Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

January 2005Issue No. 13

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A paddock by Walli Creek transformed, and Doc Eckley witha two-year-old eucalypt. [Darryl & Silvi Eckley]

Incorporating NEWS of theMary River Catchment Coordinating Committee

CODLineThe

Doc EckleyKenilworth

G’day. Five years ago I bought a 100acre property near Kenilworth. I hadalways wanted some land to run myhorses and some beef cattle. So for thefirst four years I went about cuttingdown trees, building yards, fixing fencesand breeding cattle.

At the same time I started working as aWildlife Ranger, firstly for Bunya Parkand then later at Australia Zoo. Duringmy time as a ranger I worked mainlywith koalas. When I left the zoo it gaveme more time to spend on the farm.Also it gave me more of an appreciationfor our vanishing wildlife. That’s whenthe tree planting started.

My first idea was to turn seven acres ofcreek flat back into koala habitat. But Istill needed to make money. I decided toplant 5000 eucalyptus trees at about 1.5metre spacing. Of course this is way tooclose, but the plan was to harvest a lotof the trees and sell the leaf back towildlife parks to feed their captivekoalas.

Well, the plan worked just fine. Somespecies reached 3 metres in 7 months; at3 metres they are ready for harvest. Therest of the trees just keep growing, andeventually they will shade out the treesthat I harvest. At the end of the day Iwill have created a koala habitat thatwill have paid for itself. Not bad huh?

About this time I joined the MRCCCand that’s when everything went down-

11,000 trees feed koalas by Walli Ck

hill. Well, what I mean is that when youdon’t know what weeds are on yourproperty you don’t see them and don’tworry. Also you think your creek bankslook great and the riparian vegetation isjust fine. Warning! The more you learn,the more you care, and the more prob-lems you will see.

After my basic environmental educationfrom the knowledgeable, helpful andenthusiastic team at the MRCCC, wedecided it might be good to plant a lotof other species of trees so that wecould create a natural riparian zone forall wildlife.

The Frogitat. That’s the name I gave tothe new project. Another 5000 trees,

only 2000 eucalyptus this time. The restof the trees were supplied by theMRCCC under Threatened SpeciesNetwork grants. Our aim to help localfrogs by recreating good habitat.

This is the first time I had planted rain-forest species, and after working withfast-growing tough eucalypts it wasquite a shock. Well, I mean some ofthese trees died if they saw me walkpast just holding the Round-Up. Andwhat a joy to see them grow, not 3 me-tres in 7 months like the eucalyptus,more like 3 centimetres.

I have learnt that rainforest trees like tolive in rainforest. Sounds simple, but

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Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

11,000 trees... continued from Page 1

when you are trying to turn grazing areaback to rainforest the trees don’t likethe harsh conditions and grow veryslowly. On my farm I combat this prob-lem using the fast growing eucalypts.Firstly I plant an edge of euc’s to pro-tect the other trees from the sun, windand frost, then as the trees get strongerI remove some euc’s to make moreroom and allow more light in. A euca-lyptus tree costs less than a dollar sodon’t be afraid to plant them close andthen remove some later. This system isgreat for me, the rainforest trees aregrowing, and the Frogitat is working. Isee new species arrive all the time.

Just as importantly, I have made walk-ing tracks and areas to sit and enjoy thehabitat. This helps attract people to seewhat can be done and inspires them todo some tree planting of their own.

All up, my revegetation projects nowtake up 10 acres. We have plantednearly 11,000 trees, and fenced andweeded 1 kilometre of creek line. Theseacres were used previously for grazingcattle. Ten acres of flats which frost inwinter really only support one horse ortwo cows. Now the area can support alarge number of our native wildlife. Itproduces an income through the koalaleaf and through the B&B that we runon the farm. And let’s not forget thewarm fuzzy feeling you get from seeingyour own forest grow.

If you do have some creek flats of yourown on which cattle or horses graze,then compare it with an area of creekthat is not grazed by stock and has someremnant vegetation. If you really havean honest look, you will see the impactcattle and horses are having. There aremany new opportunities out there.Tourism, bush foods and flavours, na-tive flowers and even farm forestry.

I would like to thank the MRCCC stafffor their practical help, experience andenthusiasm. This project would not havehappened without them. I highly recom-mend to anyone with a creek in thecatchment to give them a call for infor-mation or advice on the health of theriparian zone, and what you can do tohelp.

Angus Hutton, PresidentGympie & District LandcareGroup

Do we want to leave future generationswith a healthy river and sustainable pri-mary production or with something ap-proaching a polluted drain? If it is theformer then we need to start making thesort of investment which will make adifference, which will turn around thedamage from the past and help underpinour future prosperity.

The Mary River and its tributaries arethe arteries of the land. In this, the dri-est inhabited continent, it is vital welook after our waterways. Decades ofill-conceived clearing, along withwoody and viny weed infestation andneglect, have left much of the river, es-pecially the middle reaches, in a verysorry state. We need to ramp up effortsto revegetate the creek and river banks,but it’s a time-consuming and costlybusiness.

The question we have to ask is whoshould be paying for it?

Currently the Sunshine Coast urbancommunities of Noosa, Maroochydoreand Caloundra consume 40 per cent ofall the water extracted from the MaryRiver. In the next 20 years this popula-tion is predicted to double, and demandfor water might too. Where will thatleave irrigated agriculture in the Marycatchment? Fairness and equity demandthat the urban water users on the Sun-shine Coast contribute more financialresources to this important work.

