Melbourne

Mansfield

Korumburra

Bairnsdale

Camperdown

Maryborough

Lakes Entrance

Sale

Bright

Wodonga

Corryong

SheppartonWangaratta

Warrnambool

Parks and ReservesState ForestOther Public LandMarine National Park/SanctuaryCoastal Park/Reserve

RAMSAR wetlandsHeritage RiversWaterbodiesMajor WatercourseHighway

Source: DSE/DPI Corporate Spatial Data Library, 2012.0 50 10025

Kilometers

N#

© The State of Victoria, 2012.

This publication may be of assistance to you but the State of Victoria and its employees do not guarantee that thepublication is without flaw of any kind or is wholly appropriate for your particular purposes and therefore disclaims allliability for any error, loss or other consequence which may arise from you relying on any information in this publication.

SUGGAN BUG

GAN RIVER

GLE

NE

LG R

IVE

RStatewideNaturalAssetsCH

AP

TER

ON

E

25

BROKEN RIVER

KANGAROO LAKE

HOWQUA RIVE

R

MA

CA

LISTER R

IVER

WONNANGATTA RIVER

AB

ER

FELD

Y R

I VE

R

BEM

M R

IVER

ARTE

RIVE

R

ERR

INU

ND

RA

RI V

E R

LAKE HUME

LAKE TYRRELL

LAKE EILDON

LAKE KING

LAKE HINDMARSH

LAKE MOKOAN

WARANGA BASIN

LAKE BULOKE

ROCKLANDS RESERVOIR

LAKE DARTMOUTH

LAKE ALBACUTYA

LAKE COLAC

LAKE MULWALA

LAKE EPPALOCK

KOW SWAMP

LAKE COLEMAN

LAKE GNARPURT

LAKE BURRUMBEET

MURRAY RIVER

LOD

DO

N R

IVE

R

AVO

CA

RIV

ER

WIM

MER

A R

IVER

OVENS RIVER

HO

PKIN

S R

IVER

CAM

PASP

E RI

VER

GLEN

ELG

RIVE

R

YARRA RIVER

TAM

BO

RIV

ER

KIN

G R

IVE

R

SNOW

Y RI

VER

MO

UN

T EM

U C

REE

K

BULL

OCK

CRE

EK

WANNON RIVER

GO

ULB

UR

N R

IVER

AVON

RIVER

MIT

TA M

ITTA

RIV

ER

KIEWA R

IVER

THOMSON RIVER

BUCH

AN R

IVER

FIERY

CREE

K

CAN

N R

IVER

SEVEN CREEKS

BIG R

IVER

BET B

ET CR

EEK

MO

YNE

RIV

ER

DELATITE

RIVER

FITZROY RIVER

BUFFALO RIVER

TIM

BARR

A RI

VER

AC

HE

RO

N R

IVE

R

SALT

CRE

EK

SPRING CREEK

GENOA RIVER

BASS

RIVE

R

CURD

IES

RIVE

R

THU

RR

A R

IVER

MO

OR

AB

OO

L RIVER

PER

RY

RIV

ER

MACKENZIE RIVER

PLE

NTY

RIV

ER

AIRE RIVE

R

YAR

RO

WEE R

IVER

LANG LANG RIVER

DEDDICK RIVER

MU

RR

IND

AL

RIV

ER

LERDERDERG RIVER

BAR

KLY R

IVER

WE

NTW

OR

TH R

IVE

R

WATTS

RIVER

TARW

IN R

IVER

LOCH RIVER

TARAGO RIVER

AVO

N R

IVE

R

BIG RIVER

Wyperfeld NP

Murray - Sunset NP

Alpine NP

Yarra Ranges NP

Snowy River NP

Little Desert NP

Grampians NP



Barmah NP

Croajingolong NP

Mount Buffalo NP

Errinundra NP

Coopracambra NP


Lower Glenelg NP

Hattah - Kulkyne NP

French Island NP

Baw Baw NP

Kinglake NP

Great Otway NP


Point Addis MNP


Cape Howe MNP

Point Hicks MNP

Gunbower NP

Alfred NP

Warby-Ovens NP

French Island MNP

St Arnaud Range NP

Discovery Bay MNP

Bunurong MNP


Brisbane Ranges NP


Greater Bendigo NP



Terrick Terrick NP

Lower Goulburn NP

Corner Inlet MNP


Yaringa MNP


Port Campbell NP




Yea

Ouyen

Nhill

Yarram

Orbost

Echuca

Cohuna

Stawell

Mildura

BendigoHorsham

Portland

Hamilton

WarragulTraralgon

Swan Hill

Melbourne

Mansfield

Korumburra

Bairnsdale

Camperdown

Maryborough

Lakes Entrance

Sale

Bright

Wodonga

Corryong


Warrnambool




Kilometers

N#



SUGGAN BUG

GAN RIVER

GLE

NE

LG R

IVE

R

BROKEN RIVER

KANGAROO LAKE

HOWQUA RIVE

R

MA

CA

LISTER R

IVER

WONNANGATTA RIVER

AB

ER

FELD

Y R

I VE

R

BEM

M R

IVER

ARTE

RIVE

R

ERR

INU

ND

RA

RI V

E R

LAKE HUME

LAKE TYRRELL

LAKE EILDON

