OUR COUNTRY: OUR COMMUNITY A COMMUNITY INFORMATION PAPER FOR THE QUEENSLAND SECTION OF THE LAKE EYRE BASIN Prepared by DESERT CHANNELS QUEENSLAND INC. for THE COMMUNITY OF THE REGION October 2004 Desert Channels Queensland Community Information Paper – 2004 1 Index Part one ................................................................................................................................................. 5 Background to planning .................................................................................................................. 5 What is the purpose of this document?................................................................................ 5 Why do we need a plan? ............................................................................................................ 6 How are we going to do it? ....................................................................................................... 6 Who should be involved?........................................................................................................... 6 How does this relate to other planning processes?............................................................ 6 Who is Desert Channels Queensland? ................................................................................... 9 Relationship to other natural resource management (NRM) bodies..............................10 The community approach to natural resource management............................................. 11 What has been achieved to date? .........................................................................................12 Notable community group achievements..........................................................................13 Our information base................................................................................................................15 Part two ................................................................................................................................................17 The Desert Channels Region........................................................................................................17 Community ...................................................................................................................................17 Our landscape.............................................................................................................................18 Geology ...................................................................................................................................20 Landforms ..............................................................................................................................20 Soils..........................................................................................................................................21 Land degradation..................................................................................................................22 Climate ........................................................................................................................................24 Climate prediction................................................................................................................25 Impact of global warming...................................................................................................25 Our catchment ..........................................................................................................................26 Catchment hydrology...........................................................................................................26 Streamline ecology...............................................................................................................27 Stream condition..................................................................................................................29 Water management and use ....................................................................................................31 Surface water........................................................................................................................31 Shallow bores ........................................................................................................................33 Great Artesian Basin ...........................................................................................................33 The Great Artesian Basin Sustainability Initiative .....................................................34 Biodiversity................................................................................................................................36 What is biodiversity?..........................................................................................................36 Environmental values ...........................................................................................................36 Rare & threatened fauna and flora..................................................................................38 Threatening processes........................................................................................................39 Protected areas ........................................................................................................................40 Knowledge gaps ..........................................................................................................................41 Desert Channels Queensland Community Information Paper – 2004 2 Commercial Kangaroo Harvest ................................................................................................41 Vegetation management ..........................................................................................................42 Forestry......................................................................................................................................44 Pastures ......................................................................................................................................45 Pest management ......................................................................................................................47 Pest animals ...........................................................................................................................48 Established........................................................................................................................48 Present but isolated........................................................................................................53 Potential threats..............................................................................................................54 Pest plants .............................................................................................................................54 Established........................................................................................................................54 Present but isolated........................................................................................................55 Potential threats..............................................................................................................56 Weed management groups..................................................................................................57 Land .............................................................................................................................................57 Indigenous land management.............................................................................................57 European settlement ...........................................................................................................60 Land tenure.............................................................................................................................61 Stock routes..........................................................................................................................62 People ..........................................................................................................................................63 Population ...............................................................................................................................63 Employment............................................................................................................................64 Services......................................................................................................................................65 Education................................................................................................................................65 Health .....................................................................................................................................66 Communications.....................................................................................................................67 Transport ...............................................................................................................................68 Waste management..............................................................................................................68 Industry......................................................................................................................................69 Pastoral...................................................................................................................................69