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Finding the Balance Ponded Pastures Part 3 of a 3 part series

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YouTube Video

It also provides an insight into the type of fisheries improvement work, which can be implemented into ponded pasture operations. In particular fishladders, fish refuge pools and the managed control of wetlands plant life through improved grazing practices are discussed in the video.

For more than 50 years coastal graziers have valued ponded pasture for its capacity to provide stock feed in the dryer months. Jason Bradford, a generational farmer, is working with a local NRM, Reef Catchments, and the fisheries ecologists at Catchment Solutions to return the balance between grazing and native species habitat.
Ponded pastures are lauded for their potential to be highly productive grazing areas and to produce out-of-season feed in rainfall dependent regions. Many of these pastures have been developed on coastal floodplains
adjacent to or on intertidal wetlands, estuaries, and salt marshes. This makes ponded pastures attractive nursery grounds for juvenile fish.
Due to their shallow, expansive nature, ponded pastures reduce in volume throughout the year. In drought years the wetlands may completely dry and fisheries productivity can be lost. Constructing large refuge pools is one way of maintaining fish populations through extended dry periods.

Finding the Balance Ponded Pastures Part 2 of a 3 part series

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YouTube Video

Part 2 discusses how herbicide usage is reduced or eliminated, biodiversity and managing grazing practices control Hymenachne in the wetlands. It also provides an insight into the type of fisheries improvement work, which can be implemented into ponded pasture operations. In particular fishladders, fish refuge pools and the managed control of wetlands plant life through improved grazing practices are discussed in the video.

Barra and Beef field day electrofishing on display
Barra and Beef field day electrofishing on display

Ponded pastures are lauded for their potential to be highly productive grazing areas and to produce out-of-season feed in rainfall dependent regions. Many of these pastures have been developed on coastal floodplains
adjacent to or on intertidal wetlands, estuaries, and salt marshes. This makes ponded pastures attractive nursery grounds for juvenile fish.
Due to their shallow, expansive nature, ponded pastures reduce in volume throughout the year. In drought years the wetlands may completely dry and fisheries productivity can be lost. Constructing large refuge pools is one way of maintaining fish populations through extended dry periods.

Finding the Balance. Ponded Pastures Part 1 of a 3 part series

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YouTube Video

Part 1 discusses how the wetlands combined with grazing were established and provides an insight into the type of fisheries improvement work, which can be implemented into ponded pasture operations. In particular fishladders, fish refuge pools and the managed control of wetlands plant life through improved grazing practices are discussed in the video.

Marklands Station Electrofishing Demonstration
Marklands Station Electrofishing Demonstration

Ponded pastures are lauded for their potential to be highly productive grazing areas and to produce out-of-season feed in rainfall dependent regions. Many of these pastures have been developed on coastal floodplains
adjacent to or on intertidal wetlands, estuaries, and salt marshes. This makes ponded pastures attractive nursery grounds for juvenile fish.
Due to their shallow, expansive nature, ponded pastures reduce in volume throughout the year. In drought years the wetlands may completely dry and fisheries productivity can be lost. Constructing large refuge pools is one way of maintaining fish populations through extended dry periods.

Creating Fish Habitats in Ponded Pasture

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Video

Catchment Solutions recently hosted a wonderful field day focusing on topics and activities including:

  • managing ponded pastures for increased fisheries productivity
  • demonstrating fish ladder monitoring and electrofishing in action
  • hearing about Carbon Farming and
  • better understanding of Refuge Pool creation
Barra and Beef Field Day Fishladder on display
Barra and Beef Field Day Fishladder on display
Barra and Beef Field Day Trent Power discusses the importance of waterway connectivity to our native fish population.
Catchment Solutions Barra and Beef Field Day – Trent Power with a juvenile Barramundi
Barra and Beef field day - a great turnout. Marklands Station Koumala
Barra and Beef field day – a great turnout

It was held at the at Marklands Station, Koumala and was attended by landholders, representatives from local and State governments, Reef Catchments and members of the public.

