Saving an oasis

A permanent freshwater lake can sometimes be too big an asset - even in these dry times.

For cattle farmer Garry Riggs of Lakefield Station, 40 kilometres south west of Mataranka in the Northern Territory, Lake Duggan (the largest lake on the Sturt Plateau) is better managed as an environmental habitat than a water trough.

This four square kilometre oasis is full most of the year and is the only permanent water system within a 30 kilometre radius. But the problem is being able to manage watering cattle and control the uptake of water.

Funding

So Garry and the Roper River Landcare Group used more than $21,000 from the Australian Government to fence off 7.6 kilometres of the water's edge and establish six watering points away from the lake to supply stock.

Activities and Achievements

When Garry purchased the station in 1999, it was an undeveloped block of land and hadn't been running cattle commercially or viably for about 20 years.

"When we bought the station we started at one end and worked our way through," he said. "I've been heavily involved in landcare on another station, so I decided to manage the lake system better. Managing our assets and the environment and our animals is all worth it.

"It was easier to manage it as an environmental area than trying to graze it for cattle. We could have grazed cattle there, but it would have flogged the system.

"The value for us in grazing livestock was very minimal. We have got more value in it by preserving it."

The fencing has also yielded a safe haven for migratory birds and a comprehensive bird survey was recently completed. Garry now manages and monitors the area as a nature reserve and ensures that grass is kept to at least 75 per cent coverage, only allowing grazing to reduce fire hazard after the water recedes.

"We often have lunch at the lake and a couple of field days with the Landcare group," Garry said. "I like to protect what we've got, but I also know I've got to run a cattle station for my livelihood.

"I've got to have a balance. I could probably run 30 animals there all year round in that paddock, but I can offset that by putting them elsewhere and using the lake as a wildlife refuge."

More information

• Garry Riggs, Lakefield Station cattle farmers: lakefieldstation@bigpond.com.au

Australian Government NRM Team
GPO Box 787
Canberra ACT 2601 Australia
1800 552 008 (toll-free)

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Caring for our Country is an Australian Government initiative jointly administered by the Australian Government departments of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts