coastal custodians - Department of Environment and Climate Change

COASTAL CUSTODIANS
Volume 3, Issue 3 February/March 2007
Introducing:
Deanna (Aunty Daught) Davison.
I was born on the 23 rd of December 1941 in Page
Avenue North Nowra in a run down old house.
The day I was born Dad was going around
saying “I’ve got a daughter, I’ve got a daughter”.
My brother Alex picked up on what Dad was
saying and then he was running around telling all
the kids that he had a daughter so that’s how I
got the nick name “Daught”.
My father is Reginald Oswald Walker; a
Walbunja man born 9 th February 1909 at
Wallaga Lake (registered as Tilba Tilba) and
died of congestive cardial failure on the 16 th of
December 1971 at Bega, his usual residence was
Wallaga Lake. My mother is Iris Elizabeth
Walker nee Brindle she was a Monaro Ngarigo
woman born on Delegate Mission in 1909. Mum
wasn’t a well person, she used to suffer from
asthma, which she didn’t have until after she had
Dennis. She died on the 18 th of February 1961 at
Moruya at fifty-two years of age. Usual place of
residence was Nerrigundah.
Dad’s father was Edward Walker born 1873 in
Bodalla. Dad’s mother was Mary Jane Walker
nee Johnson who was a Broulee woman; she was
born in 1880 at Ulladulla. They were married at
Turlinjah, in the presence of Henry Chapman
and Alice Bolloway on the 29 th of July 1898.
Grandfather Edward Walkers nickname was
“Feather”. Edward Walker swallowed a bone
with his food and it perforated his bowel. He
died on the 8 th of December 1937 at the David
Berry Hospital in Berry. Granny Mary Jane later
married Bert Penrith at the All Saints Church in
Nowra on the 7 th of February 1942. His children
were Charley and Ruby. Charley was father to
Burnum Burnum and Ruby is Mervyn Penrith’s
mother. I really loved Aunty Ruby.
Grandfather Edward’s mother was Jane
Hoskins/Austin; his father was James Walker
born 1846, they were married at Kianga. James
died in 1921 at Batemans Bay. James father,
Edward Walker was born in 1815 and died on
the 4 th of February 1900 at Wallaga Lake
Aboriginal Station. He owned the white bullock
team. Dad said that the bullock teams were the
carriers from Tilba to Bateman’s Bay and back.
Edward was the son of Tunungeranbrun.
Tunungeranbrun was born in the Moruya district
(exact locality is unknown); They are both
mentioned in an article in the Moruya Examiner
of February 9 th 1900 as follows:
Death of an Aboriginal.
Just as we are going to press, we regret to
say that we have received news of the
death of Edward Walker, aged 85, son of
Tunungeranbrun, king of the Moruya
aboriginals, at Wallaga Lake Station. He
must have seen many strange sights in his
time and could remember the district
before the first white man came. He leaves
two children; Murrins aged 65 and
Jimmey walker, aged 60, to mourn their
loss.
(The ‘Murrins’ referred to is actually ‘Murrina’,
which is the tribal name of Louisa Walker who
married Richard Bolloway).
Mary Jane Johnson’s parents were Donald
Johnson born 1845 at Broulee and Mary O’Brien
born 1860 at majors Creek. They were married
on the 22 nd of June 1895 at Turlinjah. Donald
Johnson’s parents were Henry Johnson and Mary
Coastal Custodians 1

Inside this Issue
DISCLAIMER
Page
Introducing Deanna (Aunty Daught) Davison 1 to 5
Inside this Issue & editors Comments
Regional Managers Report
NSW Department of Environment and
Conservation Aboriginal Cultural Heritage
Advisory committee.
South Coast Voices CD ROM
Dannielle Towers is Back on Board
Koalas
New Amenities Block – Tilba Sports Ground
Calling Aboriginal Artists to Exhibit
National Parks Discovery School Education
Program
Bingie Dreaming Track – Official Opening
NPWS Aboriginal Network Meeting Kioloa
Calendar of Events & Subscription form
Information provided in the Coastal Custodian is
not necessarily the views of the Department of
Environment & Conservation (NPWS). DEC
takes no responsibility for errors or omissions of
fact based on information provided by third
parties.
Johnson nee (unknown). Mary O’Brien’s parents
were John O’Brien and Sarah Cook.
Grandfather Edward had a brother Robert (Bob)
and sisters Emily who married a Stewart, Dolly
who married a Cruse and Vicki who married a
Lang. Grandfather Edwards’s sister, Aunty
Emily Stewart, had a big mob, they are: James,
Frank, Christie, Mable, Laddie, Arthur, Werge,
2
6
7 & 8
9
10
10 to 13
13 to 15
16
17
18
19
20
Aunty Glady, Percy, Richard, Aunty Ruth, Alan,
Emily and Robert. Aunty Ruth married Donnie
Walker senior, they had Patsy, Donnie junior and
June. Aunty Ruth and Uncle Donnie Walker split
up and Aunty Ruth got with Uncle Alf Penrith, I
lived with them for a while as a teenager when
they lived in Sydney, they moved to Tomerong
then Mogo. Their home was open to anyone and
everyone. We always visited Aunty Ruth, June
and Patsy in Mogo, by this time Patsy was
married to Keith Smith.
Picture taken outside Bodalla Pub: Jimmy Little senior,
Dora Williams, unknown women and Reg Walker.
Dad’s older sister was Ethel his older brother
was Ernest, then there was Dad, his younger
brother, was Miles, (nickname “Smiler”). Dad
saw the last corroboree on Wallaga; he was only
a boy at the time. It was held down the side of
the hill behind the hall. Dad’s family moved
from Mosquito Bay, Wallaga Lake to Hilltop
Farm at Tilba when Dad was young. While in his
teens Dad got hit in the knee with a cricket ball
and ended up in Sydney Hospital for a long time.
The family moved to Kiama to be close to the
trains so that they could visit him in Sydney
Hospital after he injured his knee. That injury
left him with a limp but it was never a handicap.
Dad met Mum in Sydney and they were married
in Kiama on the 30 th of March 1931. He worked
in the mills cutting timber, he did seasonal work
picking peas and beans, he cut sleepers in the
bush and he was also a fisherman. He used to
joke that he was a jack-of-all-trades, master of
none
Coastal Custodians 2