We suggest a ‘Catchment Repair Levy’,applied to all users of reticulated waterthat comes from the Mary River, shouldbe introduced to help fund riparianrevegetation works along the MaryRiver and its tributaries. To be fair itshould be directly linked to the amountof water used, applied as a percentageof the water usage charges levied byLocal Government Authorities. In hisacceptance speech at the Sunshine

Rivercare GST for theMary River’s future

Coast Environment Awards last year,our Operations Manager, PaulMarshall, received a thunderous ap-plause when he introduced this conceptof a Catchment Repair Levy. This dem-onstrates to us that it is a conceptwhose time has come.

We think the proposed Catchment Re-pair Levy should be pegged at 10 percent, like the GST, but it could bephased in over a number of years. Themost efficient way to collect the Catch-ment Repair Levy would be throughLocal Government but the funds raisedshould be passed on to a CatchmentRepair Trust managed by a body such asthe Mary River Catchment CoordinatingCommittee.

I know there will be people who willsay, ‘Oh no, not another levy!’ How-ever, it should be viewed as an invest-ment in the future of our river and in thequality of our water supply. As waterextractions from the Mary River in-crease, all the environmental problemscaused by degraded riverbanks becomemore serious. If the river is allowed todegrade further and blue-green algaeoutbreaks become commonplace, LocalGovernment Authorities will need tostart investing in activated carbon treat-ment of reticulated water, which is veryexpensive.

Some years ago I visited the ColumbiaRiver in Washington State USA. It hadbeen turned around from a highly pol-luted and almost sterile river to one thatis again healthy with salmon spawning,thanks to a major focus on riverbankrevegetation and the installation of well-designed fish ladders. So I know it ispossible if there is enough political willand adequate funding.

It all comes down to how much wevalue our river.

To discuss these ideas further, contactAngus Hutton on 5482 6388 or PaulMarshall on 0408 925 725.

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Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

MRCCC to celebrate100 General MeetingsMRCCC to receive telegram from the Queen?On Wednesday 16 February 2005, Del-egates, Proxies and Special Guests ofthe award-winning Mary River Catch-ment Coordinating Committee will meetat the Gympie Civic Centre for thegroup’s historic 100th General Meeting.

The MRCCC’s first General Meetingwas held at Garapine on 23 November1993 and today much remains the same,including the representation of variousstakeholders on the Committee, all ofwhom share a common interest in as-pects of the Mary River and its envi-rons.

This catchment-wide organisation in-volves representatives from the Mary’sheadwaters in Maleny to Hervey Baywhere the river flows into the GreatSandy Straits.

Invitation to attend

In traditional fashion, the MRCCC’s100th General Meeting is scheduled tostart at 9.00 am for Coffee and Conver-sation, with the first item on the Agenda

scheduled for 10 am. As this will be aspecial meeting, the Agenda will includepresentations from founding membersand staff of the MRCCC, who will en-lighten Delegates and Special Guestsabout some aspects of the history ofintegrated catchment management inthis region. The MRCCC is also pro-ducing a commemorative booklet forthe occasion providing information onthe Committee and its achievementsover the last decade.

As is the case with all MRCCC GeneralMeetings, interested members of thecommunity are invited to attend as Ob-servers. If you would like to come alongor would like more information on theMRCCC, please contact the MaryCatchment Resource Centre on07 5482 4766.

… And to contribute

As a community-based organisation, theCommittee appreciates the views ofpeople other than regular Committee

members. Within time constraints, theChair may offer visitors and non-votingproxies the opportunity to participate indiscussions, or it may be possible toarrange to have an issue placed on theAgenda by contacting any of the Del-egates on the Committee.

MRCCC General Meetings are heldevery six weeks in Gympie and thedates for 2005 are as follows:

Wednesday 16 February(100th meeting,Gympie Civic Centre)

Monday 14 MarchWednesday 27 AprilMonday 6 JuneWednesday 20 JulyMonday 29 AugustWednesday 12 OctoberMonday 21 November.

Eva FordCatchment OfficerMary River CatchmentCoordinating Committee

On 6 December the sleepy section ofBelli Creek at Crossing No. 2 wasawakened to the spreading of mulch andthe swinging of mattocks as 16 GreenCorps members from two local teamscame together at the site. The aim of theday was to plant 250 native trees alonga bare creek bank to recreate a healthyriparian zone to protect the banks fromerosion, maintain good water qualityand create habitat for fauna.

The effort of the Green Corp teams andtheir leaders was mighty that day withall trees in the ground and watered.

The event was also a chance for theteams to come together for social inter-action as they usually work on differentsites around Gympie and the SunshineCoast. A picnic at Belli Creek CrossingNo. 1 and a kick around with a footballwas a fitting end to a good day’s work.The Green Corps members are agedbetween 17 and 21 and undertake sixmonths of training to help them enterthe workforce with some environmentalskills and credentials under their belts.With only 3 weeks left of their training,an excuse for a bit of socializing wasmost welcome after a job well done.

This area at Belli Creek has been thetarget of Rivercare work for a numberof years. The Mary River CatchmentCoordinating Committee (MRCCC) has

joined forces with Greening Australiastaff based at Maroochy Shire Counciland the Gympie and Caloundra GreenCorp teams now and in the past to re-generate this area. This site has experi-enced tree clearing for various reasonsin the past but is now recognised for itsenvironmental significance and highrecovery potential. MRCCC volunteersand staff monitor the site for waterquality on a monthly basis and it is alsoa fauna monitoring site.