LAKE KING

LAKE HINDMARSH

LAKE MOKOAN

WARANGA BASIN

LAKE BULOKE

ROCKLANDS RESERVOIR

LAKE DARTMOUTH

LAKE ALBACUTYA

LAKE COLAC

LAKE MULWALA

LAKE EPPALOCK

KOW SWAMP

LAKE COLEMAN

LAKE GNARPURT

LAKE BURRUMBEET

MURRAY RIVER

LOD

DO

N R

IVE

R

AVO

CA

RIV

ER

WIM

MER

A R

IVER

OVENS RIVER

HO

PKIN

S R

IVER

CAM

PASP

E RI

VER

GLEN

ELG

RIVE

R

YARRA RIVER

TAM

BO

RIV

ER

KIN

G R

IVE

R

SNOW

Y RI

VER

MO

UN

T EM

U C

REE

K

BULL

OCK

CRE

EK

WANNON RIVER

GO

ULB

UR

N R

IVER

AVON

RIVER

MIT

TA M

ITTA

RIV

ER

KIEWA R

IVER

THOMSON RIVER

BUCH

AN R

IVER

FIERY

CREE

K

CAN

N R

IVER

SEVEN CREEKS

BIG R

IVER

BET B

ET CR

EEK

MO

YNE

RIV

ER

DELATITE

RIVER

FITZROY RIVER

BUFFALO RIVER

TIM

BARR

A RI

VER

AC

HE

RO

N R

IVE

R

SALT

CRE

EK

SPRING CREEK

GENOA RIVER

BASS

RIVE

R

CURD

IES

RIVE

R

THU

RR

A R

IVER

MO

OR

AB

OO

L RIVER

PER

RY

RIV

ER

MACKENZIE RIVER

PLE

NTY

RIV

ER

AIRE RIVE

R

YAR

RO

WEE R

IVER

LANG LANG RIVER

DEDDICK RIVER

MU

RR

IND

AL

RIV

ER

LERDERDERG RIVER

BAR

KLY R

IVER

WE

NTW

OR

TH R

IVE

R

WATTS

RIVER

TARW

IN R

IVER

LOCH RIVER

TARAGO RIVER

AVO

N R

IVE

R

BIG RIVER

Wyperfeld NP

Murray - Sunset NP

Alpine NP

Yarra Ranges NP

Snowy River NP

Little Desert NP

Grampians NP



Barmah NP

Croajingolong NP

Mount Buffalo NP

Errinundra NP

Coopracambra NP


Lower Glenelg NP

Hattah - Kulkyne NP

French Island NP

Baw Baw NP

Kinglake NP

Great Otway NP


Point Addis MNP


Cape Howe MNP

Point Hicks MNP

Gunbower NP

Alfred NP

Warby-Ovens NP

French Island MNP

St Arnaud Range NP

Discovery Bay MNP

Bunurong MNP


Brisbane Ranges NP


Greater Bendigo NP



Terrick Terrick NP

Lower Goulburn NP

Corner Inlet MNP


Yaringa MNP


Port Campbell NP




Yea

Ouyen

Nhill

Yarram

Orbost

Echuca

Cohuna

Stawell

Mildura

BendigoHorsham

Portland

Hamilton

WarragulTraralgon

Swan Hill

Melbourne

Mansfield

Korumburra

Bairnsdale

Camperdown

Maryborough

Lakes Entrance

Sale

Bright

Wodonga

Corryong


Warrnambool




Kilometers

N#



SUGGAN BUG

GAN RIVER

GLE

NE

LG R

IVE

R

BROKEN RIVER

KANGAROO LAKE

HOWQUA RIVE

R

MA

CA

LISTER R

IVER

WONNANGATTA RIVER

AB

ER

FELD

Y R

I VE

R

BEM

M R

IVER

ARTE

RIVE

R

ERR

INU

ND

RA

RI V

E R

LAKE HUME

LAKE TYRRELL

LAKE EILDON

LAKE KING

LAKE HINDMARSH

LAKE MOKOAN

WARANGA BASIN

LAKE BULOKE

ROCKLANDS RESERVOIR

LAKE DARTMOUTH

LAKE ALBACUTYA

LAKE COLAC

LAKE MULWALA

LAKE EPPALOCK

KOW SWAMP

LAKE COLEMAN

LAKE GNARPURT

LAKE BURRUMBEET

MURRAY RIVER

LOD

DO

N R

IVE

R

AVO

CA

RIV

ER

WIM

MER

A R

IVER

OVENS RIVER

HO

PKIN

S R

IVER

CAM

PASP

E RI

VER

GLEN

ELG

RIVE

R

YARRA RIVER

TAM

BO

RIV

ER

KIN

G R

IVE

R

SNOW

Y RI

VER

MO

UN

T EM

U C

REE

K

BULL

OCK

CRE

EK

WANNON RIVER

GO

ULB

UR

N R

IVER

AVON

RIVER

MIT

TA M

ITTA

RIV

ER

KIEWA R

IVER

THOMSON RIVER

BUCH

AN R

IVER

FIERY

CREE

K

CAN

N R

IVER

SEVEN CREEKS

BIG R

IVER

BET B

ET CR

EEK

MO

YNE

RIV

ER

DELATITE

RIVER

FITZROY RIVER

BUFFALO RIVER

TIM

BARR

A RI

VER

AC

HE

RO

N R

IVE

R

SALT

CRE

EK

SPRING CREEK

GENOA RIVER

BASS

RIVE

R

CURD

IES

RIVE

R

THU

RR

A R

IVER

MO

OR

AB

OO

L RIVER

PER

RY

RIV

ER

MACKENZIE RIVER

PLE

NTY

RIV

ER

AIRE RIVE

R

YAR

RO

WEE R

IVER

LANG LANG RIVER

DEDDICK RIVER

MU

RR

IND

AL

RIV

ER

LERDERDERG RIVER

BAR