Mum’s father was Alexander (Alex) Brindle and
her mother was Daisy Bradshaw/Rutherford (she
used both names). Grandfather Alex was born in
the Snowy Mountains at Jindabyne about 1888,
and he died of pneumonia at eighty years of age,
on the 29 th of August 1963 at Lidcombe State
Hospital and Home, Lidcombe. As a young man
Grandfather Alex Brindle became a black tracker
and he worked with the Cooma, Dalgety and
Bombala Police. Grandmother Daisy was born in
1887 at Delegate and died on the 22 nd of
September 1915 at Cooma District Hospital.
Grandfather Alex’s mother was Emily Ellis-
Peters born 1853 and died about 1905. His father
was James Brindle born 1852 in Victoria at Cann
River or Monaro. James died on the 14 th of
August 1906 in Gippsland Hospital.
Grandmother Daisy’s father was (Black Harry)
Henry Brad(y)sh born 1860 and died before
1925. Her mother was Lucy Bradshaw; Lucy
was born in 1862 on ‘Cobbin Station’ at
Jindabyne. Lucy later married Billy Rutherford,
hence Daisy’s use of the name. Lucy died on the
27 th of July 1935.
When Grandmother Daisy passed on,
Grandfather Alex married Ethel Pegram (a non-
Aboriginal woman) on the 17 th of April 1920,
and they had a big family. Grandfather Alex was
registered on the Eden-Monaro (Cooma)
electoral roll since 1906.
When my Mum Iris and her sister Mary were ten
and eight years old they were taken by the
welfare to Cootamundra Girls Home. When
mum turned fifteen she was put out with a
wealthy family in Sydney and worked as a
domestic servant. Aunty Mary, when she left
Cootamundra Homes she was put out around
Cootamundra area where she fell pregnant and
had cousin Kenny Brindle. By the time she met
up with Mum again (must have been on the
South Coast) Mum was married and had Dennis,
my older brother. When mum would baby-sit
Kenny she would breast-feed both Kenny and
Dennis. There were eight other children to
follow Dennis, they are Ronald, Margaret, Alex,
myself, Mary, Billy, Bobby and Regina.
We lived at North Nowra on a property
belonging to my Uncle Ernie Walker. He was
George Brown’s father. Dad used to take my
brother Dennis out sleeper cutting. Dennis cut
his leg while they were out in the bush; he got
tetanus in the wound, Dad got him back to the
hospital where he passed away. He was only a
young man, seventeen years of age when that
happened. He was a well-liked person in the
Nowra community; the scouts formed a guard of
honour at his funeral. They said that Dad went
grey in a week. Mum lost three other children,
Ronald, Margaret and Mary. They were only
young when they passed away. Mary got
gastroenteritis. That left Alex, myself, Billy,
Bobby and Regina.
Pictured: Regina and Iris Walker
I started school at Nowra Primary School and
shortly after that we moved from Nowra to
Wreck Bay, when I was about six or seven.
While we were living at Wreck Bay, Mum’s
sister Mary Brindle passed away, she was living
at Cooper’s Island at the time. She was at the
camp and had a heart attack that was in 1952.
She was buried in Moruya cemetery but we don’t
know where. We have tried to find her but there
doesn’t seem to be any records.
At Wreck Bay I went to school. It was the best
years of my life living on Wreck Bay. All the
things we had to do, we’d run through the bush,
pick flowers, run round the rocks, all the kids
around my age would go for walks on the
weekends. I remember some of them: they were
Coastal Custodians 3

