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On Macquarie Island Caring for Tasmania since 1968 THE TASMANIAN CONSERVATIONIST Number 311 May 2007 Farce on Macquarie Island Landslip on rabbit-grazed slope at Bauer Bay, Macquarie Island, September 2006 The Tasmanian Conservationist is the regular Contents newsletter of the Tasmanian Conservation Trust Inc, 102 Bathurst Street, Hobart, Tasmania 7000. From the Director 3 ABN: 63 091 237 520 Phone (03) 6234 3552 Fax: (03) 6231 2491 Minister Challenges Public’s Rights of Appeal email: [email protected] under Threatened Species Legislation 3 website: http://www.tct.org.au World Heritage Embarrassment 4 Director: Craig Woodfield President: Geoff King New Era of Dam Building 6 Warming to the Ice Plants 7 The views expressed in this newsletter are not necessarily those of the Tasmanian Conservation Bits and Pieces 9 Conservation Trust Inc (TCT). Gambusia Control Update 10 Editor: Craig Woodfield The Cascade Effect 11 Shorebird Conservation in Tasmania 12 We permit photocopying of all original material in The Tasmanian Conservationist. Miena Cider Gums Fight Back 14 Feel free to make use of our news and articles, but please acknowledge the source. Clean Up Australia Day a Smashing Success 15 Circular Head Shearwater Support 15 Contributions: We encourage our readers to submit articles of interest for publication. Articles should preferably be short (up to 600 words) and well illustrated. Please forward copy on computer disk or by email if possible. Guidelines for North-West Branch contributors are available from the TCT office. We reserve the right to edit contributions. Tasmanian Conservation Trust Meetings of the North-West Branch of the TCT are held on the first Wednesday of each month. Deadline for next issue: 31May 2007 The venue for the meeting is the Advertising: We accept advertising of products Penguin Railway Station at 5pm and services that may be of interest to our All members of the North-West Branch are invited readers. Our rates are GST inclusive: to attend to disuss conservation issues in the area. 1 Issue 2 Issues 3 Issues Full Page $250 $450 $600 Writing Half Page $150 $280 $400 Editing Quarter Page $110 $200 $280 Proofreading Specialising in conservation issues. Reports, management plans, newsletters and books. Proofreading: Janice Bird Layout: Patricia McKeown Circulation: 475 Front Cover: Landslip on rabbit-grazed slope at BA (Hons) Literature Bauer Bay, Macquarie Island, September 2006. Member of Society of Editors (Tas), Photo: Andreas Glanznig, WWF Australia Tasmanian Writers’ Centre, Society of Authors. Cover story:‘World Heritage Embarrassment’, ABN 86 028 924 992 page 4. Phone (03) 6234 6569 Email [email protected] 2 Tasmanian Conservationist May 2007 from the Director Amidst the deterioration of due process and transparent ones as well, including enhancing our organisational and accountable governance that has been occurring in efficiency and mitigating climate change. Tasmania in recent months, we have been busy turning Some of the targets are collaborative ones, and rely just our gaze inwards and attempting to define exactly what as much on the actions of other bodies as those of the the Tasmanian Conservation Trust represents and what TCT. Nevertheless, they represent important outcomes we are trying to achieve. The outcome of this will be the which we intend to work towards, hence their inclusion organisation’s first ever strategic plan, which has just been in the strategic plan. sent out to some of our key stakeholders for feedback. There is no question that this strategic plan is an Once finalised, this document will provide the strategic optimistic and challenging one, and the funds that will direction for the TCT for two years, starting from 1 July be required to implement it are substantially higher than 2007. It is intended to be a living document that will be our current income. Nevertheless, we believe that it is reviewed, and if necessary revised, as and when required, better to set our sights too high rather than too low. including at least once prior to the end of June 2008. Once finalised, the strategic plan will be made public The strategic plan is divided into a number of key through our website, and the objectives and actions challenges for the organisation. Each of these challenges contained within it incorporated into our budget. By the has one or more objectives associated with it, and in turn time that the period covered by this plan concludes in each of these objectives has a number of actions and June 2009, it is intended that a second and preferably targets. This not only provides us with specific campaign longer plan will have been developed and be ready to be and administrative guidance, but also benchmarks against implemented. which we can measure our performance in these areas. What does all this mean? A more efficient and better The challenges that we have identified include obvious focused organisation that can and will continue to fight ones such as supporting