Western Wetlands
MEDIA RELEASE
17 October 2011
Western Wetlands
As part of its ongoing commitment to the understanding and sustainable management of the wetlands of a generally dry part of the continent, Desert Channels Group (DCG) is working closely with DERM on potential case studies for the DERM WetlandInfo website.
Helen Cross, Project Support Officer for DCG and Ronell Frazer, Project Officer with DCG’s Recording Traditional Knowledge project, headed out past Blackall earlier this month to talk with a landowner about a significant waterhole on his property. The visit was to gain a better understanding of the waterhole’s environment to determine its suitability for a case study. Situated in the Cooper Creek catchment, this waterhole has not been dry since European settlement.
A recently erected fence, funded through a Desert Channels Queensland grant, protects the waterhole from stock and access to the waterhole is via a barely discernible track. Due to the structure of the waterhole, rockholes, overhangs and rock ledges provide different habitat for various plants and animals, including yellow footed rock wallabies and Cooper Creek turtles. Helen’s ongoing work will be to identify the plants and animals seen at the waterhole. The presence of the Cooper Creek turtles classifies this waterhole as a refuge, due to the fact that these turtles cannot move long distances between isolated waterholes.
Another target for a wetland case study is lake Galilee, a large, shallow, seasonal/intermittent saline lake, north of Aramac.
For those interested in the conservation of significant wetlands in western Queensland, watch out for news relating to new identified sites in the west on the DERM WetlandInfo website (http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/wetlandinfo/site/index.html)
Desert Channels Group is excited about being part of these important case studies and look forward to helping preserve more of western Queensland for future generations.
For more information on the work of Desert Channels Group, visit www.dcq.org.au.