The tree plant is part of an MRCCCproject that is working towards con-necting Belli Creek with a section ofKenilworth State Forest.

Eva Ford can be contacted on5482 4766 or via mrccc@ozwide.net.au

Belli Bolstered

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Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

Steve KellyGestational ICM Coordinator1992-1997

Hearty congratulations to the MRCCC!Not only have they received the 2004National Rivercare Award for groupsbut they have reached an historic mile-stone… 100 General Meetings.

There was a time when we didn’t looklike hitting four let alone a 100! Whocan forget the large public meeting atKenilworth State School in early 1993when a conservationist in the audiencesuggested there were too many farmersbeing nominated for the selection com-mittee? You could have heard a pindrop.

In the early days many people held as-sumptions about others’ roles and inten-tions that were undeserved. Many of thefarming community have been the back-bone of the MRCCC and have been acontinual source of practical ideas forimplementing environmental solutions.It was a matter of engaging them inculturally appropriate ways.

The MRCCC worked tirelessly atfocussing on the processes needed tointroduce catchment management in avery diverse and often diametricallyopposed community. Anything elsewould have left people taking upstaunch positions with little room formoving ahead on the many complexnatural resource management issues inthe Mary. It is testament to the passion,

patience and perseverance of individualmembers of the MRCCC that they madeit through the first few years.

Since the early days the MRCCC hasgradually increased its skilled paid staffthrough various funding programs tobring other ways of managing naturalresources into the Mary arena. Commu-nity-based water quality monitoring,dairy effluent management, riverbankfencing, whole river rehabilitation plan-ning, Mary Cod recovery, revegetationfor biodiversity all brought an essentialblend of new thinking and local knowl-edge. But testing and pushing long-heldviews, in both the community and ingovernment agencies, was no mean featand required the MRCCC to becomeinvolved deeply in the world ofattitudinal change. Strategies involvingparadigm busting, adult education, peo-ple’s world view, strategic alliances,brokering and mentoring come to mind.

At a recent meeting of landholders inthe Upper Mary I heard words like flu-vial, biodiversity and riparian in thesame breath as ecosystem, rehabilita-tion, and natural capital. The MRCCC’sprograms and those of the Landcaremovement in the Mary must take a bow,for the words people use in everydaylife indicate a substantial ripple effect,permanent change and strong founda-tions for future MRCCC work.

Many MRCCC general meetings oc-curred against a background of contro-versy, which doubtless forged the

MRCCC hits a ton! MRCCC into a tight unit, but alsothreatened its existence at times… theerudite, vociferous and passionate de-bates between the pro-dam and anti-dam factions on the early MRCCC…the infamous ROSS meeting in Cooroy… breakaway groups in Maryboroughand the bush lawyers carping and threat-ening to bring the whole shebangdown… not to mention the suspicionsurrounding the fact that The Govern-ment had initiated the whole process.

And think of all those OTHER meetingsheld before and after General Meetingsto actually reach agreement on what todo… working groups, reference com-mittees, executive meetings, specialstrategy meetings (you know the kind).Now add all the telephone calls, emailsand conversations required to do the jobof the MRCCC. Anyone who has everbeen in a nonprofit community groupwill relate I’m sure. It was truly themost enjoyable and personally reward-ing period of my working life.

100 general meetings is a seminal sign-post to the massive effort, motivationand commitment displayed by commu-nity volunteers, paid staff and manylocal and State Government workerswho believe in the MRCCC cause…and still do.

It’s amazing what can be achieved whenyou do two fundamental things togetherwith people: create the conditions inwhich people want to participate, andprovide them with opportunities to bepositive and make a contribution… andthat’s the simple ‘secret’ behind theMRCCC work.

Ian Mackay

Far too often they’re treated as just… natural drains… that funnel the run-off whenever it rains.

Waterwatch volunteers… they monitor… they measure,They keep track of the pulse of this living treasure.They are folks of all ages… who reflect on the river,Sharing the joys that such places deliver.

Though diverse be their background… yet their goal is the same,Caring for rivers… the Waterwatch aim.Despite Nature’s forgiveness, we all need to care,To value our rivers, our forests, our air.

So look after it all… you know that you oughta…For every thing… in the catchment… reflects in the water.

WaterwatchingLadies and gentlemen… in water… a toast… The magnificent rivers… of the Sunshine Coast.

Maroochy’s wide mouth… the pelicans wheeling,Mooloolah… less known… yet every bit as appealing.Noosa’s dual nature… tea-tree lakes and reflections,Her mouth densely settled… two different complexions.

The Mary headed northwards into Hervey Bay,Ancient lungfish give way to giant whales at their play;Waterfalls at beginnings… mangroves near the sea,Marine fauna spawning… in quiet estuary.

But our rivers… alas… have long been neglected,Just dumped in, and pumped from, and poorly protected;

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Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

Dale WatsonMary River Catchment Coordinating Committee

Snags are Good

It is not breaking news that our endangered Mary River coddepends on snags in creeks and rivers for its survival, spawningsites, protection and cover. Large woody debris also provides• critical habitat for many other aquatic species• a bridge for a range of animals to enter and exit the water• small local scour and deposition areas, providing variety in

depth and habitat• protection from erosion for stream banks and beds.

The list of benefits goes on.

So what’s the problem?

