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Kangaroo Island - Natural Resource Management region

Regional summary

Kangaroo Island covers an area of 4370 square kilometres and supports a population of more than 4000 people, the majority of whom live in Kingscote. Natural resource management (NRM) is important to Kangaroo Island for many reasons. The island contains the highest proportion of remnant native vegetation of all South Australian agricultural regions. This vegetation supports a wide variety of habitats and an abundance of wildlife, which comprises the greatest number of local native species in any region in South Australia.

Nearly one-third of the island is in protected areas. However, there is continuing loss of biodiversity. A number of flora and fauna species are at risk, with 59 percent of the original native vegetation having been cleared. 14 plants are considered nationally threatened and three mammals are listed nationally. The Glossy Black Cockatoo and Hooded Plover are endangered and vulnerable respectively.

Priority issues

Key natural resource management issues in the region include:

• water quality is decreasing due to the impact of salinity, stock access to watercourses, erosion and nutrient and chemical run off
• changes in surface water flows due to land clearing and farm dams is having damaging consequences on wetlands such as Murray's Lagoon
• groundwater-driven salinity is an increasing problem, which is predicted to rise to 8000 hectares by 2050 if groundwater continues to rise (Dooley, Dohle, Ciganovic, Hensschke 2002)
• soil health is declining due to soil acidity, water logging and salinity
• there is fragmentation, degradation and ongoing loss of biodiversity
• the coastal and marine environment is being degraded through contamination from land-based sources such as development and effluent

Regional plan

NRM is important to Kangaroo Island for many reasons. The Island contains the highest proportion of remnant native vegetation of all South Australian agricultural regions This vegetation supports a wide variety of habitats and an abundance of wildlife, which comprises the greatest number of local native species in any region in South Australia. In addition, the Island's main industries, agriculture and tourism, are reliant on the natural environment for their success.

The Kangaroo Island Natural Resources Board was responsible for developing the Kangaroo Island regional plan, in consultation with the local community. This plan was based on a whole-of-region approach and addresses significant natural resource management issues incorporating social, environmental and economic aspects.

Once the regional plan was accredited, Kangaroo Island NRM Board 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 management board set up nine programmes designed to deal with the full spectrum of natural resource management challenges faced on Kangaroo Island. These programmes are:

• building a sustainable future
• saving our seagrasses
• repel the invaders
• rivers of life
• healthy soils
• oceans of blue
• island refuge
• fahrenheit 451
• back from the brink

• Kangaroo Island plan - accredited October 2003

Current activities

NRM priority	Activities addressing the priority
Water quality	20 kilometres of fencing around saline scalds to reclaim land and reduce saline seepage into waterways 20 kilometres of fencing around remnant vegetation along waterways to act as filters for sediments, salt and nutrients and to limit stock access to waterways construction of gauging stations at Cygnet River and Timber Creek to gain a greater understanding of the condition of the water resources on Kangaroo Island
Feral management	effectively managing feral pigs, deer and feral cats through the implementation of a control programme that includes trials for deer and pig eradication developing and implementing a border protection system to keep feral animals off Kangaroo Island
Marine ecosystems	investigating land and sea-based activities that have the potential to damage seagrass beds a coastal, estuarine and marine monitoring programme to identify the current condition of these resources and the activities making an impact
Salinity	clay spreading of water repellent sands to reduce recharge, sedimentation and nutrient leaching the establishment of nearly 1000 hectares of high water use species to reduce recharge and sedimentation
Soil management	demonstrating best practice stubble, crop and pasture management investigating waterlogging techniques
Fire practices	developing and implementing a fire management programme
Threatened species	implementing a Glossy Black-Cockatoo Recovery Programme undertaking a weed removal programme (Bridal Creeper and Bridal Veil) to assist the recovery of threatened species

Contacts

Further information can be obtained by contacting the Regional Facilitators for South Australia.