Fay, Ronny and John Ardler, Mary Roberts,
Lurline Moore, Neville and Patsy Bloxsome and
Amby Brown. We’d take matches to make a fire,
eat berries out of the bush, and catch pipis’. We
could go away all day and just live off the land
or the ocean and never go hungry. I loved the
school there; we would do all sorts of craft as
well as schoolwork. I remember the day we left
Wreck I was twelve and the manager took us in
his truck to catch the train. As we were leaving
Wreck, Alex and me were on the back of the
truck. I was crying my eyes out, broken hearted.
We moved out to Cowra. Mum and Dad lived
there for four years. I went to high school there
then moved to Sydney. I lived at La Perouse with
Uncle Benny and Aunty Sarah Cruse.
I worked at the Prince Henry Hospital as a
domestic. Mum and Dad moved to Falls Creek
outside Nowra and asked me to come home. I
had my daughter Iris just before my eighteenth
birthday in 1959 at Paddington Hospital in
Sydney. Then I moved home with Mum and Dad
at Falls Creek.
I met Jimmy Davison in 1960. Jimmy was born
in 1937 at Armidale. His father is Colin James
Davison and his mother is Kathleen Jane
Callaghan. We married in 1966. Our children are
Colin, Derek and Dennis; they were born at
Crown Street, Hospital in Sydney. We moved to
Wallaga when Dennis was a baby in 1963.
Michelle and Cheryl were born at Bega Hospital
and Jason, Leslie and Lucy were born at Moruya
Hospital. Jimmy worked as a handyman on
Wallaga for the Manager George Budworth.
Jimmy also worked on the Forestry at Bermagui.
Leading up to the 1967 Referendum, Cousin
Kenny Brindle bought Uni students down to
Wallaga from Sydney. This was when we started
to get involved in politics. Kenny was a regular
visitor to Wallaga and we told him about the
treatment that the Aboriginal people got from the
police and some of the Managers. They use to
have a gate outside the Managers residence,
when you had a visitor you had to report to the
Manager, visitors were only allowed for a set
time. When Kenny visited with the Uni students
they purposefully set up sound recordings for
when the Manager came in with the Police and
the whole conversation was recorded about them
being told to remove themselves from my house
and off the mission. Just after that we left
Wallaga and moved to Nowra. Iris was going to
Narooma High School and Derek and Colin were
old enough now to go to high school as well.
There were more opportunities for them in
Nowra and we wanted to get off the mission.
Pictured at Wallaga are Iris, Cheryl, Michelle, Collin,
Derek and Dennis.
We got a house in Bomaderry for a few years
then we moved to Tamworth. Jimmy was
working for the Family Resettlement Program.
We were there for about four years.
Then we moved back to East Nowra. Aunty Jane
Ardler approached me and asked me, if they got
the Medical Centre going would I work for them.
I worked there for over twenty years on and off.
When we first got the Centre going we worked
for nothing but we needed to set the service up.
Redfern Medical Services gave us a vehicle, a
Doctor and some office equipment. There was
Aunty Jane, myself, Debbie Luland, May
Roberts and Gracy Coombes. We had a room at
the Aboriginal Culture Centre, then
demountables in the Culture Centre car park, we
moved to a building in Berry Street then another
in Junction Street. We were in a half a dozen
different places before the new Medical Centre
was built in Berry Street and that’s where it is
today.
Coastal Custodians 4

I live with Jimmy and Regina at Jerrabomberra;
it’s just outside Queanbeyan. . I look after
Regina I’m her carer and Jimmy doesn’t work
anymore. There are only Regina and me left of
my family. Now the kids have all grown up.
Iris married David White; he is a painter by trade
but is working with Anglicare in Moruya at the
moment. Iris is a Manager with TAFE; she has
also worked for the Aboriginal Legal Service,
the Lands Department and ATSIC. Iris won a
scholarship in high school and went to the
Presbyterian Ladies College in Sydney. She has
a Bachelor in Adult Education. They live in
Broulee. Their children are Jesse, Zac and
Jordon. Jesse has a little girl, Teleah.
Colin has two teenage girls, Acacia and Kalinda.
He lives at Batemans Bay with Acacia and
Kalinda lives in Nowra with her mother Michelle
Ferguson. Collin works as a labourer. He does a
lot of writing and has a lot of knowledge; some
of it was passed down to him from my Dad.
Derek has four children they are: Melanie, Hope,
William and Jemma. Melanie is married with
two girls, Alysa and Gypsy Rose. They live in
Canberra. Hope, William and Jemma live with
their mother Susan Loyd in Narrabundah. Derek
loves gardening; he worked in the Botanic
Gardens in Sydney and as an electrician at
Parliament House. He drove the bus for
Winnunga Aboriginal Medical Centre in
Canberra until recently. He is a labourer now
doing contract work with archaeologists. He has
moved to Batemans Bay from Canberra.
Dennis passed away four years ago from motor
neuron disease. He was married to Kim
Longbottom. They had three children: Aaron,
Alyse and Nicki. Kim and the girls still live in
Canberra. Kim runs the Aboriginal Youth Centre
in Erindale. Her and Dennis set that up, he used
to work there as well. Before that he worked
with Telecom and before that he was one of
Charlies Angels, he worked with Charles
Perkins. Dennis did a lot of work with kids. He
was a football coach and manager. He also
worked in the different agencies and the lockup
with youth.
Michelle has two boys Stewart and Shane they
are men now. Their father is Bernie (Buddy)
Luland. Shane and Jessica Maynard have two
daughters Laela and Kadie, they live in Nowra.
Michelle has made her home in Moruya. She
works for Family Support but usually works with
youth.
Cheryl has a daughter Tamsin to Raymond
Doyle of Kempsey. Her partner now is Donald
Atkinson, they lived in Eden for ten years but
they just moved to Kalaru just outside Tathra.
Cheryl is a well-known Aboriginal artist, she
runs an art co-op called Kari Yalla and works
with Auswide in Bega.
All the girls are really good cooks.
Jason is a labourer, his partner is Rachel
Wellington, and they have seven children.
Adam, Raygan, Issacc, Caleb, Emily, Iris and
Seth. They live in Nowra. Jason has been doing
some work with archaeologists in Bungendore.
Leslie has worked with the Aboriginal Legal
Service as the Senior Youth Officer. He did a
Diploma in Law at Tranby College. He worked
with Gadu Wadja as an Aboriginal Support
Worker for men in Eden. He has worked with
youth in Canberra and the Department of
Housing in Queanbeyan. He lives in Canberra
now.
Lucy is the youngest of nine. Her partner is Peter
Thomas, they have three children, Peter junior
who will be seventeen next month, Mia who will
be ten in May and they’ve just had a new baby
Thomas John Dennis Davison. They live at East
Nowra. Lucy’s first job was in Coles in Nowra.
I want to move back to Moruya to be close to my
kids and grand kids.
I would like to see all our people get on together.
We just have to save our energy to fight the
system, the racism and the negativity instead of
fighting one another.
I also want people to know that Iris represents
my family with my endorsement.
Daught Davison
Edward Walkers famous Bullock Team
Coastal Custodians 5