Many of our streams now contain very little LWD. ThroughoutAustralia in the 1950s, streams were desnagged – that is, LWDwas removed – on the understanding that snags ‘clogged up’the waterways and increased flood impacts. We now knowLWD is crucial to stream stability and healthy instream habitat,and recent studies have shown that the effect of LWD on floodlevels is insignificant. And there are less trees along the banks tobecome snags when their time comes.

More homes for our Cod

The first of three engineered log jams constructed at AmamoorCreek to protect the bank from further erosion. [Dale Watson]

Joel BolzeniusNoosa & District LandcareGroup

The platypus has established itself asthe world’s weirdest animal.

A report in the international journalNATURE has revealed the platypus hasnot just one x and one y chromosomedetermining sex like everyone else, butfive x and five y chromosomes pro-duced by an oddly complicated process.

XXXXXXXXXX FilesWhen platypus sperm are produced, thechromosomes line up in a long chainx,y,x,y,x,y etc. Then the x’s and y’sseparate and move to opposite poles.Instead of producing sperm with a mix-ture of x and y chromosomes like mostanimals, this process produces what is,in effect, a female sperm with five xchromosomes and a male sperm withfive y chromosomes.

So while the human system is describedas ‘xx/xy’, the platypus is described as‘xxxxxxxxxx/xyxyxyxyxy’.

To top it off, the chromosomes at oneend are similar to bird sex chromo-somes (thought to be quite primitive),while those at the other end are similarto human sex chromosomes (which arerelatively recent)!

The reasons or benefits for this compli-cated process are still unknown. Maybealiens really are living amongst us!

Joel Bolzenius is available to discussmatters platypus on 5485 2468.

Excavator placing habitat logs with boulders attached by steelcable into deep pools for fish habitat. [Dale Watson]

What are we doing about it?

The Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee andDPI&F, with funding assistance from the Maroochy ShireCouncil, Cooloola Shire Council and Department of NaturalResources and Mines, has recently completed two LWD re-introduction projects on the lower Obi Obi Creek and onAmamoor Creek. At both sites the aims are to provide habitatfor the cod and other aquatic species with instream LWD, andto counter local bank erosion by diverting the flow with engi-neered log jams.

A detailed plan of where to place the LWD was developed foreach site, with Griffith University assisting with the many calcu-lations to ensure the logs would be stable and not move duringfloods. QDPI Fisheries has provided significant support, moni-toring the fish species at the sites both before and after theLWD was introduced. Logs for the projects were sourced froma local road widening, the Cooloola Shire dump and a houseblock clearing. Landholder involvement in the projects has beenvery enthusiastic, and invaluable!

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Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

Bob SimpsonDPI & Fisheries

The Lake Macdonald Fish Hatchery hasonce again raised the bar, with a record78,203 Mary River cod fingerlingsreared and released in the 2004 breed-ing season. This tops the previous bestof around 63,000 cod released in 2001,and brings the total number producedat the hatchery since 1998 to 390,000.

This has been a monumental effort onthe part of the Noosa District Commu-nity Hatchery Association who managethe hatchery and, in particular, DarrenKnowles who runs the daily operations.

Most of the cod produced in 2004found their way into creeks, rivers anddams outside the Mary River catch-ment. The Mary system has been thefocus of cod stocking for a number ofyears now, but the focus for the nextfew years will be other south-eastQueensland streams where cod used tooccur. This is an important step for thecod recovery program, which has al-ways operated with the aim of restoringcod populations throughout the south-east.

Here’s a rundown of the numbers ofMary River cod released throughoutsouth-east Queensland in 2004:

Mary River and tributaries 13,067Lake Macdonald (Mary River system)

14,436Lake Borumba (Mary RS) 2100Lake Samsonvale

(North Pine RS) 3900Brisbane River and tributaries 9000Stanley River and tributaries 5400Somerset and Wivenhoe dams

(Bris/Stan RS) 5400Cressbrook Dam (Bris/Stan RS) 4500Lake Moogerah (Bris/Stan RS) 750Albert and Logan Rivers 10,000Lake Maroon (Albert/Logan RS) 750Coomera River 4400Hinze Dam (Nerang RS) 4500

Lynn KlupfulTiaro & District Landcare Group

The cool overcast conditions were wel-comed by everyone at the Tiaro Catch& Release Fishing Competition in late2004. More than 200 people registered,coming from Bundaberg, Buxton,Eidsvold, Monto, Broweena, Kilkivan,Hervey Bay, River Heads, Marybor-ough, Gympie, Conondale, Kilcoy, thesouthside and northside of Brisbane,and all around Tiaro Shire.

David Whelan, fishing writer for Bush’N Beach magazine, supplied three re-covery tanks which gave the fish theopportunity to ‘catch their breath’ be-fore being returned to the river. Forty-five children attended David’s Learn toFish clinic to become better fisherfolk.

Two magnificent five-year-old MaryRiver cod, weighing about five kilosapiece, were released back into theponded reach of the river by NoosaCommunity Fish Hatchery representa-tive, Mr Vince Collis, in the hope thisspecies will continue to thrive.

Our group, Tiaro & District LandcareGroup, has been concerned about theturtles caught each year. Fifteen turtleswere brought in during the competition,measured and checked for injuries be-fore re-release. No injuries were found.Very few people had ever seen a 4.6 kgBurnett River snapping turtle.

The proceeds are providing ongoingsupport for the Mary River turtle andMary River cod recovery projects.

Gordon McIntoshWidgee

Living on the banks of Station creek,fishing was always going to be part ofthe McIntosh boys’ life. The illusivecod (Murray, as it was then known)was always a hot topic when the localcreeks were running a banker.

