The Footprint 2011 Summer Edition - Eyre Peninsula Natural ...

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Caring for our natural resources Ten groups awarded $36,500 for sustainable farming Ten farmer groups around Eyre Peninsula have been awarded funding to put sustainable agriculture into practice. A total of $36,500 will be distributed to the groups by EPNRM for the projects, which are aimed at contributing to Eyre Peninsula’s sustainable agricultural production, increased soil health and promoting best practice land management. The successful projects are: • South Australian No-Tillage Farmers Association - $4000 ○ Improved phosphate uptake • Eyre Peninsula Agricultural Research Foundation - $4000 ○ Improved weed control technology • Tuckey Agricultural Bureau - $4000 ○ Study tour of soil improvement technologies in the South East • PING - Partners in Grain - $4000 ○ Minnipa Women’s Field Day support • SA No Till Farmers Association- $4000 ○ Innovative Biochar technologies • Southern Precession Agriculture Australia - $4000 ○ Western EP focus group workshops • Lower Eyre Agricultural Development Association - $4000 ○ Social media opportunities for farmer engagement • Southern Precision Agriculture Australia - $4000 ○ Ag Expo support on EP • Buckleboo Farm Improvement Group - $1500 ○ Control of problem summer weeds • Butler/Ungarra Agricultural Bureau - $4000 ○ Understanding soil constraints For more information on future grants for farming groups, contact Neil Ackland on 0428 765 107. Water resources focus on EP Members of the WAA group visit a properly designed culvert. EPNRM footprint summer edition 2011 EPNRM Landcare and Sustainable Farming officer Neil Ackland Water resources officers from around SA converged on Port Lincoln recently to share information and experiences. The visit was hosted by EPNRM and attended by representatives from most of the seven other NRM Boards. The group visited local sites to discuss both common and unique water resources issues, such as native habitats, catchment infrastructure and groundwater access trenches (GATs). Some of the sites visited were the Lower Tod River wetlands and estuary, freshwater fish monitoring sites, rural fringe subdivisions near watercourses, private dams, springs, soaks and GATs, the Little Swamp causeway, the Tod River weir and channel, rural roads stormwater management site, an acid sulfate soils site and Sleaford Mere. The visit was co-ordinated by EPNRM water resources officers David Cunningham and Seb Drewer. 12
Caring for our natural resources Bunny baits ready to go Rabbit baits are now available from EPNRM for summer baiting programs. Staff have mixed about five tonnes of oats with 1080 poison and these are available free for landholders with more than five hectares of land. EPNRM acting biosecurity manager Tony Zwar urged landholders to protect their crops, pastures and native vegetation by getting involved in rabbit control. “The good rains that we have been having mean that rabbits have been in almost continuous breeding cycle for the past 12 to 18 months,” he said. “Rabbits are stimulated to breed by the presence of green feed and just recently, they have been able to get that even over late summer and early autumn in some places.” Landholders who use the baits must comply with safety provisions, including use of warning signs and observing restrictions about use near waterways, dwellings and roadsides. New products to control wild dogs and foxes Since 2005, the Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre has been developing a range of new products for vertebrate pest animal control, some of which will become available for commercial use over the next few years. Most significant is the development of a new poison for wild dogs and foxes called para-aminopropiophenone (PAPP). This new toxin has been designed to replace 1080 as the primary poison for controlling wild dogs and foxes. The registered products for this new poison are called DOGABATE® and FOXECUTE®. EPNRM footprint summer edition 2011 EPNRM officer Fred Pickett helps to prepare 1080 oats. For more information, call your local EPNRM office (see details back page). View a video on best practice rabbit control at: http://www.epnrm.sa.gov.au/AnimalPlantControl/ DeclaredPestAnimals/Rabbits.aspx The positive side to this new product is that it comes with an antidote called Bluehealer® which can be administered orally to accidentally poisoned domestic dogs by vets or the dog owners themselves. Other products still under development or trials are: • Mechanical injectors that contain 1080, cyanide or PAPP. • Lethal mechanical foot traps containing cyanide. • A portable carbon monoxide fumigator for rabbits and freeze-dried RHD virus for use on carrot or oat bait for biological rabbit control. For more details on these and other research projects or products visit www.invasiveanimals.com or www.feral. org.au/pestsmart 13
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Page 3 and 4: Free feral trees for Christmas Port
Page 5 and 6: Protect your property against fire
Page 7 and 8: Caring for our natural resources Re
Page 9 and 10: 1080 Fox baiting Distribution Days
Page 11: Clearance of native vegetation on E
Page 15 and 16: Weed could increase fire threat on
Page 17 and 18: Caring for our natural resources Wo
Page 19 and 20: Students get their hands dirty Prim

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