KLY R

IVER

WE

NTW

OR

TH R

IVE

R

WATTS

RIVER

TARW

IN R

IVER

LOCH RIVER

TARAGO RIVER

AVO

N R

IVE

R

BIG RIVER

Wyperfeld NP

Murray - Sunset NP

Alpine NP

Yarra Ranges NP

Snowy River NP

Little Desert NP

Grampians NP



Barmah NP

Croajingolong NP

Mount Buffalo NP

Errinundra NP

Coopracambra NP


Lower Glenelg NP

Hattah - Kulkyne NP

French Island NP

Baw Baw NP

Kinglake NP

Great Otway NP


Point Addis MNP


Cape Howe MNP

Point Hicks MNP

Gunbower NP

Alfred NP

Warby-Ovens NP

French Island MNP

St Arnaud Range NP

Discovery Bay MNP

Bunurong MNP


Brisbane Ranges NP


Greater Bendigo NP



Terrick Terrick NP

Lower Goulburn NP

Corner Inlet MNP


Yaringa MNP


Port Campbell NP




Yea

Ouyen

Nhill

Yarram

Orbost

Echuca

Cohuna

Stawell

Mildura

BendigoHorsham

Portland

Hamilton

WarragulTraralgon

Swan Hill

Melbourne

Mansfield

Korumburra

Bairnsdale

Camperdown

Maryborough

Lakes Entrance

Sale

Bright

Wodonga

Corryong


Warrnambool




Kilometers

N#



SUGGAN BUG

GAN RIVER

GLE

NE

LG R

IVE

R

Ramsar Wetlands

BROKEN RIVER

KANGAROO LAKE

HOWQUA RIVE

R

MA

CA

LISTER R

IVER

WONNANGATTA RIVER

AB

ER

FELD

Y R

I VE

R

BEM

M R

IVER

ARTE

RIVE

R

ERR

INU

ND

RA

RI V

E R

LAKE HUME

LAKE TYRRELL

LAKE EILDON

LAKE KING

LAKE HINDMARSH

LAKE MOKOAN

WARANGA BASIN

LAKE BULOKE

ROCKLANDS RESERVOIR

LAKE DARTMOUTH

LAKE ALBACUTYA

LAKE COLAC

LAKE MULWALA

LAKE EPPALOCK

KOW SWAMP

LAKE COLEMAN

LAKE GNARPURT

LAKE BURRUMBEET

MURRAY RIVER

LOD

DO

N R

IVE

RAV

OC

A R

IVER

WIM

MER

A R

IVER

OVENS RIVER

HO

PKIN

S R

IVER

CAM

PASP

E RI

VER

GLEN

ELG

RIVE

R

YARRA RIVER

TAM

BO

RIV

ER

KIN

G R

IVE

R

SNOW

Y RI

VER

MO

UN

T EM

U C

REE

K

BULL

OCK

CRE

EK

WANNON RIVER

GO

ULB

UR

N R

IVER

AVON

RIVER

MIT

TA M

ITTA

RIV

ER

KIEWA R

IVER

THOMSON RIVER

BUCH

AN R

IVER

FIERY

CREE

K

CAN

N R

IVER

SEVEN CREEKS

BIG R

IVER

BET B

ET CR

EEK

MO

YNE

RIV

ER

DELATITE

RIVER

FITZROY RIVER

BUFFALO RIVER

TIM

BARR

A RI

VER

AC

HE

RO

N R

IVE

R

SALT

CRE

EK

SPRING CREEK

GENOA RIVER

BASS

RIVE

R

CURD

IES

RIVE

R

THU

RR

A R

IVER

MO

OR

AB

OO

L RIVER

PER

RY

RIV

ER

MACKENZIE RIVER

PLE

NTY

RIV

ER

AIRE RIVE

R

YAR

RO

WEE R

IVER

LANG LANG RIVER

DEDDICK RIVER

MU

RR

IND

AL

RIV

ER

LERDERDERG RIVER

BAR

KLY R

IVER

WE

NTW

OR

TH R

IVE

R

WATTS

RIVER

TARW

IN R

IVER

LOCH RIVER

TARAGO RIVER

AVO

N R

IVE

R

BIG RIVER

Wyperfeld NP

Murray - Sunset NP

Alpine NP

Yarra Ranges NP

Snowy River NP

Little Desert NP

Grampians NP



Barmah NP

Croajingolong NP

Mount Buffalo NP

Errinundra NP

Coopracambra NP


Lower Glenelg NP

Hattah - Kulkyne NP

French Island NP

Baw Baw NP

Kinglake NP

Great Otway NP


Point Addis MNP


Cape Howe MNP

Point Hicks MNP

Gunbower NP

Alfred NP

Warby-Ovens NP

French Island MNP

St Arnaud Range NP

Discovery Bay MNP

Bunurong MNP


Brisbane Ranges NP


Greater Bendigo NP



Terrick Terrick NP

Lower Goulburn NP

Corner Inlet MNP


Yaringa MNP


Port Campbell NP




Yea

Ouyen

Nhill

Yarram

Orbost

Echuca

Cohuna

Stawell

Mildura

BendigoHorsham

Portland

Hamilton

WarragulTraralgon

Swan Hill

Melbourne

Mansfield

Korumburra

Bairnsdale

Camperdown

Maryborough

Lakes Entrance

Sale

Bright

Wodonga

Corryong


Warrnambool




Kilometers

N#



SUGGAN BUG

GAN RIVER

GLE

NE

LG R

IVE

R


”

