main

Archive | Conservation

Are You a Biosecure Bushwalker? Part 1 – The Risks

Are you a biosecure bushwalker?

In her recent presentation for Bushwalking NSW, Sharon Fulcher explained: “You may ask what Biosecurity has to do with bushwalkers? Biosecurity is probably a term more familiar to us as ‘quarantine’ – something we have to ‘pass’ when returning from an overseas trip or when travelling domestically to places in Tasmania or northern Australia where certain items are prohibited entry. And yes, this too is a part of Biosecurity. However bushwalkers can also inadvertently spread weeds, fungus or intestinal bugs into our favourite walking areas with disastrous results without even knowing it.”

Spreading seeds and weeds is easier than you might think. Have you ever considered that you might be spreading harmful weeds when brushing seeds or plants off your clothes?

Weeds are commonly spread by bushwalkers in the following ways:

  • Seeds can be picked up on footwear, socks, laces and trousers and open weave cotton T-shirts and sections of backpacks
  • On velcro fastenings on jackets and gaiter
  • In open pockets
  • Seeds caught in muddy boots
  • Picked up by vehicles in ‘weedy’ carparks or on car mats
  • Emptied out of tents and picked off socks
  • From around huts, especially in alpine areas
  • From interstate, overseas or from another national park

Like seeds, bushwalkers can easily damage vegetation by spreading funal infections between plants or contaminating waterways. Some of the risks include:

  • Bringing weed seeds, insect pests, or aquatic pests like waterweeds into new areas on their shoes, gear, canoes, boats or vehicles
  • Damaging vegetation and soil, exposing new ground where  weeds can establis
  • Damaging native wildlife habitat and creating conditions that encourage non – native specie
  • Transporting fungus spores, plant diseases or wildlife diseases into previously un-affected natural areas or adjacent farmland
  • Spreading water-borne parasites through poor hygiene practice

So how can we reduce these risks and protect our bushland? In Part 2 we’ll cover the ways you can help and leave no trace while you’re out in the bush.

Read the full “Are you a Biosecure Bushwalker?” presentation.

Notes, slides and content courtesy of Sharon Fulcher.
Photos by Yidan Saladine.

CSIRO Conducts an Ecological Change Project and You Can Help

A national online survey is being conducted by the CSIRO and the Department of the Environment and Energy.

The survey will help them to understand how Australia’s bushland and biodiversity has been changing in recent years, and whether the 1°C increase in surface temperature experienced over the past century may have contributed to these changes.

If you have a strong, long-term relationship with the land and are passionate about the future of Australia’s special plants and animals then the CSIRO would love to hear from you. The survey will collect first hand observations, insights and stories about places that are changing and places that aren’t changing. For example, you may have observed new species appearing, plants flowering at unusual times, or trees dying in your area. This will provide a unique and important historical record for Australia and the CSIRO would love for you to participate.

To participate, you would need to be able to select a natural area (e.g. your local region or farm, a Nature Reserve, urban bushland) that you have been familiar with for at least the last 10 years. Note that they are interested both in areas where change has been observed and where change has not been observed.

The survey would take about 30 minutes. If this has sparked your interest, additional information about the full project can be found here.

The History and Future of Kedumba Hut

Over 150 years ago, the Kedumba Valley in Blue Mountains National Park was first settled.

In 1832, Thomas Maxwell, an Irish convict, arrived in Sydney and married fellow convict, Elizabeth Osborne, soon after. The couple gave birth to twin boys, one of whom was named William James Maxwell. Born on April 27th 1832, William Maxwell later moved out to the Burragorang area (in modern times home to Warragamba Dam) where he met and married Mary Thompson in 1855. In the 1860s, Maxwell worked as a stockman and ran his own cattle farm to earn a living.

Whether Maxwell first applied for a land grant in Kedumba Valley in 1859 or 1889 is not entirely clear, but the family left a particularly lasting legacy in the form of Kedumba Hut. Three generations of the Maxwell family lived in Kedumba Valley until 1992. During these years, the family constructed five different timber slab huts, as well as other utility buildings. Of the huts, only one is still standing today, and this ‘Kedumba Hut’ has become a place of historical significance.

Built in 1925, Kedumba Hut is an outstanding example of Australian pastoral life removed from larger settlements. According to National Parks & Wildlife Services (NPWS), the hut is an “excellent example of vernacular bush craft” with “timber detailing… of exceptionally high technical… and archaeological potential.” The site is also a prime research target to learn more about vernacular buildings from the 1890s to the 1920s in New South Wales. Very few buildings of its type and age have survived, giving it significance as a “rare and endangered species.”

Kedumba Hut with Mt Solitary behind.  Photo: NPWS

In 2001, a report into the heritage value of the hut was commissioned. The results suggested that Kedumba Hut had considerable state, and possibly even national, significance. The report also detailed that the hut needed urgent stabilisation work or it was at risk of collapsing further. Maintenance to stall the hut’s fall into disrepair was completed in 2004. Over a decade later, a second report was commissioned, this time to determine if the hut could be re-used and better preserved. In order to achieve both ends, the report suggested that the best strategy was to fully restore the site to the condition and function it had in 1925.

With the above in mind, NPWS has put together a plan to restore and refurbish Kedumba Hut to ensure it remains for generations to come. Working with a number of partners, NPWS plans to raise $350,000 for restoration as well as ongoing maintenance. Upon completion, the site will be heritage listed and its preservation guaranteed. Keduma Hut will also be made available as free overnight accommodation for bushwalking groups that can be booked on request. NPWS propose to ensure the hut is weather-tight and hold simple camp-style beds. Water, gas and electricity will not be provided.

Kedumba Hut.  Photo: NPWS

Once the hut has been restored, it could be the perfect opportunity for bushwalkers to take a rest, enjoy the beauty of Kedumba Valley and reflect on what life might have been like for the Maxwell family over 150 years ago.

You can visit Kedumba Hut in the Blue Mountains National Park on the 19km Kedumba Valley Loop track.

Sources

Jack, Ian. ‘Of the hut I builded’: the Maxwells’ slab structures in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales. Australian Historical Archaeology 27, 2009. Pp 55-66.

Blue Mountains Community. “Maxwell’s Slab Hut” Kedumba Valley: Restoration & Re-use overview. 2016.

Thanks to guest writer: Andrew Barker

Save the Trees and Animals Rally and March this Sunday 4 December

 

www.savethetreesandanimalscampaign.com

www.savethetreesandanimalscampaign.com

Save the Trees and Animals Network is running a Rally and March this Sunday 4 December 2-4pm Belmore Park, then 5-8pm Hyde Park North in the city. The objective is to gather community support for and raise awareness of trees and animals in Sydney in light of urban development plans. There will be stalls on the day and speeches – John would like to invite you to hold a stall (card table and flyers) or speak.

Dedicated to actively saving trees & animals