Moore Catchment Council Recent News

Press Releases

	Farmers fence bush for Carnabys
	Fencing a new corridor for Carnabys	Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo received an extra boost to their habitat range with five farmers around the Moore region fencing off nearly 65ha of native remnant bushland as well as recently revegetated land. Rachel Walmsley, Moore Catchment Council’s NRM Officer said “This was all made possible with funding received through Northern Agricultural Catchment Council’s biodiversity program funded through the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program. Fencing is an expensive job and so to receive a financial incentive from the Government ensures these projects are carried out.” More information

	Executive Officer attends National Landcare Conference
	Key Note speaker Major General the Honourable Michael Jeffries AC, AO (Mil), CVO, MC (Retd) talked about our ability to adapt to Climate change and the fundamentals of a health soil helping with that change	The National Landcare conference held in Melbourne on 21st to 23rd September was an incredible event with many like-minded people telling their stories that are so similar to our own. Landcare in Australia is a movement and that movement is gaining moment with many young people now getting out and doing wonderful things in the community. More Information

	A fun-gi day had by all
	A bug hotel in an old picnic hamper	Ever come across witches fingers or fairy wands poking out of a woodland floor, or know what a curry punk, russler, slippery jack or dung button is? Or seen a bug that looks like a bee but isn’t a bee – only mimicking a bee? Or maybe seen a strange fungus that turns from a small puffball to a strange lattice basket upon touch? All this and more was discovered at the Magic of Mushrooms and Beauty of Bugs day organised by Moore Catchment Council 30th August. More Information

	Wally Kerkhof’s Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo artificial nesting log construction guide
	Wet clay around the top is important	This is Wally Kerkhof’s guide to constructing nesting logs for Carnaby’s Black Cockatoos from fallen trees. Wally has spent over 30 years designing and constructing these artificial logs for placement in the Carnaby breeding areas of Moora and Mogumber. With the shortage of suitable natural nesting trees, this work has been essential in helping to recover the endangered Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo population. Since 1983, 50 of these logs have been erected in Moora with around 80 chicks born every year from the artificial logs and natural hollows. More information

	Moore to explore at Jingemia Cave
	Shire of Moora Eco Trails booklet officially launched	After grey skies and a deluge of rain the day before, the weather couldn’t have been better for the official opening of the Jingemia Cave new signage and footpath upgrade on 8th June. The cave is on the south eastern edge of Watheroo National Park and managed by Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW). Over 40 people, many who haven’t visited the cave before, braved the slippery access road to get to the cave and were greeted by a hot cuppa and pumpkin soup. More Information Eco trails Booklet - Shire of Moora

	Community revegetate degraded tracks on Guilderton dunes
	Guilderton volunteer planting team	The north Guilderton dunes were a hive of activity on 12th June as nearly 50 people aged 5 to 93 gave up their Sunday morning to volunteer their time at the annual planting event. Rachel Walmsley, Moore Catchment Council’s NRM Officer said “Despite the chilly start and the threat of rain, we once again had a fabulous turn out of volunteers including local and nearby residents, plus members of The 4WD Club of WA who have a keen membership wishing to take part in rehabilitation projects up and down the coast.” This is the second community planting event on the north dunes since an area was fenced off from vehicular access in 2014. Natural revegetation of the degraded tracks is occurring slowly but these extra native seedlings planted will help move things along. More Information

	Carrah Farm Open to Carnaby's
	Sarah shows off her native plantings	Figuring out which plant species will attract Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo on your property can be difficult. Sarah Mason of Carrah Farms, Calingiri decided to share her experiences to help inspire others by running an info day on Friday 13th May as part of the Moore Catchment Council’s WA Natural Resource Management Program Carnabys project. More Information

	Stabilising unproductive land using NyPa grass
	Planting Crew at Moora	The Cudoralcarra lake west of Moora was a hive of activity on 27th August, as a team of twenty planters with shovels embarked on planting 8,000 stems of NyPa Forage grass for the Hamilton family. The project was initiated by Jim Hamilton as he sought a way to stabilise the degraded soil around the lake and provide stock feed if needed. More Information

