Reef And Rivers Podcast

Over 90% of Australia's bananas are grown in the Wet Tropics but with increasing pressure on our agricultural sectors to become more environmentally sustainable, the banana industry is making changes to improve the quality of water flowing off banana farms into the Great Barrier Reef lagoon. Michelle McKinlay, Industry Manager for the Australian Banana Growers Council, talks about what banana farm...

In July 2019 the fourth Wet Tropics Waterway Health report card was launched, highlighting the condition of the basins, estuaries and marine zones from the Daintree in the north to Hinchinbrook in the south. Wet Tropics Waterways chair Steve Turton describes the results of the report card program, discussing changes since the 2018 report card and the ongoing development of waterway health indicato...

Climate change forecasts indicate that the Wet Tropics can look forward to more rainfall, more severe cyclones and warmer temperatures, according to Professor Steve Turton. This will have implications for the reef, mangrove and seagrass ecosystems in the region, as well as the freshwater systems that drain our basins. But while there are some concerns, there is still plenty of hope and even a few...

Bioreactors show a lot of promise for denitifying and "polishing" groundwater before it is expressed into waterways or direct to the Great Barrier Reef via wonky holes (undersea springs). Whilst they won't negate the need to better manage our nitrogen loads to surface and ground waters, the ability to intercept and remove nitrogen could play an important role in reducing our overall impacts. In fu...

Fiona Barron is the Wet Tropics Coordinator of the Paddock to Reef Integrated Monitoring, Modelling and Reporting program (P2R), a world leading scientific program funded by the Australian and Queensland Governments that links on-ground practice changes by farmers to measureable improvements in water quality flowing to the Great Barrier Reef. P2R provides information on how well Australia is progr...

Agro-Ecologist David Hardwick has been working in the farming and food industry for over 20 years. As an expert on soils, agronomy and organics he has been working with many farmers throughout the Wet Tropics to build knowledge and skills about soil as a farm business asset. Besides being important for farm productivity, good soil health also has important benefits for waterway health. In this epi...

Tangaroa Blue is a not for profit organisation involved in the cleanup and cataloguing of plastic debris from our coastlines, as well as educational campaigns regarding plastic waste management and minimisation. In this episode Tangaroa Blue Managing Director Heidi Taylor describes the scale of the problem, the impacts on our environment and the activities undertaken by her organisation to address...

The introduction and spread of noxious aquatic fauna and flora can be particularly damaging to the health of our waterways. Once introduced, these invasive species often can't be eradicated, even controlling their spread and proliferation can be expensive and extremely challenging. The damage that alien (exotic) species can do to our delicate ecosystems varies depending on the species of concern a...

Woodleigh Station is a working beef cattle business that embraced sustainable landuse and grazing best practice. Management of stocking levels, extensive fencing and provision of of stream watering points are strategies adopted by the station to ensure long-term sustainability. In this episode Greg talks to landholder Kate Wardell about their strategies and the implications for their business. In...

The Atherton Tablelands contains the headwaters for a number of significant Wet Tropics river systems, including the Herbert, Johnstone and Barron rivers. The tablelands has a growing urban and rural population and boasts extensive agriculture including cane, bananas, numerous other fruit and vegetable cropping businesses and grazing properties. The region also attracts a growing number of tourist...

Cairns Recreational Fishing Industry Stakeholders (CAREFISH) is the peak body representing the recreational fishing industry in the WEet Tropics region and is a partner of Wet Tropics Waterways.  In this episode CAREFISH founder and spokesman Paul Aubin talks about his results in lobbying for more sustainable recreational and commercial fishing in the region. The group successfully lobbied the Que...

Flooding in the Mossman Catchment during March 2018 resulted in substantial damage to river banks. Growers lost land and the river system and inshore reef areas were subjected to heavy sediment loads. Stretches of stream bank with vegetative cover or previous rock stabilisation remained stable throughout the floods and sustained minimal damage. These observations led to the development of the Moss...

The Holloways Beach Environmental Education Centre is a Queensland Education Department facility nestled between the mangrove-lined banks of Thomatis Creek and the beautiful Holloways Beach, a few kilometres north of Cairns. Around 3000 primary and secondary school students from the Wet Tropics and Cape York regions attend programs and camps at the centre each year. Activities include waterway hea...

Jen Mackenzie is affectionately referred to around the wet tropics as "Dirt Girl" or "Gully Jen" for her passion and successes in sediment and erosion management. Jen is the Sediment Reduction Program Leader with Terrain NRM. Jen talks us through the existing Herbert River Sediment Reduction Program and the New Upper Johnston Sediment Reduction Program. These programs involve whole of property pla...

The Cairns Airport is nestled behind an extensive mangrove wetland to the south and bordered by the Barron River and Redden Island to the north. This system is home to multiple species of mangroves and provides habitat for many animals from crabs to fish and even some endangered bird species. Cairns Airport is among the busiest in the country and is the gateway for domestic and international touri...

The Crown of Thorns Starfish (COTS) is a natural predator of coral on the Great Barrier Reef and is thought to have been present in low numbers for thousands of years. As a result of human induced influxes such as nutrient loading and fishing pressure COTS "blooms" have become a threat to coral health. The Association of Marine Park Tourism Operators (AMPTO) have run a COTS management program on r...

In Episode 4 Greg talks to Rod Marti from Barron Catchment Care about the influence of urbanisation on waterway health and the initiatives being implemented in the Upper Barron area to reduce sediment loads from urban areas. Rod explains how farmers in this area are often blamed for issues that originated in the urban areas upstream of their land and highlights the need for urban and rural communi...

Greg talks to Bess about the importance of mangroves to our waterways and reef and what Magrove Watch does to monitor the health of mangrove communities.

Subscribe To Reef And Rivers iTunes   |  Stitcher   |  Google Podcast  |  Spotify  |  iHeart  |   Download This Episode Episode Description In Episode 2 of "Reef and Rivers" Greg Vinall chats with the Independent Chairman of the Wet Tropics Healthy Waterways Partnership, Professor Steve Turton about the 2018 results and what they're telling us. The 2018 Wet Tropics Report Card draws on data collec...

Download This Episode Subscribe To Reef And Rivers iTunes   |  Stitcher   |  Google Podcast  |  Spotify  |  iHeart  |   Episode Description The "Reef and Rivers" podcast series brings inspiring stories of Waterway Health management from one of the most vibrant regions in the Great Barrier Reef catchment - the Wet Tropics. The unique lifestyle, values and opportunities enjoyed by the Wet Tropics co...