2 The Wimmera: a river, a regionChAPTER TWOIntroduction‘[IntheWimmera]thehistorictrendofpopulationdeclineischanging.AsHorshamcontinuestogrowastheregionalcentre,manysmalltownsarealsoexperiencingslightgrowthinpopulation.’39

This trend towards more new, unconnected people in the landscape provides an interesting launching pad for reflections on community and individual resilience and the role of participation in promoting resourcefulness in an age where climate change will be impacting the region, exposing it to more extreme events.

The Wimmera’s long drought, punctuated by fires in the Grampians, was terminated by epic flooding in 2011, which changed the landscape to such an extent that wetlands appeared in places where non-Aboriginal people had no recall of them. Towns in the region were cut off, and communities that already understood themselves to be remote had to contend with a whole new understanding of ‘isolation’.

Accepting growth and CSIRO climate change projections,40 both old and new residents of the Wimmera will need to think of ways to work with environmental uncertainty. This will require greater levels of participation.

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

Dimboola Weir Park signage – restored twice after natural disasters

27

The Wimmera

Data collected from Department of Sustainability and Environment, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Department of Planning and Community Development and Wimmera Catchment Management Authority


Wyperfeld NP

Little Desert NP

Grampians NP

St Arnaud Range NP

Brady Swam N.P.

AVOCA

RIVER

WIMM

ERA

RIVE

R

GLENELG RIVER

FIER

Y CR

EEK

WAN

NON

RIVE

R

HOPK

INS

RIVE

R

BET

BET

CREE

KAVON RIVER

RICH

ARDS

ON RIV

ERMACKENZIE RIVER

LAKE HINDMARSH

LAKE BULOKE

ROCKLANDS RESERVOIR

LAKE LONSDALE

LAKE BURRUMBEET

LAKE ALBACUTYA

!Wimmera RegionTour Locations

Parks and Reserves

State Forest

Other Public Land

Marine National Park/Sanctuary

Coastal Park/Reserve

RAMSAR wetlands

Heritage Rivers

Waterbody

Major Watercourse

Roads

Source: DSE/DPI Corporate Spatial DataLibrary, 2012.© The State of Victoria, 2012.

0 20 4010

KilometersN#

WIM

MERA

RIVER

Environment in the WimmeraThe Wimmera landscape is scored by one major river that, highly unusually, flows inland. The Wimmera River is classified as ‘heritage’ from Polkemmet Bridge south-west of the West Wail State Forest and directly south of the Little Desert National Park up to the Lake Agnes and the Wirrengren Plain in the Wyperfeld National Park.

WimmeraRegionalTourLocations

Indigenous cultural connection is evident, not just in the Ebenezer Mission ‘ruin’ and cemetery, but also along the length of the Wimmera River, where canoe and coolamon trees proliferate.

Mines that provide Melbourne households with rock salt were at one time a place where local Wotjaboluk people obtained work. Uncle Patrick Kennedy reported working at a salt mine beyond Ebenezer Mission in his overcoat until he was physically unable to continue.41

The Barengi–Gadjin Land Council operates as a natural resources management organisation examining areas of significance along the Wimmera River. A memorandum of understanding between Indigenous landowners and councils has helped to clarify roles and responsibilities.

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

Little Desert Nature Lodge

Wyperfeld NP

Little Desert NP

Grampians NP

St Arnaud Range NP

Brady Swam N.P.