	Moora plants for Carnaby’s on National Tree Day
		Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo will benefit from the 1,000 native trees and shrubs that a dozen volunteers planted on Friday 24th and Monday 27th July in conjunction with Planet Ark’s National Tree Day. The plantings are part of a Moore Catchment Council project, funded through the National Landcare Program, to provide more forage habitat for the endangered Carnaby’s in Moora. Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus latirostris) are endemic to WA but are rapidly in decline with total population estimates to be less than 60,000. The Moora Important Bird Area currently supports up to 60 breeding pairs of Carnaby’s Black-Cockatoo. The birds are drawn here during the breeding season because of suitable nesting trees, but ongoing degradation/clearing of vegetation remnants – especially forage habitat, threatens the Carnaby’s survival More Information

	Coastal dunes revegetated at community planting day in Guilderton
		The North Guilderton dunes were alive with the sound of shovels on Sunday 7th June for a community planting day. The event was part of Moore Catchment Council’s project to rehabilitate the north dunes, funded through the WA Natural Resource Management Program. This 22ha area of fragile dunes has been targeted for rejuvenation after many years of degradation by off-road vehicles. After fencing the area last year, this revegetation project will give nature a helping hand in covering over the old vehicle tracks. More Information

	Koojan soil improvement trial inspires local farmers
		Do you ever wonder what to do with that gutless worst paddock on the farm that you wished would make some money?? Ian McGillivray at Koojan has been experimenting with various soil conditioners to generate more income from his poorest paddock and shared his trials and findings at a field walk on 25th March. Rachel Walmsley from Moore Catchment Council (MCC) said “Ian’s been testing variable rates of chicken manure, organic soil conditioner, clay and Agflow on non wetting sand using a grant obtained by Moore Catchment Council through the Federal Government. He wanted to strategically use the conditioners in strips to maximise effect and reduce costs, and then plant Tagasaste and saltbush as sheep feed.” More Information

	Great News for Carnaby's in MCC's funding success
	Endangered Carnaby's	Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo are a worthy winner in the recent release of funding applied for by Moore Catchment Council (MCC) through the Federal Government National Landcare Program and Western Australian State Government’s Natural Resource Management (State NRM) Program. More information

	Carnaby's and Clean ups in Candy's Bush Reserve
	Photo: Wally Kerkhoff	Candy’s Bush Reserve is a small but important patch of remnant Salmon Gum/Wandoo woodland on the edge of Moora. As part of a Moore Catchment Council’s State NRM Program project to protect and promote the reserve, a small but dedicated group of volunteers from Friends of the Moora Woodlands and MCC got together on December 10th to remove rubbish. Rachel Walmsley MCC’s NRM Officer said “The group spent three hours ridding the reserve of old car batteries, a pram, a fan, a microwave, car exhausts, and hundreds/thousands of bits of glass from broken beer bottles. All this rubbish was discarded before the reserve was fenced in 2013. Before then it was a dumping ground and place to hoon about and smash bottles but now it is a clean and safer place to visit.” More Information

	Moore Catchment Council recognised at Regional Awards
		The Regional Achievement and Community Awards selected Moore Catchment Council (MCC) as a finalist in the CSBP Environment Award category this year. The aims and objectives of The Regional Achievement & Community Awards are to encourage, acknowledge and pay tribute to individuals, communities, businesses and groups who are making a significant contribution to regional and rural areas. More information

	Carnaby’s conservation day takes flight in Guilderton
		Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo face an uncertain future in WA. This once widespread bird is now reduced to a population of only around 40,000 and continued destruction of its habitat can only mean numbers will reduce further. Fortunately there are people who care enough to help save the bird species from extinction, and some of these carers attended the Moore Catchment Council’s Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo Information Day in Guilderton on 27th October More Information

	Enthusiastic attendance for Guilderton Celebration day
	Huge attendance at the opening of Guilderton’s Djena Koorl-iny walk trail	Guilderton has always been a special place to many but its wonderful natural assets are becoming more and more threatened from increasing visitor numbers. The Guilderton Celebration Day on Friday 24th October saw around 80 people from all sectors come together to celebrate three projects that are helping to conserve the fragile dunes and Moore River estuary for the future. The day was organised by the Guilderton Community Association (GCA), Shire of Gingin (SG) and Moore Catchment Council (MCC), and started with the official opening of the Djena Koorl-iny (meaning ‘go on foot’ in Noongar) walk trail north of town. More information

	Carnaby's Information Day at Guilderton
	photo: Linda Johnson	Come and find out about the iconic but endangered Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo and what you can actively do to help save this species from extinction……FREE TO ATTEND Where – Guilderton Community Hall When – 27th October Time – 10am – 2pm RSVP Contact – Rachel Walmsley 9653 1355 or mcc.nrmo@bigpond.com More information

