Community & Business
29 October, 2024
Koalas theme of Condamine Catchment Landcare Meeting
Landcare group representatives from across the Darling Downs went to the Highfields Tavern last week to discuss koalas.
Before the Condamine Catchment Management Association (CCMA) General Meeting was held, an Annual General Meeting was conducted with the following positions filled.
President: Anna Smith
Vice-President: Dr John Standley OAM
Treasurer: Glenys Bowtell
Secretary: Mary-lou Gittins OAM
During lunch, Oakey Urban Landcare’s Trevor Cockburn showed his family film ‘Koala Kapers’, shot by John Eggleston, depicting koala care at the Brookvale Park Nature Reserve.
Mary-Lou Gittins began the meeting by briefly summarising the history and objectives of the CCMA, which has existed since 1992.
“We act as a catalyst for interaction and co-operation between the groups,” she said.
“The aim of the group is to be a representative body on natural resource management issues.”
Different representatives then spoke for their district bodies.
Pittsworth Landcare Secretary Lana Bradshaw spoke about how her group has planted 22,000 trees over the last 11 years on 240 properties in the district.
Ms Bradshaw said the findings of a koala project into the health of koalas, using their scat, would be released in full shortly, with preliminary results showing that 91 samples had viable DNA with a 28% of chlamydia.
Millmerran Landcare’s Rebecca Kirby spoke about how her group was promoting the traditional Aboriginal practice of cool burning to reduce fuel loads and prevent bushfires.
The audience was particularly interested in Kirby’s Koala First Aid Courses.
Gomaren and Doctors Creek Landcare Group representative Toni Gorry said her group had been undertaking a large planting project aimed at developing koala habitat in the region.
Ms Gorry said the group had planted 3000 trees this year with the goal of improving an existing koala corridor at Cutella, and building one at Douglas.
She said that as part of the agreement, landholders had to sign up to the Landcare Group.
Chris Meibusch from the Toowoomba Koala Habitat project spoke on the work his group was doing at tracking koalas using drones, including at the Woods family property at Kelvinhaugh.
