Wangaratta Urban Landcare Group

President Treasurer Secretary Newsletter Adrian Twitt PO Box 584 Sally Carr Elaine Jacobsen Helen Curtis helenc4@westnet.com.au

Winter Dear members, Kaluna Park And winter it certainly is !! The cold wintry weather which, according to Wangaratta records has started earlier this year, has brought us out in our beanies and several layers of clothes on Thursday mornings.

No. 61

June 2011

The damaged bridges have been inspected by the Councils bridge crew who will later do the repairs on them. No large machinery has, or will be brought in to the park for these jobs. Andrew has also cleared timber from the large fallen Red Gum near the other end of Loop Track thus allowing this section of the track to be opened, and has repaired erosion below the pump. We are very grateful for his interest and involvement in the park. We are concerned that as a result of the floods, the wetland which carries the water from Merriwa Park to the King River was eroded, and denuded of the dense growth of Persicaria. Enquires are being made about the likelihood of reducing the flow along this wetland.

Elaine, Pat, Adrian, Helen Twitt, Peter, Ted & Colin Unfortunately on this day, Jim was absent

The growth of the flora continues to surprise, but also to dismay us. Drain Sedge is our main problem and has required selective weeding, particularly where it is growing with native Joyweed and Persicaria species. It is quite easy to remove when tall but now we are finding carpets of tiny Drain Sedge seedlings and many Rorippa plants in areas where the water was high for a very long time. Removal at present is impossible because the plants are so small and are mixed with tiny native herbs. Tracks are open again and the track signs are clean ! The Councils Bush Regenerator, Andrew Snowdon has undertaken repair work to the damaged raised walkway on Loop Track. To fill in the hole he and his crew used dirt from the tree stump. A log from within the park was used to shore up the edge of the path, and wooden pegs were used to hold the log in place. It is great to have this track open again as it is an important link to the northern section of the park. Our members removed all the mud from the signs by giving them a good scrub.

Dense patch of Persicaria in wetland before the floods of 2010/2011

The same wetland after floods, showing a fallen tree, erosion and loss of Persicaria

Happily however, there has been good growth of several other Persicaria species and several small herbs, some not seen by us on these mud flats before. Some of the Poas which were badly damaged in the floods are showing green shoots. We wait with interest to see whether the many species not yet present will return.

Climate science audit slams sceptics

This was the heading of an article in the Age 23/5/2011. Following are some quotes from it: The government-established Climate Commission has dismissed the sceptics and warned of dire consequences if adequate action to cut emissions is not taken in this critical decade. In a review of the scientific evidence, released today, the commission says: We know beyond reasonable doubt that the world is warming and that human emissions of greenhouse gasses are the primary cause. It also says this years Queensland and Victorian flooding raised the question of a possible link between the floods and human-induced climate change. The Government embattled over the carbon tax, will use the report to bolster its case for action and to discredit critics. Climate scientist, Will Steffen hit out at sceptics, saying that Australia and the United States were the two parts of the world where there is still significant media debate about the science. There was no debate within the credible scientific community. Deposit scheme on cans and bottles It was reported in the Age on 4/3/2011 that Greens MP, Colleen Hartland is soon to introduce a bill to Parliament for a 10c bottle and can deposit scheme. You may remember that in 2009 Ms Hartland introduced a similar bill That previous bill passed the upper house but was defeated in the lower house. Before the election the Coalition promised to support this scheme if it came before Parliament again, and comments made by the new Environment Minister sound very positive. We are therefore hopeful that this time it will pass. We have contacted Ms Hartland and Mr Tim McCurdy MLA expressing support for the scheme.

Where Are All The Platypuses ? By Adrian Twitt

Twenty members of Landcare spent a cold evening in April on duty for our fourth survey of platypus over the last 18 months. From random reports, platypuses are periodically sighted in Wangaratta streams, so we were all eager for sightings of our own on behalf of the Platypus Conservancy of Victoria. With good spring and summer rainfalls we felt certain platypus would be out there waiting for us. The Platypus Conservancy lays down the guidelines for its surveys. They must be done over an hour either at dawn or dusk, and surveyors are to be in pairs approximately 100 to 200 metres apart. Water rats, which commonly frequent similar habitat to platypus, and can be confused when swimming, are also recorded in the surveys. Our surveyors are now familiar with the different patterns of swimming between water rats and platypuses, and we have had a number of water rat sightings in other surveys. However, only once in our previous surveys has a platypus been sighted. That was last spring in the King River behind Chisholm Street. Alas! Our hopes dimmed again as the darkness descended and the murky waters revealed no ornithorhynchus. Had the floods of the previous six months been too much? Were the river flows too strong for the platypus to be out feeding? Why did we see just one water rat, and no platypus? We converged on the warmth of Jim McGinlay and Sally Carrs residence appropriately sited against the King River levee bank overlooking platypus country, and consoled ourselves over a glass of wine and a welcome cup of delicious soup. Thanks Sally and Jim. Have you seen a platypus in any streams within Wangaratta? If so, why not let us know? Leave details by phoning Adrian Twitt on 5721 5327 or emailing him on twitt@dragnet.com.au

Best wishes, Helen