Regional Managers
Report
This is the first Coastal Custodians for 2007. It
should be a big year for us all.
There’s plenty to catch up on. Summer was
good – really good rain at the end and not too
many fires, those that we did have were certainly
challenging. We had a few lightning strikes in
really inaccessible country, which we had to
attack using remote fire fighting techniques.
The Brogo fires were the most difficult;
lightning strikes in January started a number of
fires in really rough country upstream of the
Brogo Dam. They were eventually put out after
burning about 450ha over a couple of weeks.
Trisha Ellis and others were there and some of
her photos are in this edition.
Refuelling the Helicopters at Brogo Helipad
We’ve now started our autumn hazard reduction
program. For local readers, some of the smoke
(but by no means all) of the smoke you are
seeing is coming from fires in the park.
There’s one burn planned for Biamanga this
autumn, but it’s a bit wet at the moment and we
might not get it in. If we don’t the Board will
need to decide whether it should go ahead next
year.
We are also planning to do a cultural burn at
Stanton Rocks in South East Forests National
Park. On the advice of elders, this burn has
been planned to look after country.
Helicopter with bucket
Speaking of Trisha, she’s off to Sydney on
Monday to be awarded a Bachelor of
Community Management from Macquarie
University. She will also be presented with an
award for academic achievement.
Congratulations Trisha, this is huge effort,
especially given your work and community
commitments. I don’t know how you have the
time to do it all.
After the election, National Parks is now part of
a bigger department called the Department of
Environment and Climate Change. Its only just
happening and I’ll be able to say some more in
the next edition.
Our new Minister is Phil Koperberg who up to
recently was head of the Rural Fire Service.
He’s taken over Bob Debus’s seat of Blue
Mountains.
The appointment of the Boards of Management
for Gulaga and Biamanga was held up slightly
because of the election. Now that it’s over it will
be Minister Koperberg rather than Minister
Debus who will be responsible for appointing the
Boards. I know its been a while it but it should
be finalised soon.
Tim Shepherd
Regional Manager
Coastal Custodians 6

NSW Department of Environment and Conservation
Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Advisory Committee
Top row left to right: Stephen Ryan, James Ingram, Glenda Chalker, Victor Perry , Jason Field Bottom
row left to right: Maureen O’Donnell, Viola Brown, Mary Duroux and Lavinia Duroux. (Yvonne Stewart
is the other ACHAC member, but was unable to attend).
The Aboriginal Cultural Heritage
Advisory Committee was established
in 2006 with the primary role of
advising the Minister for the
Environment and the Director General
of the Department of Environment and
Conservation on any matter relating to
the identification, assessment and
management of Aboriginal cultural
heritage in NSW.
The Department of Environment and
Conservation sought nominations of
Aboriginal people involved in cultural
heritage matters in their local
communities and who have an
understanding of cultural heritage
management issues.
The Aboriginal Cultural Heritage
Advisory Committee was appointed
by the Minister for the Environment in
March 2006. Committee members
serve a term of three years and the
Committees consists of one
representative from the NSW
Aboriginal Land Council and ten
representatives nominated from
either: Aboriginal Elders groups;
registered native title claimants;
and/or registered Aboriginal owners
under the NSW Aboriginal Land
Rights Act 1983.
The Minister for the Environment
inducted the Committee at their first
workshop together at NSW
Parliament House in May 2006. Since
Coastal Custodians 7