My father, the late Inky McIntosh, hadhundreds of fishing yarns. They gener-ally ran along the lines of ‘big hook, bigbait, plus 200 lb green cord line equalsbig cod’. Using this method in the early60s, we did catch a lot of fish – mainlyeels, eel-tailed catfish, and the odd cod.

I kept records from 1967 to 1989 ofthe 34 or so cod we caught. The heavi-est was 11 lb 4 oz and the lightest was2 lb. The average was 4 lb 5 oz.

There seemed to be quite a variation inthe appearance of the cod we caught.Some were short and deep in the body,and others were longer and more ‘slen-

Fish & turtles recoverbefore re-release

Stockingin 2004

Fishing Station &Widgee Cks 30 yrs ago

der’. I thought it had something to dowith their territory – how long anddeep the stretch of creek was, whetherit was sandy or rocky, the holes smallor large etc. Maybe not. I would beinterested in hearing other people’sviews on this variation.

I still live at Widgee, and I’ve noticedmany changes in our creek systemsover the last 40 years. There’s less mul-let, the holes are shallower, and thereare less large floods to keep the holesdeep, mainly in Station Creek becauseit’s more sandy. Fishing is down 70 percent.

On the other hand, Station and WidgeeCreeks have more vegetation thesedays, but of course cats claw creeper isa major problem in lower Station Creek.

From the thousands of fingerlingstagged and released into Widgee Creekin recent years, we should see the num-bers of cod increase hereabouts in time.

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Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

Michael HutchisonFreshwater Fisheries ResearchCoordinator, DPI&FA species of cod, most likely the MaryRiver cod, occurred in the CoomeraRiver until the 1940s or 50s. It is notknown what caused the cod to becomeextinct here, but it was probably a com-bination of dynamite and net fishing,drought, and bush-fires with toxic ashrunoff.

Since 2002, DPI&F have been stockingcod into suitable habitat in the CoomeraRiver as part of the Mary River codrecovery program.

The Coomera River is relatively shortand flows from the Lamington Plateauto the Gold Coast. The river is generallyin good condition with extensive areasof intact riparian vegetation and plentyof large woody debris in parts. The mid-section of the river, which flowsthrough uncleared Army-controlledland, has rocky gorges and deep poolswith overhanging vegetation – idealadult cod habitat.

However restoring the riparian zone inthe lower and upper sections of the riverand providing fish passage past a coupleof elevated road crossings and smallweirs will considerably improve thecod’s chances of reclaiming the river.

3000 cod were released in December2002 and another 2000 in 2003. In De-cember 2004 we released 4400 cod.

Unfortunately the summer after the2002 stocking was very dry and therewas little flow in the river. However the2003 and 2004 stockings were followedby wet summers with good flows.

In August-September 2004 DPI&F dida fish biodiversity survey in the freshwa-ter reaches of the Coomera River. Wecaptured six cod, all from the 2003stocking, which was encouraging. Thesefish were about 17 cm long. We foundthem in either shady undercut banksunder lomandra or in rocky crevices inless than one metre of water.

As well as cod, we caught 18 other na-tive fish species. Shrimp were extremelyabundant and no doubt are a major foodsource for juvenile cod.

In 2005 we plan to revisit the CoomeraRiver and sample just for cod.

Finding stocked cod in rivers like theAlbert-Logan, Mary, Stanley andCoomera rivers is an encouraging signfor the recovery program, but we canonly claim complete success when wecan prove these fish are breeding in thewild. This can be done by using pole-mounted underwater cameras to exam-ine hollow logs and rock overhangs forcod nests (which is what the East CoastCod Recovery Program is doing). Orplankton drift nets or towed planktonnets can be used to sample for cod lar-vae (which is what the Trout Cod Re-covery Program in the MurrumbidgeeRiver is doing).

Cod in the Coomera River

Cod from early stockings in the Maryand Albert-Logan Rivers should now beclose to breeding size. These Coomeracod may need another three years.

We can compare nesting rates and larvalcounts in the restocked areas with thosein Tinana and Coondoo Creeks, whichhave good populations of wild cod. Andwe will need to monitor over severalyears to account for seasonal variationand increasing numbers of stocked codreaching maturity.

Michael Hutchison holds a lungfish (above)and juvenile cod (below) caught whensampling the Coomera River. [DPI&F]

Darren KnowlesHatchery Manager, Noosa &Dist. Community Hatchery Assn.

With another record season – 79,000fingerlings released – one would thinkthe hatchery’s future would be assured,but that is not proving to be the case. Itseems the lack of funding, mainly fromthe federal government, may bring anend to the hatchery and therefore se-verely jeopardise the future of the MaryRiver cod recovery program. This allseems quite trivial when you consider

Hatchery to close?that for the $70,000 or so that it coststo run the hatchery for the year, fishworth around $140,000 are produced.

So this year’s record season was up16,000 on the previous record. Thesefish were produced from five spawningsin the early spring and stocked into thehatchery troughs.

The fingerlings were fed their usual dietof zooplankton and jet-setting blackworms from Victoria. These worms arethe major food for the fingerlings duringtheir 12 to 16 weeks at the hatchery,

and are very expensive to boot. Theworms, the size of a pin and producedin troughs in the cold mountain watersof Victoria, are worth $42 a kilo. Thefingerlings can go through 24 kilos aweek at peak times, so this is a majorexpense. We are currently looking forways to lower this food bill, hopefullywith some kind of local product.