AVOCA

RIVER

WIMM

ERA

RIVE

R

GLENELG RIVER

FIER

Y CR

EEK

WAN

NON

RIVE

R

HOPK

INS

RIVE

R

BET

BET

CREE

K

AVON RIVER

RICH

ARDS

ON RIV

ER

MACKENZIE RIVER

LAKE HINDMARSH

LAKE BULOKE

ROCKLANDS RESERVOIR

LAKE LONSDALE

LAKE BURRUMBEET

LAKE ALBACUTYA

!Wimmera RegionTour Locations

Parks and Reserves

State Forest

Other Public Land

Marine National Park/Sanctuary

Coastal Park/Reserve

RAMSAR wetlands

Heritage Rivers

Waterbody

Major Watercourse

Roads

Source: DSE/DPI Corporate Spatial DataLibrary, 2012.© The State of Victoria, 2012.

0 20 4010

KilometersN#

WIM

MERA

RIVER

Sunrise

at the Lit

tle Deser

t Nature

Lodge

Ramsar Wetlands

29

TheMountArapiles–ToonStatePark, 230 metres high, comprised of quartz and sandstone, and home to the Red-tailed

Black-Cockatoo, Red-necked Wallaby and Brush-tailed Phascogale presents the best rock climbing sites, 2,000 of them, in Australia.

Peregrine Falcons, threatened in Victoria, return to the park each year in spring to breed. Endangered species, the Rock Wattle and Skeleton

fork-fern, populate the slopes.

Private and personal commitment to environmental conservation in the region plays out in an estimated 163 Land for Wildlife habitat sites and

183 Trust for Nature covenants, which cover an area of 6,244 hectares.42 Volunteer bird monitors in December 2011 recorded the Powerful Owl,

Painted Snipe, Australian Pratincole and critically endangered Intermediate Egret in the regional ‘challenge’. Local farming families hold membership of

the Environmental Farmers Network.

In the strangest of places environmental surprises can be had. In defiance of feral or household cats and dogs, a pair of Bush Stone Curlew can be found at the central HorshamWimmeraRiverPark. The Dimboola Memorial School retains its own plot of undamaged Mallee – one of the great carbon sink species.

The national park, named after the Scottish range by Major Mitchell, and given the Indigenous place name Gariwerd, jaggedly ruptures the surrounding plains. Rare, vulnerable, critically endangered and threatened species and communities can be found across the range.

Bush-stone curlew at Horsham Wimmera River caravan Park


GrampiansspecieslistedintheEnvironmentProtectionandBiodiversityConservationAct1999

Commonname Scientificname EPBCcodeCloverGlycine Glycine latrobeana Vulnerable

DownyStar-Bush Asterolasia phebalioides Vulnerable

ElegantSpider-orchid Caladenia formosa Vulnerable

GrampiansBitter-pea Daviesia laevis Vulnerable

GrampiansRice-flower Pimelea pagophila Vulnerable

OrnatePink-fingers Caladenia ornata Vulnerable

RiverSwampWallaby-grass Amphibromus fluitans Vulnerable

SpiralSun-orchid Thelymitra matthewsii Vulnerable

TrailingHop-bush Dodonaea procumbens Vulnerable

Williamson’sBush-pea Pultenaea williamsoniana Vulnerable

GrampiansBitter-pea Borya mirabilis Endangered

SouthernPipewort Eriocaulon australasicum Endangered

MetallicSun-orchid Thelymitra epipactoides Endangered

SmokyMouse Pseudomys fumeus Endangered

SouthernBrownBandicoot Isoodon obesulus obesulus Endangered

SwiftParrot Lathamus discolor Endangered

Brush-tailedRock-wallaby Petrogale penicillata Vulnerable

DwarfGalaxias Galaxiella pusilla Vulnerable

GrowlingGrassFrog Litoria raniformis Vulnerable

HeathMouse Pseudomys shortridgei Vulnerable

Long-nosedPotoroo Potorous tridactylus tridactylus Vulnerable

Red-tailedBlack-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus banksi Endangered

YarraPigmyPerch Nannoperca obscura Vulnerable

Brambuk Tourist Centre serves to inform visitors about Indigenous culture and continuities, biodiversity and public enjoyment of the park. The small town of Halls Gap provides accommodation and services for tourists.

Smokey Mouse

Photo courtesy of

Jenny Nelson

Grampians National Park Silverband Road storm

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

Spiral S

un-orch

id

Photo c

ourtesy

of Mike D

uncan N

elson

31

Landslides in Grampians National Park

Grampians National Park Silverband Road storm


The torrentOur first formal visit to GrampiansNationalPark followed the 2011 floods.45 Seven months later, massive slides of mud, boulders and gravel were still visible.46

Parks Victoria staff members, some resident in the area, were present during and remained throughout the floods, shouldering public, personal and organisational risks. They could only adapt to the events, resourcefully and with as much resilience as they could muster.

