^MM£$&^ Volume 28 number 1 March 1991 ..jvtty Selected X (. mi.ry \ iH«*, ***** Held fhjit»dlf with t» >• tihN*M 'pfc1-"1 >rtry ;si>e 4. IT/5*. I! } 6\ r *f the BED. year [emarkdble fjtAD Red Crew BrrfUhJ* f L, Srrfner. br L*#r;" £23/1$/- -»d April. ' ^ ELEFUM ildren in uniform9 joining Govern J tlxe site of t> * t •'o com* ***** _ IS fix' iii. Sd BY THE OR HUP. -okeb^grt win BUB IO T(« *»4_ S1I " LIKE Namadgi is educational Conservation Council environment policy NPA BULLETIN Volume 28 number 1 March 1991 CONTENTS Environmental policy 4 Cover Photo: Reg Alder Murray-Darling history 6 The internal walls of Brayshaw's hut in Namadgi Salutary tales 10 National Park were wallpapered with pages from newspapers and magazines. Besides being decorative Namadgi education 13 and providing reading they served to keep the chill Parkwatch 14 winds from blowing through the joints in the slab Chasing whales 15 timber walls. Most of this history has now disappeared and this photograph shows one of the two Cool change 16 remaining small complete sections. How long will Down the Murrumbidgee 17 these survive the efforts of vandalising souvenir hunters? No dates are on the sheets but judging from Books 18 the advertisement for the all-electric Telefunken radio the walls would have been freshly papered in the 1930s. Another photo on page 9. National Parks Association (ACT) Subscription rates (1 July - 30 June) f Incorporated Household members $20 Single members $15 Corporate members $10 Bulletin only $10 Inaugurated 1960 Concession: half above rates For new subscriptions joining between: Aims and objects of the Association 1 January and 31 March - half specified rate • Promotion of national parks and of measures for the protection of fauna and flora, scenery and natural features 1 April and 30 June - annual subscription in the Australian Capital Territory and elsewhere, and the Membership enquiries welcome reservation of specific areas. Please phone Laraine Frawley at the NPA office. • Interest in the provision of appropriate outdoor recreation areas. The NPA (ACT) office is located in Kingsley Street, • Stimulation of interest in, and appreciation and enjoyment Acton. Office hours are: of, such natural phenomena by organised field outings, 10am to 2pm Mondays meetings or any other means. 9am to 2pm Tuesdays and Thursdays • Co-operation with organisations and persons having similar interests and objectives. Telephone: (06) 257 1063 • Promotion of, and education for, nature conservation, and Address: GPO Box 457 Canberra 2601. the planning of land-use to achieve conservation. Contribute to your Bulletin Office-bearers and Committee Contributions of articles (news, description or fiction), President Les Pyke 281 2982(h) black-and-white photographs and line drawings are Vice-President keenly sought for the Bulletin. Please label photo­ Beverley Hammond 288 6577(h); 258 1877(w) graphs with the name of the subject, the name of th^ Immediate Past President Syd Comfort 286 2578(h) photographer and the date. Leave contributions at the Secretary Judith Webster 241 4646(h); 276 6141(w) office or phone the editor, Roger Green, on Treasurer Mike Smith 286 2984(h); 248 3624(w) (06) 247 0059. The editorial fax is (06) 249 7373. Sub-committe conveners Articles by contributors may not necessarily reflect Co-Convener Environment Association opinion or objectives. Tim Walsh 285 1112(h); 274 1465(w) Co-Convener Environment Deadline for June issue: 1 May, 1990. Len Crossfleld 241 2897(h); 263 2267(w) Convener Outings NPA Bulletin is produced by Green Words for the Phil Bubb 281 4929(h); 246 6128(w) National Parks Association (ACT) Incorporated. It is Convener Namadgi Syd Comfort 286 2578(h) produced with the assistance of an ACT Heritage Convener Marketing, Publicity & Education grant. Len Haskew 281 4268(h) Printed on recycled paper by Union Offset Co Pty Ltd, Other Committee members Fyshwick, ACT. Jill Roberts 249 1390(h); 272 4192(w) Dugald Monro 231 8776(h) ISSN 0727-8837 Doreen Wilson 288 5215(h); 248 5211(w) IN COMMITTEE President's foreword What is your whether humans are part of operator whose perspective is look­ nature and how we should accept ing down the barrel of debt perspective? or modify human impact on the redemption, for trucks and It is easy to pose questions. physical environment. If one's per­ machinery, over only a few years. Answers can be harder to state. spective went, say, 50 or more What else does such short-term Often a protagonist will assert years ahead, we might envisage perspective tell us? that one should ask the right sort that because of efforts of organisa­ How does a forestry operation, of question, and thus lead one to tions such as ours, on the merits of faced with a sudden adjustment on their side of the debate. wilderness areas, some hundreds conservation grounds, compare Nonetheless