	Fabulous foral display at Candy's Bush Reserve
		This year has been blooming marvellous in Candy’s Bush Reserve ! The 8ha Salmon Gum and Wandoo woodland reserve located on the south east edge of Moora has put on a fabulous display of flora including carpets of daisies, thousands of orchids and even rarely seen plants that have made an appearance due to the good rains in autumn. Rachel Walmsley NRM Officer for Moore Catchment Council (MCC) said “It’s been magnificent this year, the orchid numbers are triple what they were in 2013 including the giant white spider orchid which have been huge. I’ve also located a potential Declared Rare Flora which only has known locations east of Geraldton.” More Information

	Koojan farmer demonstrates soil amelioration
	Ian (right) explains the ripping depth to Phil Barrett-Lennard	Ian McGillivray is a Koojan farmer who likes to get the best from all his land - even his poor gutless sands. Establishing perennial plants in deep white non-wetting sands is problematic. This is due to poor water and nutrient holding capacity of the soil at the root zone, and ensuring the plants survive their first summer in the NAR before accessing subsurface moisture. More Information

	New Habitat planted for Malleefowl at Maya
	Malleefowl near Latham (Photo P. Waterhouse)	Malleefowl have had a welcome boost to their habitat near Maya this year with local landowner Phil Nicolaou rehabilitating thirty hectares of his farm with native species. Moore Catchment Council obtained funds through the State NRM Program to carry out this project to help conserve Malleefowl populations in the area by rehabilitating cleared land with native plants and improving connectivity between remnant vegetation. More Information

	Moore Happenings at the Coast
	New 4WD track signage - North Guilderton Dune Project	Moore Catchment Council has been spending a lot of time at the southern end of the Moore River during the past few months. Rachel Walmsley MCC’s NRM Officer said “I’ve been really coastal focused this year delivering various State and Federal funded natural resource management projects mainly around Guilderton. These projects have involved conserving the iconic Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo, and implementing coastal restoration and education activities.” More Information of these projects happening right now

	Moore River health ignored
		The Moore River and its catchment is about to become a victim of State and Federal natural resource management budget cuts unless the public voice can be heard. More Information

	Why all the sick trees?
	Sick York Gums in Moora	In recent months people may have noticed a number of sick looking trees along the railway line reserve from Gillingarra all the way up along the Midlands Road to around Geraldton. This reserve is not only an important ecological corridor for native flora and fauna – including a designated Important Bird Area for the endangered Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo around Moora and Gillingarra, it is also a huge drawcard for tourists who enjoy the area for its native vegetation. More Information

	Plant feed species for Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo
	Banksia menziesii - Firewood Banksia	Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo are endemic to WA but are rapidly in decline. Estimates put total population to be below 60,000. The Northern Swan Coastal Plain Important Bird Area (IBA) supports up to 15,000 Carnaby’s Black-Cockatoo in the non-breeding season and a small number of breeding pairs. The birds are attracted to this area because of the presence of feed species in remnant vegetation containing Banksia heath and woodland, scattered marri (Corymbia callophylla) and tuart (Eucalyptus gomphocephala) trees and Pinus spp. More Information Species list

	Carnaby's project goes global
	Parrots Magazine Issue 189 October 2013	An eagle eyed (or should that be Black Cockie eyed??) Julia White spotted this article in Parrots - an international magazine for the Parrot enthusiast. They’ve picked up a MCC’s Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo feed species 2013 project media release and put it in their magazine. Its brilliant to see that this project has attracted international recognition !! More information

	Prepare.Act.Survive
	A bushfire survival kit	Prepare a bushfire survival kit before the bushfire season starts. This will help you get through the first few days after a fire. Make sure you have transport and a bushfire survival kit ready regardless of whether you are going to leave or actively defend your house. More Information

	Heavenly Hectares inspires local small landholders
	Photo: L-R Chris Ferreira, Rachel Walmsley, with book winners Peter Rimmer, Helen Harvey, and Adriaan du Toit	“How do I manage weeds on my property” and “Where do I get a soil test done” were just two of the many questions asked at the Heavenly Hectares workshop in Gingin on Saturday 23rd November. The Moore Catchment Council organised the event in partnership with The Forever Project, Avongro and Northern Agricultural Catchments Council with funding through the Federal Caring For Our Country initiative, DAFWA, and The Natural Disaster Resilience Program. Rachel Walmsley of MCC said “Chris Ferreira from The Forever Project is well known on the sustainable living circuit and he delivered an entertaining and fast paced introduction to creating sustainable rural properties. I’ve worked with him before and witnessed his enthusiast style so I knew he wouldn’t disappoint.” More Information

