Oyster Harbour Catchment Group Inc
Description
Formed in 1992 through the merger of several Landcare District Committees our purpose to foster a prosperous, vibrant rural communities for present and future generations within the Oyster Harbour Catchment.
Activities/Projects
Healthy Estuary WA Program:
This state program includes work to reduce nutrient inputs from priority catchments. Including soil testing, nutrient mapping for farmers, revegetating and fencing creeks using the latest science to monitor and effectively manage waterways and collaborating with and educating the community through events and field days. (Regional Estuaries Initiative is the past iteration of this project)
(Pending) Regional Landcare Partnership:
Exploring new opportunities for improving the status of 20/20 priority listed threatened species in the South Coast Region Management Unit - bringing scientists, Indigenous people, and NRM community together to protect threatened species. This includes fencing remnant bush, revegetating, and having community events to educate and raise awareness.
Soil Wise:
A collaborative project to help farmers and land managers improve their soil health and nutrient management. The aim is to promote best-practice sustainable agriculture so that farmers can increase productivity and profitability, whilst protecting and improving the condition of natural resources.
Grazer Matcher:
The Grazing Matcher program brings together livestock producers to work with technical farming experts to improve productivity by improving grazing, fodder, and feed decision-making. Supported by South West Catchments Council, Western Beef Association Inc, GeoCatch, Wilson Inlet Catchment Committee, Oyster Harbour Catchment Group and Peel-Harvey Catchment Council, through funding from the Australian Government's National Landcare Program; Healthy Estuaries WA, a State Government Program; and Profitable Grazing Systems, a MLA initiative.
FRRR, Mega Community Toolbox' (MCT):
This project will strengthen existing partnerships, creating new engagement opportunities and a stronger social fabric within our community. Value-adding and strengthening current partnerships including regional schools, Indigenous Rangers, and Grower/ Friends of Groups. The MCT is a multimedia toolkit including a physical, fit-for-purpose toolbox canopy, that will enable us to travel to remote locations with educational resources and event/catering equipment to facilitate discussion on place, connecting neighbours, limiting their need to travel and providing knowledge and comfort.
Joining the Dots– Collaborative Feral Management at Landscape Scale (2022-2025):
Feral animals are recognised as major predators of small livestock and native animals. This project builds on the successful feral animal control of current and recent projects and works across all land tenures. This 4-partner project collaborates with other community-based organisations, government departments, and land managers. This project has 4 major and equal partners, Oyster Harbour Catchment Group (OHCG), Torbay Catchment Group (TCG), Wilson Inlet Catchment Committee (WICC) and Southern Aboriginal Corporation (SAC). who work with government departments and landholders with support from the WA state NRM program.
This state program includes work to reduce nutrient inputs from priority catchments. Including soil testing, nutrient mapping for farmers, revegetating and fencing creeks using the latest science to monitor and effectively manage waterways and collaborating with and educating the community through events and field days. (Regional Estuaries Initiative is the past iteration of this project)
(Pending) Regional Landcare Partnership:
Exploring new opportunities for improving the status of 20/20 priority listed threatened species in the South Coast Region Management Unit - bringing scientists, Indigenous people, and NRM community together to protect threatened species. This includes fencing remnant bush, revegetating, and having community events to educate and raise awareness.
Soil Wise:
A collaborative project to help farmers and land managers improve their soil health and nutrient management. The aim is to promote best-practice sustainable agriculture so that farmers can increase productivity and profitability, whilst protecting and improving the condition of natural resources.
Grazer Matcher:
The Grazing Matcher program brings together livestock producers to work with technical farming experts to improve productivity by improving grazing, fodder, and feed decision-making. Supported by South West Catchments Council, Western Beef Association Inc, GeoCatch, Wilson Inlet Catchment Committee, Oyster Harbour Catchment Group and Peel-Harvey Catchment Council, through funding from the Australian Government's National Landcare Program; Healthy Estuaries WA, a State Government Program; and Profitable Grazing Systems, a MLA initiative.