the initial induction workshop the
Committee has held three business
meetings with the most recent held at
Batemans Bay on 2 nd April 2007 to 3 rd
April 2007.
The Committee has developed and
endorsed the Committee Procedures,
Terms of Reference and Code of
Conduct at their last business
meeting. The Committee also
developed and endorsed a Strategic
Agenda with the primary vision of
ensuring:
“Healthy Country cared for and
respected by all people, to maintain
Aboriginal people’s spiritual and
physical connection from the past
to the present and into the future”.
To achieve their vision the Committee
developed the following three goals:
1. To make Aboriginal culture and
heritage front and centre in the
development of policies to
support the social and human
development of Aboriginal
people in NSW.
2. To contribute to DEC being a
culturally aware and respectful,
credible, efficient and effective
organisation.
3. To provide sound advice based
on the needs and aspirations of
the Aboriginal people of NSW.
The Committee has established
seven principles around which they
will conduct their business:
1. The Committee, in being
representative of the Aboriginal
community of NSW, acts as a
voice in the interests and
aspirations of Aboriginal people
in NSW and their cultural
heritage.
2. Aboriginal people have the right
to self-determination – that is
the right to determine the
direction of their own social,
cultural, economic and political
development.
3. Given Aboriginal peoples’
custodial interests in Country,
Aboriginal people have a
responsibility to care for the
landscape of NSW, its
biodiversity and places of
particular cultural significance.
4. Access to Country and its
resources is essential so
Aboriginal people can continue
cultural practices, maintain links
with the land and care for
Country.
5. Aboriginal communities obtain
cultural, social and economic
benefits through being involved
in environmental management
and conservation.
6. ACHAC promotes and supports
partnerships between Aboriginal
communities and DEC.
7. ACHAC acts as advocate to
promote awareness of
Aboriginal culture and heritage
to other government agencies.
The Committee has identified five
priority areas they will consider that
relate to the:
• protection of Aboriginal cultural
heritage,
• understanding Aboriginal
cultural heritage and managing
heritage information/knowledge,
• cultural identity/renewal,
• managing lands, gardens,
terrestrial and marine parks,
• building a working environment
that affirms and respect
Aboriginal culture.
Coastal Custodians 8

Community Meetings
to discuss
“South Coast Voices”
CD-ROM
The Australian Institute of Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander Studies
(AIATSIS) is seeking community
support for a new version of “South
Coast Voices”. This CD-ROM
showcases a small part of the AIATSIS
collection relating to Aboriginal people
on the south coast of NSW. It includes
pictures (including those shown
opposite), video and audio clips as well
as printed text.
“South Coast Voices” contains
information from Aboriginal people
who lived mainly at Wreck Bay,
Roseby Park and Wallaga Lake and so
I will be talking with representatives
from those places to arrange meeting
venues and times.
Where: To be advised.
When: June /July (See next issue of
Coastal Custodians.)
Everyone is welcome
Please come and have your say
about the future of this
important cultural resource!
Pictured: Aunty Eileen Morgan with Gulaga in
the background.
Pictured: Uncle Percy and Frank Mumbler.
Contact: Daphne Nash
Email: daphne.nash@anu.edu.au
Ph: 02 6125 4731
Coastal Custodians 9

Dannielle Towers
is
Back on Board
Hello everyone, I’m back and I now have a
beautiful little girl Jarni Jo Marie who is 15
months old. My goodness how time flies.
I hope you all stayed well in my absence.
Once again we are heading towards another new
financial year (starts 1 July) which means we
need your ideas for Aboriginal Heritage
Conservation Projects program and nominations
for Aboriginal place declarations. If you have
ideas for projects and nominations give the
relevant Aboriginal Heritage Conservation
Officer in your area a call.
If you have concerns regarding Aboriginal sites
please call and we can discuss.
NAIDOC is coming up and activities are planned
up and down the coast. If we can help with your
event give us a call.
Look forward to seeing you all in the near future,
Take care and stay deadly,
Dannielle Towers
Aboriginal Heritage Conservation Officer
Southern Aboriginal Heritage Unit
Cultural Heritage Division
Ph: 02 44760841
Fax: 02 44761793
dannielle.towers@environment.nsw.gov.au
In October 2005 the Department of
Environment and Conservation (DEC)
and Forests NSW agreed to develop a
Koala Management Framework for
coastal and hinterland areas of
southern NSW between the Tuross River
and the Victorian border. The Handback
National Parks (Biamanga and Gulaga)
and nearby areas are within this study
area.
It was agreed that a high level of
community consultation should be
undertaken prior to producing the
Framework. Following consultation
with DEC Aboriginal staff a separate
project was initiated to gain the views
and knowledge of Aboriginal people.
This report summarises information
gathered in this process to date. There
are some key members of the Aboriginal
community who still need be contacted,
particularly those now living to the
north of the study area. For this reason
this document should be considered as
a draft interim report, with further
consultation needed.
Consultation consisted of meetings,
workshops and discussions with
Aboriginal people and organisations and
was developed around the following
questions:
• Do you know where koalas are, or
have been in recent times?
• Have you any stories about
koalas that you would like to
share with us?
• Why do you think koala numbers
are so low in this region?
• What support do you think that
the Aboriginal community needs
to assist the management of koala
areas in the Handback National
Parks?
Coastal Custodians 10

FIGURE 1: BIAMANGA NP, RECENT KOALA RECORDS AND SUGGESTED ROUTE OF
THE MUMBULLA/GULAGA ABORIGINAL WAY 1
Legend
Koala Records 1970-2004
Koala Records 2003
State Forests
National Parks
Private Forest
Suggested routed of the
Mumbulla/Gulaga Aboriginal
Way
MURRAH
SF
BIAMANGA
BERMAGUI
SF
1 Blay, J. (2005) Bega Valley Region Old Path Ways And Trails Mapping Project, Department of
Environment and Conservation PO Box 656 Merimbula 2548
Coastal Custodians 11