	Carnaby's Black-Caockatoo workshop
	Chasey the Carnaby	On Tuesday 16 July, Moore Catchment Council, with funding provided through the State NRM Office, held an informative workshop on Carnaby’s Black-Cockatoos. The event was a great success with more than twenty-five people attending. Attendees were impressed with the presentations by Wally Kerkhoff from the Kerkhoff Carnaby Group, Sarah Mason, a farmer and keen Carnaby enthusiast and Paula and Kylie from Kaarakin Black- Cockatoo Conservation Centre. The highlight of the day was meeting Chasey the Carnaby, brought up from Kaarakin, who wasn’t shy for the camera. More information

	CFOC fund demonstration site for perennials establishment
	Good establishment methods will improve production (Coomberdale perennials on white sand 2011)	The Moore Catchment Council is delighted to announce that they were successful in obtaining funds through the Caring For Our Country (CFOC) Community Landcare Grants for their ‘Demonstrating different establishment techniques of perennials in deep sand’ project. This small project was the brainchild of a Koojan farmer who visited the MCC office on the offchance that there was funding available for his idea. Luckily, it was the day before the application closing date so MCC NRM officer Rachel Walmsley helped draft out the idea and wrote up the project quickly before the deadline. More information

	Spaded perennials turn bare sand into lush pasture
		John Isbister is a very happy farmer. His newest perennial grass plantings at Ranfurly Park south of Moora, have turned two gutless white sand paddocks (over 100ha) into green lush pasture for his sheep. More Information

	Guilderton community cleans up beach and estuary
	Connor family, Burbury family, Dean Brady, Linda Johnson & Kate Louis with the rubbish	A good number of community volunteers turned out for a beach and estuary rubbish pick up in Guilderton on the 12th October which ran in conjunction with Tangaroa Blue’s state wide annual clean up event. Tangaroa Blue aims to improve the health of the marine environment of WA through monitoring marine debris and education events. A big part of this annual clean-up is not only to rid the beach of rubbish, but also to audit the waste collected to feed into Tangaroa Blue’s database so to highlight types of rubbish discarded. More Information

	Farmer ploughs wheat crop for elite saltbush trial
		Aaron Edmond of Calingiri is one of three farmers helping CSIRO to trial elite Oldman saltbush in the paddock and offered a corner of wheat crop to plant the 1,000 seedlings. The Moore Catchment Council (MCC) obtained funding through the Northern Agricultural Catchments Council’s (NACC) Caring For Our Country (CFOC) devolved wind erosion grant scheme and CFOC’s Community Action Grants scheme to carry out the project. In partnership with the Moora-Miling Pasture Improvement Group (MMPIG), three different project sites were chosen at Miling, Namban and Calingiri to ensure widespread testing of the shrubs. More Information

	Sand blow-out revegetated by Ledge Point community
		Ledge Point Coastcare group ran their annual community planting day on 24th June and had a great turn out with over 20 volunteers attending despite the chilly weather. More Information

	Bird Workshop in Guilderton
		Twitchers and non-twitchers alike attended the Wonderful World of Shorebirds and Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo workshop in Guilderton on 29th April. The day was funded by the Northern Agricultural Catchments Council’s (NACC) coastal devolved grant scheme and was organised by the Moore Catchment Council (MCC), Guilderton Community Association (GCA) and Birdlife Australia. More Information

	Turquoise Coast bus tour
		What started as a far flung idea discussed at a Ledge Point Coastcare event, soon became reality on Friday 18th May when the Explore the Turquoise Coast bus tour took to the Indian Ocean Road to look at coastal rehabilitation projects at Cervantes and Green Head, and to network likeminded coastal volunteers. More Information Feedback sheet on Turquoise Coat Bus Tour

	Birds on Farms Info Day
		On a perfect winter’s day, about 20 people gathered at Calingiri Hall for Moore Catchment Council’s Birds on Farms information day, as part of the State NRM funded project: Improving Habitat and Connectivity in the Farming Landscape for Birds in the Moore River Catchment. More Information

