word on

MEDIA RELEASE

29 June 2008

Spreading the word on weeds to 132 people across our region is no mean feat, but for Desert Channels Queensland’s (DCQ) pest management team it was all in a day’s work.

From March through to June the team hit the road with Wayne Harris or Cathy Stevens, botanists from the Queensland Herbarium in Brisbane, on a series of one day Weedspotters Workshops held around the vast and varied DCQ region.

A total of 16 workshops were held in Winton, Kynuna, Longreach, Tambo, Alpha, Isisford, Muttaburra, and Jundah, as well as a slight detour outside the region to Emerald.

DCQ’s pest management officer Ron Beezley said the attendees were a varied group including people from all walks of life, from landholders to students to local government officers and retired pensioners.

“Through these workshops DCQ is able to better inform the community about weed issues and help develop skills and provide training with weed experts that’s not widely available in the region,” Ron said.

“The workshops provided background information about weeds in the region and skills on how to control them and also demonstrated how to collect and prepare weeds for identification, including tips on packing them safely and hygienically into a plant press,” Ron said. “It also provided the opportunity for participants to talk with each other about their experiences with weeds and control methods on their properties and at work.”

“During the workshop attendees gained skills in how to identify problem plants and will be able to apply their new skills whether working or driving along the road. This means having more people able to spot weeds and knowing how to deal with them, which will provide DCQ with more eyes looking for weeds across the region,” Ron said.

Queensland Primary Industries and Fisheries estimates that weeds cost Queensland $600 million annually and have significant impacts on primary industries, natural ecosystems, and human and animal health.

DCQ is pleased to have an additional 132 ‘weedspotters’ in our region to help us defeat the weeds menace and reduce their impact on the environment.

This series of Weedspotters Workshops was funded by the Queensland Government’s Blueprint for the Bush program. DCQ hopes to continue to deliver the invaluable training provided by the workshops on a fee for service basis. Please contact Mark Kleinschmidt at DC Solutions on 4658 2363 for more information.

For more information on the work of Desert Channels Queensland, visit www.dcq.org.au.