Information about a range of koala
sightings from a coastal area east of
Bodalla to the Victorian border
emerged. Some cultural information
regarding Aboriginal people’s traditional
connections with the Koala was also
provided.
Aboriginal people consistently provided
four reasons why koala numbers had
declined in the region: wildfire,
predation, illness and logging. It was
also suggested that the decline and
disappearance of the Koala was because
of the high level of environmental and
cultural destruction that had occurred
since European occupation.
Aboriginal people see that the
conservation of the Koala is important
and they want to support the
conservation and recovery of the species
in partnership with the white
community. But this can only occur
through a higher level of Aboriginal
involvement in broader conservation
and land management work. And to
achieve this they need support,
particularly in training and employment
opportunities.
Consistent themes emerged as to what
kind of support was needed:
• Educational opportunities for
Aboriginal children and teenagers
that focus on the local
environment and Aboriginal
culture should be enhanced
through schools, TAFE, the local
field studies centre and Culture
Camps.
• Educational kits need to be
developed for Culture Camps and
other educational institutions
that focus on past, existing and
potential contributions of the
Aboriginal community to koala
conservation and broader
environmental subjects. These
should vary in content so as
reach young people of all ages.
• Culture Camps provide important
educational opportunities in the
fields of Aboriginal culture,
environment and leadership. They
offer opportunities for the
Aboriginal community to teach
their children in ways that more
closely reflect their traditional
culture.
• Aboriginal women have a vital
role to play in Culture Camps,
particularly in teaching younger
children of both sexes, and
teenage girls. There should be
greater support to encourage their
participation. This would be
enhanced if Aboriginal women
staff employed by DEC and/or the
Board of Management for the
Handback Parks had specific
duties assisting in organising
camps.
• Additional training opportunities
need to be available to older
Aboriginal people in conservation
and land management, leadership
skills and cultural awareness.
Training needs to be based in the
bush and reflect Aboriginal
culture as much as possible.
• Work should be available for
people who have undertaken
training. Often, Aboriginal people
have undertaken training but
then employment in the field of
training is not available. This
increases disillusionment and
alienation.
• Training and ongoing work could
be based to some extent on the
re-establishment and ongoing
management of traditional
pathways in Handback national
parks, using traditional
management approaches
(particularly those concerning fire
management) as much as
reasonably possible.
• The establishment of a sanctuarybased
approach to koala
reintroduction and recovery
should be considered. Aboriginal
people working out of Jigamy
Farm would particularly like to
establish a wildlife sanctuary
south of the Farm.
Coastal Custodians 12

• Aboriginal people’s capacity to
contribute to conservation and
park management initiatives
would be enhanced with the
development of resource and
visitors centres near to the
Handback Parks.
The drawing together of some of these
themes raises the possibility that
training and ongoing work for
Aboriginal people could be focussed in
part in the area to the west and north of
where the Biamanga NP breeding
association of koalas is centred.
These activities could be based on
developing traditional management
approaches (particularly around fire
management), re-establishing
traditional pathways and undertaking
surveys and monitoring for koalas and
other threatened fauna.
Such an approach would achieve the
following outcomes:
• It would broaden and deepen our
knowledge of, and capacity to
monitor the Biamanga NP breeding
association of koalas.
• It would assist in reducing what is
probably the greatest threat facing
these koalas; that of wildfire and
associated back-burning.
• It would provide the Aboriginal
community with training
opportunities and the prospect of
making an important contribution to
koala conservation in SENSW.
• It would provide opportunities to
trial traditional Aboriginal burning
practices in forested areas of
SENSW.
• It would provide a range of training
opportunities in fire management,
wildlife monitoring and associated
skills for young and older Aboriginal
people.
• It would enhance community-based
fire management approaches that
are being developed by landholders
to the east of this breeding
association of koalas.
Acknowledgements
Aboriginal people’s sharing of
information and views about koalas and
their management is gratefully
acknowledged.
Lynne Thomas & Chris Allen
Department of Environment and
Conservation.
Readers of Coastal Custodians who
travel the Princes Highway south of
Tilba will have noticed a new building
that has been constructed at the
location where the Gulaga / Biamanga
Handback took place in May last year.
It is an amenities building that contains
two toilets that can accommodate
persons with disabilities and a sports
equipment storage room. It has been
built by Eurobodalla Shire Council in
order to provide for the needs of people
during events at the Tilba Sports field.
Trisha Ellis has invited me to tell you
about the building and how I see it
fitting into the landscape and to the
Cultural Plan for our shire.
There is no doubt in my mind that the
impact of the Handback and the
ceremonies that were performed there
that day was profoundly felt by
everyone who attended. The depth of
pride that we all shared will not be
forgotten, and it made me appreciate
even more keenly the significance of the
site. I am thankful that Council
entrusted me with the responsibility of
designing and building a structure in
such a beautiful and important place.
Coastal Custodians 13