The fingerlings were released through-out south-east Queensland (see BobSimpson’s stocking report). Therearen’t funds available at the moment toundertake a proper survey of how thefingerlings are going, but word-of-mouth reports are very encouraging.

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Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

Cut & paint your way to happinessWoody weed control

Greg BrownPest Management CoordinatorCaloundra City Council

Controlling woody weeds – like cam-phor laurel and large leaf privet – can bea costly and time-consuming exercise.The last thing you need after spending awhole weekend dealing with these in-vaders is to see them coming back.

Here are some suggestions for makingone of the more popular methods ofwoody weed control – cut and paint (orcut-stumping) – more effective:

• Make sure the time between whenyou cut the plant and when you apply aherbicide is no longer than 15-20 sec-onds. Any longer and the plant has al-ready started to seal over its sap vesselsand you could be wasting your time.

• If you did cut something down butdidn’t apply the herbicide within 15-20seconds, all you need to take with youis a tomahawk. Use the back of thetomahawk to bash the rim of the stumpand then immediately paint with theherbicide mixture. This re-breaks thesap vessels and allows the herbicide tobe taken in and moved to the roots.

• Notice I said to paint the edge of thestump with the herbicide? The outersection is where the vessels that takesap to the roots are located. Treatingthe rest of the stump won’t make anydifference and is a waste of herbicide.

• If you use a chainsaw to do the cut-ting, you can run into another problem.The chainsaw leaves a thin film of chainoil on the cut surface. Because oil andwater don’t mix, when you put the her-bicide and water mixture on top it maynot be able to get into the plant vesselsthrough the oil film. Again, use thetomahawk to unblock the sap vessels.

• For this reason, it’s not a good prac-tice to make cuts into the trunk with achainsaw and then paint the cuts as away of stem injecting. Not only do youget a layer of oil, but also the cuts tendto be sloped and the herbicide just runsout and is wasted.

• Don’t be tempted to make deep cutsacross the stump and fill these with her-bicide – it’s a waste of time and money.

• The most commonly used herbicideis one of the glyphosate products. Thelabel gives the recommended mixingrate – so that’s the rate to use. Anythingstronger is wasted money, anythingweaker may not work. And don’t usediesel or kerosene with glyphosate.They don’t mix and they aren’t anymore effective. Water is what mixeswith glyphosate – nothing else.

• Dirt and organic matter are the en-emies of glyphosate. They both combinewith the herbicide and make it unavail-able for the plant to absorb. Make sureyou keep the cut surface clean and yourequipment free of dirt. If you’re using apaintbrush to apply the herbicide mix-

ture, keep the brush off the ground.Make sure the water used in the mixtureis clean. Don’t use dam water unlessyou can see the bottom. Don’t use borewater if it has a high iron content. Don’tuse creek or tank water if it has organicmatter floating in it.

• It’s best to cut the stump at abouthalfway from your knee to the ground.Cutting it too low means you might getdirt on the surface; cutting it too highmeans the herbicide may not be movedto the roots.

• I find a 5-litre spray bottle is goodfor applying the herbicide. Use lowpressure and a coarse jet spray – not afine mist. Alternatively, you can use oneof those cheap hand-held bottles thatcost about $1, or you can use a paintbrush and a tin (kept them out of thedirt). You can even use a clean shoepolish bottle – the kind with the foamapplicator on the top (they don’t leakand you can clean it off in water).

Follow these simple suggestions andyou’ll have no problems killing off yourwoody weeds using the cut and painttechnique.

For more information on this and otherwoody weed control techniques, checkout the DNRM&E website at http://www.nrm.qld.gov.au/pests/environmental-weeds/pdf/generalinfo.pdf or callinto Barung Landcare – or contactGreg at Caloundra City Council on1300 650 112 or 5420 8200.

The National Aquatic Weeds Management Group was formed in 2003 toformulate a national strategy to combat three aquatic weeds from the 20Weeds of National Significance: cabomba Cabomba caroliniana, salviniaSalvinia molesta, and alligator weed Alternanthera philoxeroides.

The aim of the group is to raise awareness and understanding of theproblems posed by aquatic weeds, and to improve cooperation betweenagencies working on these weeds.

The Group’s Coordinator, Andrew Petroeschevsky, NSW Dept of Agri-culture, can be contacted on (02) 6640 1618.

Phillip Moran (NDLC/LMCCG/MRCCC) is also a member of this groupand can be reached on 5485 2468.

National strategy for aquatic weeds

Members of the NAWMG watch the cabomba weedharvester in action at Lake Macdonald. [LMCCG]

9

The COD Line

Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

Brad WedlockMary River CatchmentCoordinating Committee

Just imagine being a small fish in the MaryRiver. Much of the riparian vegetationcover has been washed away so the watertemperature is warmer during the day andcolder at night, there aren’t as many under-water snags to hide in, and introduced spe-cies such as mosquito fish want to competefor your food or eat you! And there justaren’t as many fish anymore, which meansless fish to play with.

Then humans build barriers which preventmigration throughout the catchment. It’senough to make you pack up and go.

Fish move widely in waterways, to breed,feed, escape predators or find new homes.Many fish species found in the Mary catch-ment, like barramundi (we hope!), movebetween marine and freshwater habitats,while fish like the Mary River cod stay infreshwater but move widely when they can.