Barra and Beef field day electrofishing on display
Barra and Beef field day electrofishing on display
Barra and Beef field day presentations
Barra and Beef field day presentations
Feel free to reach out to Catchment Solutions for more information on the wetlands projects. If you have any questions or would like to learn more about these exciting projects, our team is here to assist you.

 

Habitat Reef Modules making news in Mackay

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The Channel 7 story showed the innovative Habitat Reef modules deployed in the Pioneer River estuary, Mackay.  The complex hard vertical relief modules were designed with improved settlement surfaces to provide suitable areas for recruiting sessile marine organisms such as oysters and corals.

Channel 7 Story

The Habitat Reef modules have a cave at the bottom for large-bodied fish species and a separate chamber at the top only accessible by juvenile and small-bodied fish species. In total, 45 modules were deployed adjacent to 3 easily accessible fishing platforms (15 at each) to improve the recreational fishing experience and provide key nursery habitats.

Pyramid Reef Habitat Pioneer River Fish
Pyramid Reef Habitat Pioneer River Fish

Pre-deployment monitoring using unbaited remote underwater video stations recorded 3 fish species at the sites. Post-monitoring recorded 15 species. Baited video stations were also used post-deployment to investigate differences between baited and unbaited videos, with an additional 7 species recorded using these, resulting in 22 fish species across the sites. Iconic recreational species recorded utilising the Reefs included barramundi, golden snapper, mangrove jack, barred grunter, estuary cod, giant trevally, and yellow-fin bream. Most encouraging was the high number of juvenile fish species using the Reef modules as nursery habitats.  Herbivorous ecosystem engineer species were also recorded including rabbitfish, red scats, and wrasse sp.

Mackay Habitat Pyramid Reef deployment
Mackay Habitat Pyramid Reef deployment

Many thanks to Mackay Regional Council for undertaking the project, Johan Betrom (SeaO2) for deploying the Reefs, and Paul Prenzler (RHDHV) for his coastal engineering expertise.

Catchment Solutions joins SPAA

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Many sugar cane growers who are involved with Project Catalyst, an innovation and practice change broader adoption program managed by Catchment Solutions, are also members of the SPAA.  This connection is an important link between the growers and their pathways to improved farm management practices.

SPAA Website

Barra and Beef Field Day 31st May 2022

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Catchment Solutions are hosting a field day with topics and activities including:

  • managing ponded pastures for increased fisheries productivity
  • demonstrating fish ladder monitoring and electrofishing in action
  • hearing about Carbon Farming and
  • better understanding of Refuge Pool creation

at Marklands Station, Koumala, Tuesday May 31st from 9:30am to 3:30pm.

Please follow the link below to view the flyer promoting the event.

Barra & Beef Field Day Flyer

Numbers are limited so please contact Trent from Catchment Solutions on the details provided in the flyer if you are interested in attending.

This Field Day was produced for the Smart Farms Program, funded by the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Australian Government

Project Catalyst launches its Facebook page

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In our first Practice Change field day – Whitsunday grower Michael Zamparutti shares his experience with multi-species fallow crops to improve soil health in an underperforming cane paddock.

Click on this link to Facebook and follow the page to view future stories, virtual farm tours, podcasts and more.

Project Catalyst Facebook

Reef Trust Gully & Streambank Erosion Control Forum

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Catchment Solutions undertook an integrated catchment approach to sediment reduction associated with gully and stream bank erosion while working in the Reef Trust IV program over the last 5 years. The Project originally targeted two sediment producing creek systems, Princhester and Ten Mile Creeks located within the neighbourhood catchment F11 of the Fitzroy River.

Catchment Solutions partnered with landholders and on ground service providers to coordinate and provide funding to directly address hillslope and alluvial gullies with stream bank restoration and re-vegetation programs.