Expecting extremity, staff proactively evacuated the park, installed 55 gates across park entrances, and personally, and by air, toured camping grounds and car parks. Parks Victoria staff, with the public, sandbagged Halls Gap.

Parks Victoria staff worked to evacuate the town. Wave after wave of road obstructions were cleared while winds battered the park repeatedly, taking out phone connections and roads. The Air Services Australia telecommunications tower on Mount William was knocked out but not damaged.

Other agency personnel were initially disbelieving of the level of damage. The Grampians was deluged with 300 mm of rain in 24–48 hours. Impacts included damage to 500 km of road, seven car bridges and 22 pedestrian bridges. The park was closed entirely for five months. Landslips of varying degrees tallied 192. Eight or nine landslips rolled into HallsGap. Landslips remained a dominant feature across the length of the western ranges for months. The Dunkeld–Halls Gap Road was blocked for seven months.

community participate in sandbagging to save Halls Gap during storm*

Flood waters Halls

Gap

Grampians Nationa

l Park*

*Photos courtesy of Parks Victoria Grampians

Wannon River during Lake Bolac Eel Festival

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

33

Boulders on road in landslips*

Boulders on road in landslips*

Small creek after landslides*

Road damage from storm*

At Zumsteins, logs compressed around the bridge, forcing flood waters through the town. Brambuk Tourist Centre was under 1 metre of water and 30 centimetres of mud. Stony Creek was flowing freely through the town, and every shop was flooded and shut. The water came to within 10 centimetres of the main bridge.

Silverband Road Grampians National Park*

Silverband Falls walking track Grampians National Park*

GRAMPIANS

NATIONALP

ARK


Silverband Falls after the destruction

Mt Victory landslid

e during the event

Mt Abrupt landslide after the destruction*

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

Silverband Falls wh

en flooding first

started*

35

Giant boulders in riverbed moved during

landslips

In the park itself, Silverband Road was very badly damaged, sustaining the combined impact of two or three landslips. Water undermined, lifted, buckled and broke up the asphalt. Large channels up to 20 metres wide tore out the bush and tree cover. Boulders the size of cars were deposited at intervals down the valley. Some roads and walking tracks will never reopen. Mount Victory Road only reopened on 18 November 2011 and the walkway to the Venice Baths, with 300,000 visitors a year, is likely to remain closed to the public.

The McKenzie River, a tributary of the Wimmera, previously contained in a bed 2 metres deep, now courses through an eroded 12-metre drop. Returning to its usual flow regime, a mere trickle now joins the Wimmera River.

Lake Bellfield the principal source for drinking water for the region, came under threat. Lake Wartook remained at 107 per cent of capacity for two weeks, requiring the use of the second emergency spillway.

ParksVictoria employee Head Ranger Grampians National Park David Roberts reported the impacts of this deluge.

A man not given to exaggeration, he told us:‘WhenpeopleinHallsGaphearheavyrainontheroofnow,anxietylevelsstarttorise.

No-oneknewtheywereatriskoflandslidesthatcouldcompletelyaltertheirlandscape.

Peopleareusedto20metresofsoilbeingalandslip;nottheavalanches

we’vewitnessed.Hugeboulders,biggerthantrucks,weremovedaroundlike

theyweresmallstones.Thousandsandthousandsoftonnesofsoil,rocks,timberandroadscrackedliketheydoinan

earthquake–thiscausedintenseshock.’

It was in this environment that the Parks Victoria staff worked through the nights and days.

The McKenzie River joins the Wimmera River – the calm after the storm


”

Resilience and responsivenessNatural cycles can and do respond with resilience. Parks Victoria staff reminded us that brolgas have rebounded, numbers of the heath mouse have bounced, and wetlands have been flushed.

People can be both vulnerable and resilient. During the crisis, members of the public and Parks Victoria staff responded quickly, proactively and innovatively, but as we should expect, some are now fatigued.

In some cases, Parks Victoria staff had just recovered from the 2006 fires when these floods were upon them, tearing up the carefully planned and executed recovery work of the previous years.

They talk now about this being:‘…deeplydiscouraging.’

Parks Victoria staff made do with the resources available to them, including human resources. They made decisions, sometimes taken quickly and with potentially lasting impacts, which were not always well understood at the time. This has the potential to create anxiety for everyone involved.

Brolgas nesting St Marnocks

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

Photo courtesy of Peter Forster

37

Participation and communication promotes insightIn an emergency situation, the skill required to engage a non-resilient public is of enormous value and sorely tested. Call this ability ‘community engagement’, but it really is the capacity to empower people while encouraging participation and providing them with guidance in situations of great uncertainty. The value of this skill set is not well understood.

In these extreme circumstances, participation and sharing has been promoted, and communication has taken many forms. Involvement occurred on a number of levels, picking up on lessons learnt from the earlier fires.

Parks Victoria staff coordinated the early response and collaborations until the shire took over. The public actively sought information and joined in the efforts being undertaken. Public meetings were called and completely candid tours were conducted. Then all the agencies – VicRoads, catchment management authorities and local government – worked together. Regular meetings have since become routine. Partnerships and relationships have been forged, discussions and consideration of mutual and individual issues take place, information is shared and problems jointly solved.