Its position between Gulaga and
Najanuga and its obvious presence in
the open cultural landscape of the Tilba
Valley meant that a modest yet high
quality building was the only option.
Council has been prepared to go the
extra yards by ensuring that the
building is a highly durable, standalone
structure that needs no outside
energy or water inputs in order to
function. It has a state-of-the-art
‘Biolytix’ effluent disposal system, solar
power and an in-ground 5000-litre
rainwater storage tank. As such it is the
first fully integrated energy and water
efficient structure that council has
created and it sets a precedent for
future public works throughout the
shire.
Two Wallaga Lake Community men,
Hayden Briggs and Mervyn Naylor,
apprenticed to plumber Mick Cosgrove
from Bermagui, have put a lot of work
into the building and were
photographed recently whilst doing the
final fitting out and water connections
to the buildings’ infrastructure.
The design fits with the requirements of
the Tilba Conservation Area. It follows
the model of an outbuilding where
hardwood slab construction, rather
than the usual weatherboard cladding,
has been used. At present the building
is still shiny-bright in its newness, but
with time it will become less
conspicuous as the timber goes grey in
the sun and the zincalume roof softens.
Tree planting in the post-and-rail
enclosure off the building will also help
to lessen its impact by providing a
backdrop when viewed from the
highway, and will also partly obscure it
when viewed from Corkhill Drive. The
idea is that as time goes by the building
will disappear into the environment,
looking like an old slab hut in the
middle of a paddock.
However it is only when you get near to
it that the building will express its wider
cultural story.
A protective concrete apron that
surrounds the structure and the
verandah floors have been painted red,
yellow and black by members of the
Work-for-the-Dole team who helped me
over a three month period. Four Koori
men, two from Bodalla, one from
Narooma and a Wallaga Lake man were
part of that team.
The interior of the toilets will feature a
Native Flora Display (to a captive
audience) that is composed of
photographic panels of locally
indigenous wildflowers, shrubs and
trees photographed between Bermagui
and Moruya over the last two years. The
common, scientific and family names
accompany each image, but in addition
to this I have been able to include
Coastal Custodians 14

names of plants from two language
groups, Dhurga and Djirringan, that are
immediate to the Handback site.
I wish to extend my thanks to Kerry
Boyenga, Waine Donovan, Trisha Ellis,
Lorraine Naylor, Pam Flanders, Lynne
Thomas and Ashley Reid for the
assistance they have given in
embedding this vital cultural learning
into the building. Apart from the
sporting and cultural events that the
Sports field will provide to the entire
community, the building is a point of
connection where Aboriginal Cultural
Heritage, Natural Heritage and Non-
Aboriginal Cultural Heritage can meet.
Pictured: Trevor King, Lynne Thomas &
Ashley Reid at Umbarra.
In terms of the recently created
Eurobodalla Shire Cultural Plan it can
make a positive contribution to some of
the identified directions of the plan
including:
• Making provision for and
promoting cultural use of
district/local facilities
• Providing public places and spaces
that reflect and celebrate
community identity
• Providing opportunities for active
participation in expression and
celebration of community identity
and heritage
• Fostering the development of
environmental sustainability that
builds on community cultural
values and visions
• Conserving, enhancing and
protecting biodiversity in
Eurobodalla
The Statement of Cultural Values that
underpins the plan (which itself
underpins all other plans for the shire)
includes the Statement of Reconciliation
and Commitment that reads:
“The particular relationship that
Aboriginal communities have with the
land and their culture is honoured,
respected and recognized as influential
for all the community.”
Further on in the document is a
cultural value that also influenced the
decision to request input from the
Aboriginal community.
“Recognition that many great cultural
events [the Handback] and individual
works of art [the building] act as
wellsprings that transform and connect
us to our common humanity, therefore
making a vital contribution to social
cohesion.”
Finally in the plan there are
principles that place value on
respect for differing modes of
cultural belonging, knowing and
expression and that recognize,
respect and encourage the coexistence
of differing cultural
values. Echoing these
sentiments and the importance
of the values expressed in the
Cultural Plan, I hope that the
Tilba Sports field becomes a
place of healing, where people
come not only to play, but also
to enjoy meeting and walking
our cultural pathways together
in the true spirit of
reconciliation.
Trevor King
Coastal Custodians 15

Eurobodalla Shire Council Media Release - 13 March 2007
Calling Eurobodalla's Aboriginal artists
to exhibit
A unique opportunity for Aboriginal artists in the Eurobodalla to display their work
is fast approaching. With support from Eurobodalla Shire Council, the Going
Public program will present its first Aboriginal Art Exhibition in the Moruya
Mechanics Institute in October this year.
Local Aboriginal artists over the age of eighteen can bring examples of their
artworks to The Mechanics Institute in Page Street Moruya on Saturday 24 March
between 1pm and 4pm. Artworks can be in any medium, for example, painting,
wood carving, sculpture or weaving.
On the day, artists will meet highly acclaimed Eden-based artist, Cheryl Davison
in the first of a series of free workshops to prepare for the exhibition. Cheryl has
been practicing her work for some 20 years and is a founding member of the Kari
Yalla Aboriginal Artists Cooperative in Eden and is in the Eurobodalla to share her
expertise with local artists.
In this first workshop, Cheryl will find out who wants to be involved and what
support is needed for artists to make and present new work for the exhibition.
Cheryl wants the workshop program leading up to the exhibition in October to be
designed so that participating artists have the appropriate support so that there
are as many entries as possible for this exciting exhibition In October.
If you want to know more about participating, please contact Cheryl Davison on
0431 736 956.
Media Contact:
Penny Bonnell, SEAR
Ph 4474 1088 or mobile 0429 909 432
Cheryl Davison, Workshop Tutor
Ph 0431 736956
Trisha Ellis is a Eurobodalla Artist who is assisting Cheryl and undertaking the
networking and liaison in the local communities for the workshops and the
exhibition.
Phone 0428 660432
Coastal Custodians 16

