North Central Catchment Management Authority
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Trials to future-proof farming
New trials are under way to prepare the farming sector for future resilience, and change is on our doorstep. Langley Vale Farm is among 26 trial sites for the North Central Catchment Management Authority’s Climate Positive Farming Initiative. The initiative is working directly with farmers across the catchment area to help them better manage variable…
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Who ya gonna call to save the ghost fish?
A farm dam in Faraday is playing a leading role in the restoration of a critically endangered fish considered a canary in the climate change coal mine. The flat-headed galaxis is a small-bodied silver fish that was once prevalent across the southern Murray Darling Basin. Climate change and river regulation has decimated their population over…
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River restoration a win-win
A community-backed plan to restore and protect a key section of the Coliban River at Lauriston will take its next steps early in the new year. Over the next four years, the A Healthy Coliban Catchment project will focus on rehabilitating the river’s frontage between Lauriston and Malmsbury reservoirs. Willow removal and revegetation works on…
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Local Landcare heroes celebrated
Founding member of Golden Point Landcare Group, Marie Jones, has been awarded the prestigious Joan Kirner Landcare Award. Marie was one of several local residents recognised for their contributions maintaining and restoring the natural environment at the 2023-2024 Victorian Landcare Awards at Marvel Stadium on July 18. The Joan Kirner Landcare Award honours a long-term…
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Holistic grazing workshop open
Local landowners have the opportunity to sign up for a short course in holistic grazing management. The course will assist landowners to improve their skills and knowledge about grazing livestock. It will also include discussions and six visits to various farms, a visit to each participant’s property to develop a plan, and online tutorials. Holistic…
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Assessing waterway flood damage
As flood repair work continues across the region, the North Central Catchment Management Authority is assessing damage done to local waterways and the assets built to protect and enhance them. For the past 25 years, the North Central CMA has been working alongside farmers and community groups to improve the condition of rivers such as…
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Women gather in gumboots
After days of torrential rain, it was lucky the dress code included gumboots for the 10th anniversary of the North Central Catchment Management Authority’s Chicks in the Sticks event. With COVID restrictions preventing the event from running for two years, almost 100 women were delighted to meet face to face in the beautiful gardens at…
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Harcourt flood study kicks off
The Harcourt community is being asked to do its bit to help protect the local area from future flooding. The North Central Catchment Management Authority is supporting the Mount Alexander Shire Council development of a Flood Study for Harcourt and calling on residents to share their knowledge of past flood events to better inform how…
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Chicks in Sticks co-founder named award finalist
Eve Lamb A love of the land and of landcare has seen former Castlemaine Secondary College student Tess Grieves named among the finalists for this year’s national Steadfast Young Landcare Leadership Award. Helping to organise the annual Chicks in the Sticks rural women’s event, which she co-founded 10 years ago, is just one of the…
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Fresh flow for platypus
The region’s vulnerable platypus population will be given a boost with a freshening flow down the Coliban River this month. Before the millennium drought, platypus foraging around the banks of the Coliban River downstream of Malmsbury Reservoir was a common sight. However, climate change and challenging flow patterns have had an impact on them, and…
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Trees take root at Bassett Creek
Works to restore Bassett Creek have ramped up with a further 500 trees to take root. Back in 2014, the Muckleford Catchment Landcare Group began work to restore the tributary of Muckleford Creek. The group wanted to improve the biodiversity and habitat in the area. They worked with a local farmer to plant shrubs and…
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Everything begins with an idea
The North Central Catchment Management Authority has created a new program aimed at facilitating natural resource management investment in local projects, and is looking for community ideas. The Business Development Program is about turning community ideas into action, by working together to identify, develop and deliver NRM projects for the region. “This is an exciting…