Upfront and honest communication has been followed by writing up, and briefings with the community, businesses and other agencies have been bedrock. Openness avoids miscommunication and typifies more healthy relationships and better outcomes. People are more immediately self-reliant and this has long-term benefits.

Working through this disaster, Parks Victoria has been prompted to review all of its disaster responses. The focus is on cultivating participation, which assists in the development of emergency response skills across a wide array of stakeholders, including staff and the general public.

Landcarer conversations and participationSitting down to talk to ‘landcarers’ and others supported a calmer consideration of community activities and how the value of participatory processes is understood. Community organisations bring people together, reinforce the importance of the work they do, encourage both individuals and groups, enhance participation and promote self-reliance. Shared local knowledge prompts self-reliance and works to future-proof the public and private domain.

ProjectPlatypus program manager with a full complement of people in their specially hired bus showed us the country they care about.47 Members come from a vast landscape, from the Grampians to the Pyrenees. Project Platypus partners other Landcare groups, has 230 volunteers and involves eight school groups and a work-for-the-dole group. These environmental stewards blend social, economic and environmental concerns across farmland, townships, schools and other volunteer groupings. TheProjectPlatypusAnnualGeneralMeeting to which we were invited, was very well attended, clearly providing connections, supports and encouragement.

Practically, the project and the public work on weed and feral pest eradication, reconstructing wetlands, and forging formal and informal biolinks. They see the urgent need for this work given the extent of land clearing in the past and the vulnerability of small mammals, including threatened bandicoots. The field trip grounded our understanding of the work being done and allowed a range of people to participate in a conversation about these activities on country about which they had expertise. The full extent of the project, planting 75,000 trees to date, is directly attributable to the organisation and the manner in which it includes people in the work.


Our guides took us to properties that had been cleared, originally in compliance with government regulations, where landscape restoration was now the aim.

Local knowledge extended to the recall of named old residents associated with particular places; the lay of disused roads and the viability of bogs; the time of the last flood and height of the water; a knowledge of which bridges were washed out. Our guides told us about fire patterns (how local grasslands burn with greater speed than woodlands) and fire histories.

One property, encompassing an old disused Aboriginal greenstone quarry had been partially restored over the past 20 years, before Project Platypus started. Benefits of tree planting and abandonment of drains were explained to us. Swampiness associated with fluke was abated even in years of heavy rains. Salinity was reduced.

People recalled that some paddocks had been:‘…whitewithsaltinthe1990s.’

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

”

39

Not only had tree planting helped to reduce salinity, but the efforts of those who participated on the work had helped bring change to conservative farming methods.

At one property, notwithstanding the recent very heavy rainfall, we were told, as farmer’s do, that more was always welcome, as falls were still ‘way below’ average. Here, salinity reduction over 20 years of tree planting was obvious. A previously unusable creek paddock was now stocked. Tree lines provided stock shelter belts and brought birds that balanced insect numbers.

Our attention was drawn to a stand of Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBdC Act)-protected buloke at

the foot of a paddock.‘…themostsoutherninthestate.’

Endangered by farming practices, these are feeding sources for the endangered South-eastern subspecies

of the Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo.

Immense local pride in the retention of this stand of buloke was obvious.

South-eastern Red-tailed Black-cockatoo

Photo courtesy of South-eastern Red-tailed

Black-Cockatoo Project www.redtail.com.au

Photo taken by Wayne Bigg

”

Bulokes


”

Local and activeMatter-of-fact self-reliance promoted the continuation of the local SustainablePasture/ProductionGroup after its establishment in partnership with the Department of Primary Industries (DPI). The group now has 128 local members, one part-time staffer, and an ethos of self-promotion, collaboration and the active sharing of information.

Moving from land-based stewardship efforts, we met with the CEO of the WimmeraCatchmentManagementAuthority(Wimmera CMA), David Brennan, a local with a local’s extensive knowledge. This catchment management authority, like others we met with around the state, involves itself in community issues, sponsoring participation about matters of interest to local people.

These conversations taught us that climate change was being felt unevenly and the science was often misunderstood and ‘not popular’ when it provided a critique of old farming practices. The comment was made that it would be helpful if climate scientists found a way to better communicate climate change uncertainties without paralysing people in terms of what they should do.

Again, on the changing nature of farming and climate uncertainties, the benefits of native vegetation in a carbon farming regime had to be communicated meaningfully.

Innovators could struggle to implement change so, we were told, it was important to empower people with information and the ability to act. The observation was– ‘Weneedtomakesurethatwedon’tmissoutonopportunities.’

A short but intense conversation about change management in uncertain times provided a focal point for our discussions. Techniques had to be flexible and adaptive, well communicated, and based on and reflective of local priorities. Where centralisation limits meaningful participation, understanding is likely to be reduced and inventiveness and resourcefulness constrained.