NPWS South Coast Region has a comprehensive
and flexible range of educational activities for
primary and secondary school students in the
Illawarra, South Coast and Southern Highlands.
If you happened to be at the Bermagui Seaside
Fair on Saturday the 10 th of March you would
have had the opportunity to see the National
Parks School Education van. The van features
true to life exhibits of native animals and the
environment. The host of educational displays
attracted a wide audience throughout the day as
did the show bags and free handouts.
Pictured here having a well-deserved rest is Alex
Simpson Project Officer Batemans Marine Park
Marine Parks Authority Narooma, Pat Hall
Manager Education Information and Tourism
based at Nowra and Barbara Allgaier Discovery
Co-ordinator based at Merimbula.
The artwork on the side of the National Parks
School Education van also attracted it’s fair
share of attention and appreciation as it travelled
the coast roads. The artist is Jason Murray a
Wiradjuri man who works in the Nowra area as a
Discovery Ranger. Jason is pictured here with
Deirdre Martin also a Discovery Ranger.
The education program specifically addresses
relevant units of the HSIE and Science &
Technology syllabus. Activities can be located in
national parks, schools or in any suitable natural
environment in accordance with student and
teacher needs.
Trained, experienced Discovery rangers conduct
program activities that produce outcomes aligned
with school syllabus. Flexibility is a major
component of the program. Units may be
delivered in various combinations as required.
Focus day programs can be developed for a
variety of topics to suit individual schools.
Please discuss your particular syllabus topics and
desired outcomes when making enquiry. Fees are
charged for all activities – costs vary according
to requirements. For further information and
bookings contact the Discovery Co-ordinator on
02 4422 2323.
Coastal Custodians 17

Saturday, 20 th of January 2007 by the Honourable
Gary Nairn Member for Eden-Monaro, Special
Minister for State.
Prior to the opening ceremony a number of energetic
enthusiasts walked the Dreaming Track (8.0 kms),
starting from Congo Point in the north and taking in
the scenic views at Meringo Headland, Mulimburra
Point, Grey Rocks and Bingie point.
The track is situated within parts of the Eurobodalla
National Park and features spectacular landscapes.
The geology of the area includes granite platforms,
shale, sandstone and basalt. In areas the basalt is
covered with young quartz-rich sandstone and
gravels, some of which has been cemented to form
silcrete. A large proportion of the Aboriginal stone
artefacts on the South Coast were made from silcrete
and the Congo/Bingie area is home to a number of
silcrete quarries, campsites, shell middens and
occupation sites.
While walking the track you are likely to spot
macropods such as the eastern grey kangaroo, rednecked
wallabies and swamp wallabies. Brush-tailed
and ring-tailed possums inhabit the thick shrub of the
National Park, as does the echidna. Keen eyes may
spot the marsupial rat that is a staple diet of the local
goannas and snakes. Along the estuaries are the
elegant egrets, high-stepping white-faced herons and
wait and watch cormorants.
Threatened species such as the greater broad-nosed
bat, the grey-headed flying fox, both the glossy black
and the gang gang cockatoos, the powerful owl and
the masked owl have all been spotted in the area. You
may also spot some threatened shorebirds including
the red-billed pied oystercatchers, the vulnerable
sanderling or the endangered sooty oystercatcher.
In his opening speech Warwick Stone acknowledged
the efforts and support of Envirofund, NPWS, Bingi
Landcare Group, ESC, Cobowra LALC, Peter
Spurway, Huon Hassall, Rudi Langeveld, John
Fisher, Stuart Whitelaw, and Kathy Peck.
Pictured: Patricia Ellis Chairperson Cobowra LALC, Chris Kowal Councillor ESC, Pam Green Chairperson SR CMA,
Andrew Constance Member for Bega, The Honourable Gary Nairn Member for Eden-Monaro, Special Minister for
State and Warwick Stone Bingie Residents Association.
Coastal Custodians 18

Coastal Custodians 19

Calendar of Events
March
Thursday 1 st St David’s Day
Saturday 17 th St Patrick’s Day
Saturday 24 th Aboriginal Art
Workshop Mechanics
Institute Page Street
Moruya.
April
Thursday 5 th School Holidays
to (NSW)
Friday 20 th
Friday 6 th Good Friday
Sunday 8 th Easter Sunday
Monday 9 th Easter Monday
Monday 23 rd St George’s Day
Wednesday 25 th ANZAC Day
Subscription details
Please fill in the following details to
receive your copy of future quarterly
newsletters and forward them to:
Trisha Ellis
Joint Management Coordinator
Parks & Wildlife Division
Department of Environment &
Conservation
PO Box 282
Narooma NSW 2546
Telephone: 02 44760846
Facsimile: 02 44761793
Mobile: 04 28660432
Email:
trisha.ellis@environment.nsw.gov.au
Name: ___________________________
Address:
_________________________________
_________________________________
_________________________________
Postcode: _________ State: _________
Telephone:______________________
Facsimile:_______________________
Mobile:_________________________
Note: Photocopies of back issues available on
request or visit the website on:
www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/npws.nsf/conte
nt/coastal_custodian_newsletter
Coastal Custodians 20