Barriers, such as causeways, can severelyrestrict fish movement, particularly for spe-cies that spawn in marine environments.Barriers can be physical, such as a dam orcauseway, and also hydraulic or behav-ioural. High water flows or turbulence (e.g.fast flows through narrow pipes) createhydraulic barriers. Turbulence such as‘white water’ or water filled with bubbles isdifficult for fish to swim through, particu-larly juvenile fish, because white water ismostly air. Long dark tunnels passing un-der a road crossing create behavioural bar-riers. Species such as gudgeons and span-gled perch, both native to the Mary catch-ment, will not enter darkened passages.

So when is fish passage impeded or pre-vented by a waterway crossing?

When:• the water velocity is too high• the water turbulence is too great• the culvert is too dark• the culvert is too long• the culvert is narrow• the water in the crossing is too shallow

Why did the fish cross the road?Because it was actually easier than getting through the causeway…

• there is a drop on the downside• the crossing has been placed at

too great a slope• the crossing has not been main-

tained and is full of debris.

Won’t the fish wait until the cause-way floods to swim upstream?

Fish tend to wait until after a floodto move. Water velocity of 0.3 me-tres per second or less is ideal formany fish. If water velocity reachesone metre/second, fish are unlikelyto be able to migrate upstream. Fishgenerally get washed downstreamduring a flood, rather than move up.

Won’t they jump over the barrier?

Most native fish cannot jump barri-ers. Most don’t jump at all, as theyare relatively weak swimmers. Fishladders built before 1985 in Queens-land were based on North Americandesigns for fish that jump, such assalmon and trout. These designs areineffective for native fish speciesbecause they are either too steep ortoo turbulent.

So what is an ideal crossing?

An ideal crossing is one which spansthe width of the waterway anddoesn’t alter the water flow, such asa bridge or open-bottom culvert.

Piped causeways are the least prefer-able option because the pipes used

are generally narrow (40cm pipes) anddon’t span the width of the waterway.Where two or three pipes are used andthe approaches are concreted to thebank, a funnel effect of high water ve-locity forms on the downstream sidecreating, in time, a scour pool. This canundermine the causeway structure andlead to greater fish passage problems asa small waterfall is produced where thewater runs off the causeway. Smallpipes also get clogged during floodevents, creating more erosion and scourproblems.

In addition to all this, causeway pipesare mostly placed in the middle of thecreek, but fish tend to swim upstreamalong the edge of a creek, in the slowestflowing water.

A causeway is a nightmare for a fish.

Bridges and open bottom culverts thatretain natural features such as waterwaywidth, streambed material and cross-sectional area are preferred. Culvertsthat are countersunk below thestreambed with natural stream bed ma-terials on the base of the culvert to in-crease roughness are also a good op-tion. Bridges can also provide accessduring flooding, when causeways areunsafe to use.

For more information on crossing de-sign and barriers to fish movement,contact Brad Wedlock at the MRCCCResource Centre on 5482 4766.

Worst CausewayAward goes to: PagesRiver, Hunter Rivercatchment. Twosmall culverts areused to pass waterfrom a river 50metres wide. Notethe ‘waterfall’ on thedownstream side,darkened tunnel,white water andincreased watervelocity.[B. Wedlock]

The COD Line

10

Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

The 2004 Year 6/7 class at YarrileeState School, near River Heads, imag-ined what they’d have to say if theylived in the Mary River. Their teacher,Damien Lynch, said the class had beenlearning about the influences on and ofthe Mary River and the subsequent con-sequences for the Great Barrier Reef.The children’s comments generally re-flected their concerns with pollution ofthe natural environment.

Phillip MoranNoosa & District Landcare

Bush regeneration is not landscaping orgardening. The aim is to• create conditions conducive to

natural regeneration• create conditions suitable for native

wildlife.

The Australian bush is not neat.

Step one: Observe. Have a good lookaround, in all weather conditions…drought and flood. Look for degradingfactors – stock, erosion, fire, weeds.Remember people can never do a job aswell as Nature, so check which speciesshe puts where. And have a thoroughlygood look at those weeds.

Step two: Try to halt, or at least slow,the degrading factors. Fence the stockout, or stop burning. Burning is easy,but it’s no good for revegetation.

The best way to cope with weeds is toget ’em before they establish. Keep ob-

I hope this thing I’m aboutto eat is actually a FISH and notanother plastic bag, because I

can’t see it properly.Plastic bags can kill me.

MattSharla

Blake

Hey, what if this wasyour home and you

had to eat andsleep here.

Imagine ...

Nature is Beautiful, Not NeatTips for Bush Regeneration

serving. If you recognise weed seedlingsearly on and rip ’em out, you will havesaved yourself many hours of pain in thefuture. The price of weed freedom iseternal vigilance!

Step three: Identify an area to workon. Don’t set your goals too high. Whenyou’re ‘budgeting’, remember that you– your time and energy – are a resource.If you lose the will to keep going, yourwhole project will stop.

Wherever possible, work with Nature,not against her. If you’re fencing a rem-nant off from stock, include a bit extraso you can capitalise on the existingseed bank. Removing weeds can oftenactivate an existing seed bank too.

Step four: Time for the Primary WeedClearance. If you have big camphors,masses of privet etc, you have to get ridof them. Consider killing large trees insitu. This is a good idea because lightlevels change gradually, giving existingvegetation time to adjust, and becausedead trees continue to provide perch

sites and hollows. But it’s also a badidea because from now on you’ll haveto watch out to avoid getting whackedon the head with dead branches. Con-sider leaving any cut wood on site… it’sall valuable habitat.