The persistent local view was that participatory land management and conservation practices had benefits. If these practices were launched and nurtured locally, they would work. Wetlands tender in the Wimmera, with 25 per cent of Victoria’s wetlands, was a case in point.

A compelling illustration of the success of localised wetlands tender was witnessed at Paul and LizJackman’s farm at Clear Lake in the West Wimmera. At the Jackman’sfarm a tender attached to a long-held family farming property was approved over three to four months, and then equally quickly, acres of productive farming land were fenced off and planted with local native species. The relationship between the local tender partners was warm and supportive. Discussion about different ways of doing things was convivial and respectful, and understandings of preferential plantings and proposals were worked out very quickly, taking advantage of the wet conditions.

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

41

”

Paul Jackman, standing in the water and holding nardoo in his hand, talked about:‘…brolgasonthewetlands[whenhewasalad].’

He and Liz hope to see them back. Herons and spoonbills have already returned. Frogs can be heard at the house about a kilometre away in the evenings. Plants like ‘Early Nancy’, the New Holland Daisy and cane grass are also back in the watered flats.

Paul Jackman retrieving Nardoo from his newly rehabilitated wetland. Two years ago this area was a dusty sheep paddock


”

Wetlands in the region had already responded well to the rains, and this program encouraged local participation, supported enterprise and celebrated gains. This successful partnership now promotes broader participation in wetlands stewardship in the district.

After talking to the CEO of the WimmeraCMA, we also spoke to some of the organisational staff.49 Our conversation began with a focus on the instrumental.50

As we exhausted those topics, we turned to a discussion of relationships, partnerships, participation and trust. Comment was made – ‘Youcan’tjusttellpeoplewhattodo;theyhavetotrustyou.’

Community engagement, community ownership of projects and publication of results locally were all features of the Wimmera CMA program. The potential to build resilience both socially and economically could be facilitated through the Carbon Farming Initiative and land buybacks.

Inventiveness in the face of uncertainty We accepted an invitation to visit the VictorianNo-TillgroupatCoromby. Starting with eight local farmers, some with long histories in the region, the group is actively involved in, and promoting (both among themselves and more widely), peer-based learning about innovation in cropping techniques.

The group is completely independent of government and relies upon the input of its members only. It is participatory, collaborative and authorising. The farmers drive the program themselves.

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

43

”

”

”

We heard a lot about why they were participating and innovating.‘We’realldrivenbydebt.’

‘Weallwanttoleaveourplacebetterthanwegotit.’

‘…there’llbeno-oneleftinthefarmingcommunityifwedon’tgetoutthereandhelpeachother.’

‘Wehadtomakedecisions–leaveorchange.’

‘…adversitybreedsinnovation…’

‘Theclimateischanging.Ithasbeenthesecondwarmestwinteronrecord.’

As ‘social learners’, typically adopting new techniques and obtaining new information through word of mouth, they suggested that they:‘…preferlisteningtootherexperiencedfarmersonthetopicratherthanthescientistswhocanbehardtofollow.’

Craig Schodde, of Coromby, has been quoted:‘…wearealllearning,anddayslikethis…whereweallgettogether,areagreatwayoflearningfromotherpeople’sexperiences.’


”

”Those in this network:‘…doesn’twantthenewcomertorepeat[ourearlier]mistakes.’

A network of people, a group of participants, learn from each other. Networking lends itself to a mentoring program and encourages outreach. No-Till farmers have been conducting information stalls and talking to people at farm field days and bringing in expertise to discuss innovation. Collectively they were delighted to be sharing ideas, as this keeps the community ‘alive’.

They found that sharing and working successfully on new methods of farming has been revitalising and:‘…helpedgetthepassionbackintothemforfarming.’

No-Till farming allows them to stay on the land and do the things they want to, raise their families, produce food, make a living, and be challenged and intellectually stimulated. It is rigorous.

‘…it’sasystemthatyouhavetodoproperly.Youcan’tchopandchange.’

Wryly humble about their achievements, the conversation bubbled along about ‘good timing’, as they commenced operations during the drought when soil moisture was at a premium. They innovated and were not risk-averse, helping each other to make the hard decisions, which have paid off – they had low start-up costs, were less dependent on rain, were able to grow a crop in drought, had better soils and would be sustainable in bad years.

They had moved into a new era, adapting to change – they had to be farmers, accountants, engineers and innovators.

CH

AP

TER

TW

O

45

Issues on the groundDemonstrating the cultural capacity of the region, our Horshampublicforum was accompanied by a photographic display and presentation.

The evening’s discussion was very issue-driven, underpinned by an acceptance of climate change science.

Planned burning was criticised by many of the 40 people in this forum, and also later at the Regional Leaders Dinner, for its deleterious impact upon bio

Date post:	04-Feb-2021
Category:	Documents
Upload:	others
View:	0 times
Download:	0 times

MANY PUBLICS PARTICIPATION · 2016. 9. 14. · 07-11 Feb 2011 Mildura to Macedon 11-15 Apr 2011...

Documents