Northern Gulf - Natural Resource Management region
Regional summary
The Northern Gulf region covers an area of approximately 194,000 square kilometres. Its landscapes range from mountains, plateaus and high plains to dissected hill country and plains running down to the coast.
The region is based on the catchments of the Mitchell, Staaten, Gilbert and Norman rivers, all of which drain into the Gulf of Carpentaria. The region spans parts of the Gulf Plains, Einasleigh Uplands and Cape York Peninsula bioregions, and includes all or part of the Carpentaria, Croydon, Etheridge, Mareeba and Cook Shire councils. The main population centres are Karumba, Normanton, Croydon, Georgetown, and Chillagoe, and the Aboriginal community of Kowanyama.
Most economic activity within the region is based directly or indirectly on natural resources. The principal industries of the region are mining, pastoralism, tourism, cropping and fishing. Pastoralism, worth about $60 million a year to the region, is the most extensive land user.
The region's natural resource management (NRM) plan was accredited in late 2004 and ministers approved an investment package in early 2005 totaling $2.43 million, to be implemented in coming years. Priority projects proceeding successfully during 2004-05 included a Ghost Nets project to reduce the impact of debris such as derelict fishing nets becoming navigational hazards and threats to marine wildlife.
Finalising the regional NRM plan and regional investment strategy involved consultation with local communities, including traditional owners, and an increased sense of ownership of planning by members of local communities.
Priority issues
Key natural resource management issues in the region include:
- land management -sustainable grazing, weeds and feral animals
- water - the protection and management of the region's riparian zones and wetlands
- biodiversity - the region overlays four bioregions, including the Einasleigh Uplands, an identified biodiversity hotspot
- coasts and marine - issues such as marine debris threaten economic and environmental values
- Indigenous resource management
Regional plan
The Northern Gulf NRM Group was responsible for developing the Northern Gulf Regional NRM Plan, in consultation with the local community. This plan was based on a whole-of-region approach and address significant NRM issues incorporating social, environmental and economic aspects.
Once the plan was accredited, the management group was responsible for developing the regional investment strategy. This is essentially the business plan that attracts investment from the Australian and state governments and details the specific actions, costs and timeframes required to implement the regional plan.
The Northern Gulf Resource Management Planning project is encouraging the maintenance of healthy pastures. Local community organisations are working to promote sustainable agricultural and land practices and correct a broad range of problems including threats to native plants and animals, declining water quality, feral animals, weed infestation and protection of the cultural heritage.
Derelict fishing gear known as Ghost Nets, and other marine debris are a major threat to marine biodiversity, as well as a hazard to navigation and a major eyesore. Between 1996 and 2003, 205 stranded marine turtles were recorded from Cape Arnhem alone and it appears that the effect of ghost nets on marine turtles is similar to that posed by prawn trawling prior to the introduction of Turtle Exclusion Devices.
With the Trust funding support, the Northern Gulf NRM Group has brought together representatives from the Indigenous communities around the shores of the Gulf of Carpentaria, the five Regional NRM bodies responsible for regions bordering the Gulf, the fishing industry, conservation groups and government agencies to discuss the issue and to identify possible response options.
- Northern Gulf plan - accredited January 2005
Current activities
The Northern Gulf Regional NRM plan covers the themes of land, water, biodiversity, coastal and marine, Indigenous resource management and capacity building. Land is a major theme and therefore government investment was directed to improve, where necessary, the conditions of land resources in the region.
With regard to Indigenous participation in NRM, the Northern Gulf NRM Group supported the region's six language groups to develop their own representative body. The Savanna Indigenous Group is now the key forum for Indigenous communities to explore their own approaches to natural resource management, and is part of the Northern Gulf NRM Group's executive structure.
The Savanna Indigenous Group received approval for a project intended to encourage Indigenous youth and elders of the Northern Gulf to learn about the values of the natural and cultural heritage and, with technical support, provide training opportunities in the management of natural recourses and to bridge community information and social gaps.
To reduce the spread of weeds that are often carried on contaminated vehicles, the Northern Gulf NRM Group received funding approval for the establishment of a strategic washdown facility located at Mt Surprise.
The group is also participating in a project to establish three pilot biodiversity monitoring survey and demonstration sites in the Northern Gulf. This work will involve three key community sites and introduce pastoral, Indigenous and community/tourism groups to information on the biodiversity of the region and the associated management needs. This also provides a baseline data at these sites for on-going monitoring, which is essential in an area where there is a lack of information on biodiversity trends.
Contacts
Further information can be obtained by contacting the Regional Facilitators for Queensland.
Region summaries
- Australian Capital Territory
- New South Wales
- Northern Territory
- Queensland
- South Australia
- Tasmania
- Victoria
- Western Australia
You can also use your town name to find your NRM Region.
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