our key stakeholders and to protect Tasmania’s precious environment for decades protecting Tasmanian biodiversity. But there are some new to come. Craig Woodfield Minister challenges public’s rights of appeal under threatened species legislation In the 11-year history of the Tasmanian Threatened Species ground, that he had in fact made his decision under the Protection Act (TSPA), there have only been two instances section of the Act that required he make a decision! The where a recommendation by the Threatened Species judge has reserved his decision, which has not yet been Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) to list a species has handed down. not been accepted by the responsible Minister. In 2005 If the judge decides in favour of the Minister then the the SAC’s recommendation to list blue-fin tuna was public’s right to appeal future Ministerial decisions under refused. In August 2006 the current Minister, David the TSPA could be substantially restricted. Also at stake Llewellyn, refused to list four species of lichen found at is the standing of the SAC as the pre-eminent source of South Sister near St Marys because he could not determine advice for the responsible Minister when making listing whether they were at risk. decisions. In November 2006 a St Marys resident appealed this David Clement (Appellant) latter decision by the Minister, under section 14(3) of the Threatened Species Protection Act, to the Resource Electronic version Management and Planning Appeals Tribunal (RMPAT). of At the subsequent RMPAT directions hearing the The Tasmanian Conservationist Minister disputed the appellant’s right to appeal, claiming now available that the right of appeal related only to decision to make Advances in technology at the TCT office mean changes to the existing contents of the schedules, not to that this newsletter is now available in PDF decisions not to add new species. format for members who would prefer an The RMPAT ruled that the appeal was competent, which electronic version. lead the Minister to instruct the Director of Public Please send us an email at [email protected] Prosecutions to apply to the Supreme Court to order that including your name and address and the email the decision by RMPAT be quashed. At the Supreme Court address you would like to use, and we will send your newsletter by email every two months. Hearing in February 2007 the Minister introduced another Tasmanian Conservationist May 2007 3 World Heritage embarrassment The credibility of the Tasmanian Government on nature species, the Macquarie Island parakeet and Macquarie conservation has sunk to previously unplumbed depths Island rail, are already extinct. this year, with the farcical standoff over funding for A range of feral animals was introduced to the island in Macquarie Island best illustrating this situation. the 19th century including cats, weka (a New Zealand Macquarie Island lies 1,500 kilometres south-east of bird), rabbits, rats and mice. Without any natural predators, Tasmanian in the midst of the Southern Ocean. By the these species multiplied and have impacted enormously on the natural values of the island. Both wekas and cats have now been successfully eradicated, but the remaining introduced rodents are causing extensive damage to the island’s vegetation and seabird habitat. Rabbits The myxoma virus was introduced in the late 1970s to control the rabbit population, and this resulted in the partial recovery of the vegetation and, coupled with the eradication of cats, enabled the grey petrel to Sandy Bay staircase 1990 - tourist boardwalk staircase at Sandy Bay, one of only two sites successfully breed on the tourists can land on the island. Photo: Jenny Scott island for the first time in more than 100 years. Tasmanian Government’s own admission, Macquarie However, rabbit numbers have increased dramatically Island is one of the most important reserves in Australia since 2001 and unprecedented levels of grazing damage and even the world. As well as being a Nature Reserve are now occurring around the island. This population under Tasmanian law, it is also a World Heritage Area increase is thought to have resulted from a combination and an International Biosphere Reserve; it is listed on of factors: the Register of the National Estate and the surrounding waters are a Marine Protected Area. The island is a prolific breeding ground for seabirds, with around 4 million individuals nesting there each year, including a number of albatross species as well as burrow-nesting seabird species such as petrels. The island provides critical habitat for two nationally threatened albatross species – the wandering and grey-headed albatross. Only about 80 pairs of the latter breed each year on Sandy Bay staircase following landslip on severely grazed slope in 2006. Photo Jenny Scott the island. Two endemic bird 4 Tasmanian Conservationist May 2007 • the development of resistance to the myxoma This is where it all went wrong.
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