life is full of ques­ or perhaps thousands of people in with another industry which has tions; not least in the realm of the future larger Canberra metrop­ to adjust to tariff reductions but conservation. olis might want to go backpacking gently phased down over some When you look at an area of in Namadgi each weekend. But years. Might not there be some cleared land that has passed from you might prefer to say 'Let us case for a scheme of compensatory commercial use into a national simply enjoy it as it is today so or redundancy payments in the ark, what is your perspective— long as we can escape beyond the forestry industry? Subject, of hould it become like it was in esky range of four-wheeled urban- course, to the consideration that in 1788, or in pre-Aboriginal times, ites'. Who can say you would be these fast changing times no one or perhaps in the Cretaceous if you wrong? has the inalienable right to have could wangle the climate, or In the domain of industries precisely the same occupation all simply let nature take its course? based on the exploitation of limited their working life But do not feel But the latter could also mean nonrenewable natural resources, confident of an initiative from gov­ feral trees and shrubs, weeds, perspectives have sharp relevance. ernments, given their perspectives cats, pigs, foxes and rabbits; and With forests, for example, the loss of only a handful of years between hence the need for human inter­ of biological diversity can, apart elections. In the case of our federal vention, but to what ultimate from the ethical question of the governments, on average there is objective? For example I read extinction of species, mean the less than three years between elec­ recently that the Orroral Valley closing off of future options in the tions, which is farcical by any rele­ was originally a marsh which was production of new medicines and vant international comparison. drained to make the present river. drugs which in the long-term may Thus the proneness of our govern­ Therefore should we now dam or be of greater economic value than ments to political expediency, but block the river to re-create the today's short-term forestry opera­ that is what we all work on and marsh? tion. But do not expect support for that is not a bad perspective. All this raises the question of that proposition from the forestry Les Pyke LfV busy holiday New members Over the 'holiday* period the of Jervis Bay and its environs. The Sandra Berry and Ian Smith, Association has been very busy. Association was represented at a Curtin There is a lot happening which meeting at Nowra on 13 December Neil Campbell, O'Connor requires our voice to be heard if we and lodged a thorough and Dr Hamish Cresswell, Cook are to have any real meaning to detailed submission, the product of Mark Darmody, Watson our aims and objectives. Also, some energetic members. Mary Louise Done, Ainslie authorities love to set deadlines Other work throughout the holi­ Roger Emmerson, Duntroon for submissions near holiday peri­ day period included preparing a Digby and Kerry Habel, ods when people are starting to paper on mining in national parks, Weetangera relax from serious matters. running a NPA display at Fun in David and Robyn Horton, Kambah On 21 December was the dead­ the Park on 13 January, studying Ellen Koi Headford, Deakin line for views on Ski 2000, a propo­ draft ACT land legislation (sub­ Adrian and Louise Marchant, sal from NSW for increased mission by 28 February) and being Wanniassa development of resorts and facili­ represented at seminars on it on Alison McLean, Hawker ties within the Kosciusko Park 16 December and 20 January, and Muller family, Hawker area. Your Association made the meetings of subcommittees Nigel Pearson, Gowrie deadline with a submission of throughout December and January Kieran and Lynne Vassallo, soundly based criticism. 31 on various important topics. Mawson January was the deadline with Elsewhere in this bulletin are Maureen Waller, Macgregor NSW authorities for views on the some further details. Peter and Lola Wilkins, Curtin future planning and development Les Pyke IN PRINT New policy statement The Conservation Council of the leagues. Conservation bodies policy suggestions mostly aimed South-East Region and Canberra should, she said, take the lead in at the ACT government. These has produced a substantial policy actively pursuing environmental include a call for the Canberra statement on environmental issues within the community and Nature Park to be gazetted under issues for the region. It is the only the political arena to shape public the Nature Conservation Act and conservation body in Australia to opinion and to put pressure on Molonglo Gorge in particular have produced such a comprehen­ governments and ministers to passed over to the Parks and sive policy statement.