Seven project sites across eight properties – from the Styx River to Lower Fitzroy (between Morinish and Garnant) were targeted for rehabilitation and received:

  • 33 kilometres of fencing (gully and riparian) and 26 watering points
  • 21 porous check dams (timber and rock) plus 16 temporary sediment fences
  • 8 gully systems reshaped
  • 9 diversion banks constructed
  • 8 large scale gully drop and in-stream rock structures constructed
  • 8,000 tube stocks grown and planted
  • 433 kg of native and pasture seed sown
  • 6,664 tonnes of fine sediment prevented from reaching the Great Barrier Reef

In March 2022 the final Reef Trust IV forum was held to review all of the fantastic projects being run under the program and Phil Jeston from Catchment Solutions presented to the audience the outcomes of the work that had been delivered, the learnings and recommendations for similar programs to follow.

A PDF of the presentation Phil gave can be viewed here with some great looking before and after photos.

Reef Trust Forum presentation

New Fursden Creek fishway leads to aquatic migration boom

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Fish migration along the Fursden Creek at Mackay has increased by more than 800 per cent, thanks to $74,000 worth of innovative remediation works managed by the Department of Environment and Science (DES) and delivered by Catchment Solutions.
Environment Minister Meaghan Scanlon said the construction of a new fishway allowed for native fish and other aquatic life to easily travel within the waterway.
“The Mackay Whitsunday Region is home to 47 native freshwater fish species,” Minister Scanlon said.  “The majority of the native freshwater fish in the region are migratory, and their life cycles depend on being able to travel between downstream estuarine environments to breed and upstream freshwater habitats to feed and grow.
“Restoring connectivity within waterways is therefore crucial for improving aquatic ecosystem health and sustaining local fish resources.”

Mackay MP Julieanne Gilbert said specialist company Catchment Solutions was contracted by DES to deliver the fishway remediation. “This important project involved the removal and re-engineering of barriers within the waterways that would otherwise prevent fish from their natural migration in the area,” Ms Gilbert said.  “This included the replacement of a 1.3 metre rock weir with a more natural-looking rock ramp, using more than 300 tonnes of large rock which was specifically designed to suit the surrounding environment and to allow for easy fish travel.”

Fursden Creek Fish Ladder complete
Fursden Creek Fish Ladder complete

The construction of the fishway commenced in late November 2020, with the final wet season inspection completed on the 27 January 2021.  Ms Gilbert said these works ensured the survival and productivity of the fish species found in the waterway by providing better access to further habitat upstream.  “Since the works were completed, Catchment Solutions has been monitoring fish movement in the creek, to ensure the works were a success,” Ms Gilbert said.  “The results have been astonishing – showing an increase of more than 800 per cent in fish successfully using the new fishway.  “Before the works were undertaken, about 25 fish were recorded migrating the creek per day, but after the works were complete this increased to about 237 fish per day.  “The number of native fish species observed using the fishway has also increased from two to ten, which is also a benefit to the surrounding ecosystem.”

Funding for this project has been sourced from pooled financial settlement offset payments established under Division 5 of the Environmental Offsets Act 2014.
This includes payments for impacts from waterway barrier works that require offsets for fish passage as defined by the Fisheries Act 1994.

To view the media release published by Minister Scanlon regarding the Fursden Creek fishway, please follow this link:

Media Release

Habitat Reef modules deployed in Mackay

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The reefs were positioned close to accessible fishing platforms to increase recreational fishing opportunities for kids, families, people with disabilities, the elderly and tourists.  The Habitat Reefs (2 x designs) are designed to improve fish habitat by providing hard structurally complex structures with high surface rugosity (roughness) to improve settlement surfaces and increase recruitment of sessile marine organisms such as bivalves and corals.

The modules have 2 separate chambers; a bottom cave for iconic recreational fishing species such as barramundi, mangrove jack and estuary cod and a top chamber only accessible via smaller openings to provide refuge for juvenile fish species.

Thanks to Mackay Regional Council who have displayed great leadership and vison to undertake the first fish habitat improvement project of this type in QLD which will improve fishing opportunities for the local community and visitors to Mackay.

To see the 7 News report with our Fisheries Ecologist, Matt Moore, please follow the link:

7 News story