Step five: Natural regeneration orassisted regeneration? If you are work-ing on a bare paddock, you will need toget some trees up and going as quicklyas possible. Pick quick growing, toughspecies, and incorporate some euca-lypts. Consider marking access tracksnow. Pedestrian traffic, howeverfriendly, can account for many newnative trees!

Having disturbed the soil, you’ll now begetting more weeds, maybe new ones.Time for a Secondary Weed Clearance.Watch out for naturally seeded natives!

Step six: Maintenance… This will beongoing. Keep an eye out for newweeds and kill ’em! Mark your newnative seedlings, and mulch them if youcan. Go walk your new tracks, and stopand sit for a while. Observe, and enjoythe wonder of our Australian bush.

When I was little I couldswim wherever I wanted to

but now I have to becareful wherever I go.

11

The COD Line

Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee - 100 General Meetings

Across1. Creek of many names by permaculture

village (6)3. Once the name of a Shire (6)4. Nature’s way of holding water, with one

each side (5)6. Built by people to hold a lot of water (3)7. Hosts the Muster (7)10. English version of Woodford Folk Festival

(11)12. Distance between bullock camps (3,4)14. Not yet a river (5)15. Almost rhymes with banana (in a tin) (6)16. End of the line for the Rattler (5)19. Home of the hatchery, second part of name

(9)21. End of the road after the end of the line for

the Rattler (7)22. Built to hold less water than 6 across (4)

Down1. The Rattler stops here2. Fred Flintstone says this (5)3. Butterflies like this vine (5)5. Tucked in a Pocket (6)8. The main stream (4)9. Double-barrelled name (3,3)10. Near a town named for a nut; You might say

this to a baby ie (6) goo11. Not shallow (4)13. Said once or three times, sounds like songs

by Pink Floyd and Abba (5)17. A way of dancing (5)18. Home of the hatchery, first part of name (4)20. End of the line for the river; Hervy (3)

Eve Witney

How well do you know your Mary River catchment?

This crossword includes the names of all the major creeks of theMary, plus the major impoundments, plus one town (that isn’talso a creek name), plus a few generic terms (you know, like‘river’, but that’s not one of them). The second set of clues be-low will help if you’re searching through maps.

Send your completed crossword to the editor (contact detailson the back page) and the first correct entry from each of the

Prizes for knowing your catchmentlower, middle/west, middle/east and upper regions of the catch-ment will receive a $20 voucher for plants generously donatedby• Barung Landcare Nursery (Maleny)• Gympie Landcare Nursery• Noosa Landcare Nursery, and• Tiaro Plants Nursery.

The solution will be in the next issue of the CodLine, or contactthe editor if you’d rather not wait that long. Good luck!

1 2 3

4

5

6 7 8 9

10

11

12 13

14

15

16 17 18

19

20

21

22

Second set of clues: Remember, the uppercatchment is in the south,and the lower is in thenorth.Across1.creek, upper3.creek, middle west

4.generic6.generic7.creek, middle west10.creek, middle west12.creek, middle east14.generic15.creek, lower east16.town, middle west

19.impoundment, middle east21.impoundment, middle west22.genericDown1.creek, middle west2.creek, middle west3.creek, middle west5.impoundment, upper

8.river9.creek, upper10.creek, lower11.creek, middle13.creek, lower west17.creek, upper18.impoundment/generic20.generic

TTTTThe he he he he CODCODCODCODCODLineLineLineLineLinePO Box 755MALENY QLD 4552

Issue 13: January 2005

Print Post ApprovedPPP# 440524/00004

TTTTThe he he he he CODCODCODCODCODLineLineLineLineLineis hosted by

Barung & District Landcare Group.

Additional support from theMary River Catchment Coordinating Committee

is gratefully acknowledged.

This issue ...

POSTAGEPAID

AUSTRALIA

SURFACEMAIL

MRCCC NewsMRCCC celebrates 100 General

Meetings ..................................... 3MRCCC hits a ton! ......................... 4

Landholders’ experiences11,000 trees feed koalas .................. 1Station & Widgee 30 yrs ago .......... 6

Water sharingRivercare GST proposal .................. 2

Community group projectsBelli bolstered .................................. 3Fish & turtles recover before

re-release at Tiaro comp ............. 6

Instream worksMore homes for our Cod ................ 5

Wildlife featuresXXXXXXXXXX files .................... 5

Cod research and restockingCod stocking in 2004 ...................... 6Cod in the Coomera ........................ 7Hatchery to close? ........................... 7

Practical adviceWhy did the fish cross the road? ..... 9Nature is beautiful, not neat .......... 10

WeedsCut & paint your way to happiness . 8National Aquatic Weeds group ........ 8

Poetry and humourWaterwatching ................................. 4

Students’ activitiesStudents’ responses to

the last CodLine ....................... 10Catchment crossword .................... 11

Editor, The CODLineEve WitneyPO Box 755MALENY QLD 4552Ph: 5494 4005Fax: c/- 5494 3141email: ewitney@campac.net.au

Newsflash!18 baby Mary River turtles, artificallyincubated at the QPWS Mon Reposturtle hatchery, were released into theMary River at Tiaro on Thursday 20January 2005.

A similar number are off to teach re-searchers just how baby turtles dive,after which they too will be releasedinto the river.

One egg from each of the 55 nests lo-cated during Tiaro Landcare’s MaryRiver turtle project was sent to MonRepos for identification. About 70 percent hatched successfully.

WORKING FOR OURFUTURE