Community Stakeholder Group Implementation Report 2004–2005

Community consultation

The Community Stakeholder Group (CSG) maintained its commitment to community consultation and engagement either as a group or as individual members. These activities continued to see growing community support for the NFS.

Communications Plan

The Communications Plan has continued to guide a series of workshops on native fish issues to ensure community participation. They included workshops on stocking and translocation, habitat zones and Murray cod.

The Group continued to identify priorities to communicate and implement the completed NFS and implement its actions at the community level. This included improved Indigenous engagement, funding options, generating information, and community participation.

Workshops

Members of the CSG attended, and actively contributed to, workshops on Murray cod, and native fish and wetlands during the year.

Meetings

In the past 12 months, the group has met at Mildura, Leeton, and Walgett. Where possible, the meetings were linked to other NFS activities, meetings of researchers, community groups, local fishing groups and government agencies. The group also toured areas of interest.

In August, Group members were invited to attend the official opening of the Lock 7 fishway between Wentworth and Renmark. The Group took the opportunity to convene a public meeting that same night to up-date the community of the NFS.

Proactive

The CSG continued to adopt and enhance a proactive approach to its work, with members actively out in the community talking about and advocating for the Strategy, attending public events, delivering presentations at conferences/workshops, developing partnerships and getting feedback from the community. This is giving the Group greater ownership of the Strategy and helping it assume much of the responsibility to undertake the tasks required to implement the Strategy at the community level. This includes:

• providing speakers at meetings to explain the Strategyto community groups;
• presenting papers at conferences and workshops;
• staffing displays and demonstrations at shows and field days;
• working with the State NFS coordinators;
• preparing articles for newsletters and publications;
• talking to school students; and
• providing the public face in media interviews.

The group continued to make active contributions to NFS displays, brochures, posters, videos, articles and other material prepared by the MDBC.

The work of the CSG is underpinned by the philosophy that unless the community takes ownership and is committed to the NFS, implementation will be very difficult. The work of the Group is also to acknowledge, and draw on, the wealth of community wisdom, skills and knowledge residing along Basin waterways.

Value adding

Members of the CSG are working in partnership with their own organisations, the Commission and State fisheries agencies to develop additional and complementary material on native fish issues and the Strategy. During the year, the World Wide Fund for Nature began developing a handbook on pest fish in the Murray-Darling Basin; the Murray Darling Association and the Pest Animal Control Cooperative Research Centre printed a new Carp management brochure; and the National Carp and Pest Fish Task Force published an introductory guide for the community on alien fish in the Murray-Darling Basin.

One member of the CSG was also on The Living Murray Community Reference Panel, two members were on the Daughterless Carp Reference Group. These activities continued to complement and provide strong links between the NFS and other agency and community activities.

Report back process

During the public meetings about the draft NFS in late-2002, commitments were given that members of the CSG would return to communities where meetings were held to report back on the new Strategy and how local communities could be involved in its implementation. This continued during the year.

In May 2005, the Group initiated, planned and conducted a five-day tour down the Darling River, reporting and listening to communities at Walgett, Brewarrina, Bourke, Tilpa, Wilcannia, Menindee, Pooncarie and Gol Gol. Participants in these various meetings included communities, schools, recreational anglers, catchment management authorities, visitor information centres, Local Government, business groups, Indigenous communities, and agencies.

CSG Chairperson Adrian Wells talking to students at Walgett Community College about native fish

Photo: Jason Higham

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Spreading the message

In the past 12 months, members of the CSG have met with and briefed a range of community groups on the NFS. Meetings have included community groups, fishing clubs, Carp fishing competitions, Indigenous communities, catchment management organisations, Local Government, industry, school students and researchers. Activities included presentations, displays and workshops for the following:

Presentations

Murray Regional Organisation of Councils – Deniliquin
Rochester & District Angling Club – Rochester
Maranoa & Balonne Regional Organisation of Councils – St George
Meeting with representatives of Murrumbidgee Valley councils – Narrandera
Community meeting on the NFS – Gol Gol
Meeting of the Community Advisory Committee of the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council – Echuca
Hume Probus Club – Albury
Meeting of Region 1, Murray Darling Association – Tumbarumba
Community meeting on the NFS – Narrandera
Wodonga Rotary Club – Wodonga
Communities at Walgett, Brewarrina, Bourke, Wilcannia, Menindee, Gol Gol

School visits

Students at Bandiana Primary School – Bandiana
Moira Shire Junior Council youth forum – Mulwala
Students at Walgett, Brewarrina, Bourke and Pooncarie schools (including School of the Air)

Displays

Toowoomba Ag Show – Toowoomba
Murray Darling Association National Conference – Renmark
Riverland Field Days – Berri
Mildura Show – Mildura
Australian Local Government National Assembly – Canberra

Fishing competitions

Mulwala Carp Fishout – Mulwala
Catch A Carp Fun Day – Mildura

Conferences

8th International River Symposium – Brisbane

Bus tours

Community bus tours to view Lock 7 & 8 fishways – Mildura & Renmark

Liaison with Community Advisory Committee

Since its establishment, the CSG has been reporting regularly to the Community Advisory Committee of the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council on its community engagement, meeting, tours and issues.

Liaison with State Native Fish Strategy Coordinators

Since July 2004, the Group has been working closely with the NFS Coordinators from each State. This has enhanced the operations, confidence and sharing of ideas and information of both groups and implementation of the NFS.