FRRR, Mega Community Toolbox' (MCT):
This project will strengthen existing partnerships, creating new engagement opportunities and a stronger social fabric within our community. Value-adding and strengthening current partnerships including regional schools, Indigenous Rangers, and Grower/ Friends of Groups. The MCT is a multimedia toolkit including a physical, fit-for-purpose toolbox canopy, that will enable us to travel to remote locations with educational resources and event/catering equipment to facilitate discussion on place, connecting neighbours, limiting their need to travel and providing knowledge and comfort.
Joining the Dots– Collaborative Feral Management at Landscape Scale (2022-2025):
Feral animals are recognised as major predators of small livestock and native animals. This project builds on the successful feral animal control of current and recent projects and works across all land tenures. This 4-partner project collaborates with other community-based organisations, government departments, and land managers. This project has 4 major and equal partners, Oyster Harbour Catchment Group (OHCG), Torbay Catchment Group (TCG), Wilson Inlet Catchment Committee (WICC) and Southern Aboriginal Corporation (SAC). who work with government departments and landholders with support from the WA state NRM program.
Past Accomplishments
Over the last 30+ years the group has worked with a range of stakeholders and:
• Attracted many millions of dollars of funding, all matched at least dollar for dollar by project participants,
• Coordinated many hours of volunteer labour, and
• Implemented on-ground activities including:
- Fencing of creeks and remnant vegetation,
- Revegetation of remnant vegetation and waterways (including, protecting biodiversity, buffering and establishing wildlife corridors),
- Adoption of best-practice pasture management to intercept and utilize excess water and nutrients,
- Installation of engineered earthworks to address salinity or waterlogging,
- Surveying of vegetation communities and priority fauna, and
- Pest plant and animal species control.
Beyond the on-ground works, the OHCG has been committed to raising awareness of environmental issues, with landholders and the wider community, and promoting the benefits of conservation and good land management. The group has been involved in all levels of regional planning and with developing and implementing the regional strategy including auspicing like-minded unincorporated groups. The group has been steadfast in its resolve to ensure that there is an active team of staff members to implement projects, the level of which has fluctuated over the group’s history, predominately due to reliance on government funding.
The OHCG is the key natural resource management group of the Oyster Harbour Catchment and forms one of the three community natural resource management (NRM) groups for the Albany Hinterland sub-region of the overall South Coast NRM region.
• Attracted many millions of dollars of funding, all matched at least dollar for dollar by project participants,
• Coordinated many hours of volunteer labour, and
• Implemented on-ground activities including:
- Fencing of creeks and remnant vegetation,
- Revegetation of remnant vegetation and waterways (including, protecting biodiversity, buffering and establishing wildlife corridors),
- Adoption of best-practice pasture management to intercept and utilize excess water and nutrients,
- Installation of engineered earthworks to address salinity or waterlogging,
- Surveying of vegetation communities and priority fauna, and
- Pest plant and animal species control.
Beyond the on-ground works, the OHCG has been committed to raising awareness of environmental issues, with landholders and the wider community, and promoting the benefits of conservation and good land management. The group has been involved in all levels of regional planning and with developing and implementing the regional strategy including auspicing like-minded unincorporated groups. The group has been steadfast in its resolve to ensure that there is an active team of staff members to implement projects, the level of which has fluctuated over the group’s history, predominately due to reliance on government funding.
The OHCG is the key natural resource management group of the Oyster Harbour Catchment and forms one of the three community natural resource management (NRM) groups for the Albany Hinterland sub-region of the overall South Coast NRM region.
Sponsors
Oyster Harbour Catchment Group works with a range of sponsors, supporters and partners and change depending on project. Core sponsors include Agrimaster, Elders, Waratah Fencing, Minorba, and Cartehil Public Accountants.