	Hidden Treasurers Protect your bush
		Want to protect your patch of remnant bush but need some financial assistance? The Moore Catchment Council has money available through the Northern Agricultural Catchments Council to help fund projects to fence off native woodland in the Moore River catchment. More Information

	New Committee at AGM
		Farewells and new appointments occurred at the Moore Catchment Council AGM held on the 30th September. Geoff Erickson stepped down as long-time Chairman and was replaced by Reg Beale from Gingin. Cynthia McMorran also stepped down as Treasurer and was replaced by Lawrie Short. Cynthia, who has decided to leave the committee completely to concentrate on new ventures, has been an active member of the Moore Catchment Council since its conception in the early 1990’s and will be sorely missed. Barry Johnson a long serving member and past Vice Chair of the committee has also retired from his position. More Information

	Project Completion - State funded NRM Project
		The Moore Catchment Council is pleased to announce that its WA State funded ‘Recovery and protection of the Moore River Catchment’s threatened natural assets’ project has concluded with spectacular results. The project has helped fifteen farmers recover and protect 476ha of priority woodland and creek lines in the Moore Catchment through incentives for fencing and revegetation. More Information

	Super results for Moore catchment saltbush project
		The latest saltbush project delivered by the Moore Catchment Council and Moora-Miling Pasture Improvement Group, and supported by the Northern Agricultural Catchments Council, has seen many more seedlings planted in the Moore River catchment than originally budgeted. The project, funded through the federal Caring For Our Country Natural Resource Management program, promised to plant around 144,000 saltbush seedlings on salt and wind erosion affected farms in the eastern catchment. Instead over 176,000 saltbush seedlings were able to be planted over 270ha thanks to the close involvement of Ian Pulbrook of Greenoil Nursery, Mingenew, who supplied seedlings and planting services. More Information

	State favours MCC NRM project:
	Picture: Tim and Andrew Crombie from Watheroo recently enclosed 113ha of native bush on their farm using a fencing incentive. This will protect it from future stock and vehicle damage.	State favours MCC NRM project The Moore Catchment Council are celebrating once again with the recent announcement of the state NRM funding favouring one of their projects. The $5 million on offer was highly contested attracting 177 submissions, with the MCCs ‘Recovery and Protection of the Moore River Catchment’s Threatened Natural Assets’ being one of 51 successful applications. The project was awarded $199,800 to help aid and encourage land managers in the Moore river catchment (which stretches from Perenjori to Gingin) to protect and recover riparian zones as well as protect threatened important native vegetation. Rachel Walmsley of the MCC who wrote the application says ‘everyone at MCC is thrilled that we have received this funding. The iconic Moore river is a natural, social and economic asset that needs managing in ways which will protect it from continued stock damage, salinity and degradation so that it can be enjoyed by everyone for many years to come.’ More news regarding this project and incentives on offer will follow. Further information, please phone the MCC on 9653 1355.

	Care for our Country Funding Announced:
		CFOC funds more saltbush for MMPIG The Moore Catchment Council (MCC) and the Moora-Miling Pasture Improvement Group (MMPIG) have been celebrating the recent success of another Federal Government Caring For Our Country (CFOC) project application being granted. The project ‘Productive Saltbush Pastures to Combat Wind Erosion in the Eastern Moore River Catchment’ was awarded the full amount $96,500 asked for and will be a continuation of the successful 2007/08 NLP project ‘Creating Productive Saltbush Pastures on Saline Land’ which saw 130,000 saltbush seedlings being planted in the Moore river catchment east of Moora. More Information.......

	New Wildflower Species Found:
		Many species of flora and fauna are being lost every year around the world - many before they are even identified. So the discovery of a new species in our region is reason for excitement, and this was the case recently when a plant collected during a routine flora survey was confirmed as a new speciesTetratheca plumosa . More Information........ http://www.dec.wa.gov.au/images/stories/nature/science/nuytsia/19/1/009-016.pdf)

	Care for our Country Funding Announced:
		Funding Approved for Brushwood Project Extension Moore Catchment Council is very pleased to announce that funding has been approved for an extension of the successful Brushwood Industry Development on Saline Land Project. The Federal Government has made $224,000 available for the Increased Adoption of Sustainable Brushwood Production Project, under the highly contested Caring For Our Country Open Grants scheme. Moore Catchment Council was among very few Western Australian projects to receive funding. The total amount allocated throughout Australia was $28.5 million, with Western Australia receiving $2.8 million More Information........