Land management activity

Fire - West Arnhem Fire Abatement Project

The West Arnhem Land Fire Management Project (WALFA) is a partnership between Aboriginal Traditional Owners and Indigenous representative organisations, Darwin Liquefied Natural Gas (DLNG), and the Northern Territory Government. The partnership was formed to implement strategic fire management across 28,000 sq km of Western Arnhem Land for the purposes of offsetting some of the greenhouse gas emissions from the Liquefied Natural Gas plant at Wickham Point in Darwin Harbour.

The project aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from this area by adopting effective fire management practices in what has been mostly unoccupied and unmanaged land. While the primary aim of the partnership for the non-indigenous partners is to offset greenhouse gas emissions, the primary aim of traditional owners has been to use the project to reconnect with country and undertake cultural and natural resource management in this region of unique biodiversity.

To achieve the greenhouse gas offsets traditional owners' land management organisations (Warddeken, Jawoyn, Djelk, Adjumarllarl and Mimal Rangers) working closely with non-Indigenous partners, such as Bushfires NT, Tropical Savannas CRC implement strategic fire management from early in the dry season to reduce the size and extent of unmanaged wildfires and measure the greenhouse gas offsets.

This project does not generate income from carbon trading; it is a fee for service arrangement in which traditional owners are paid for fire management to produce greenhouse gas offsets. However, the process and accounting practices used to abate greenhouse emissions in this project will qualify for carbon trading when it comes on stream.

Regular early dry season burn-offs now occur and traditional owners have achieved the emission abatement targets set for 2005-2006 and 2006-2007. The WALFA Agreement created a long-term fee-for-service funding stream which enabled the employment of rangers in full-time positions. A core group of these rangers are now qualified to deliver aerial controlled burning (ACB) from helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. The WALFA Project received the Innovative Solutions to Climate Change Award at the 2007 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes. It is important to note that the Community Development and Employment Program (CDEP) was instrumental in assisting this project get off the ground.

The WALFA project was a critical 'two-way' (valuing Indigenous ecological knowledge and science equally) research and management partnership as it led the way in demonstrating the potential alliances between private enterprise government, Indigenous and non-Indigenous scientists and land managers. It was also important in establishing a pilot model that clearly demonstrates the importance of people on country for fire management and Indigenous economic development across the tropical savannas of Northern Australia.

Weeds

The main weeds in the Warddeken IPA are the mission grasses (Pennisetum polystachion and P. pedicellatum) followed by small infestations of hyptis (Hyptis suaveolens) and gamba grass (Andropogon gayanus). The Rangers spray these mainly in the late wet season before they set seed. A CyberTracker sequence is being used to collect information on what weeds are sprayed, where and when. This information will feed into the regional weeds strategy that was developed by the Warddeken, Djelk, Adjumarlarl and Mimal Rangers with the assistance of the PoC ecologist and NRETAS Weeds Branch.

Feral Animals

Feral animals present throughout the Warddeken IPA include: buffalo, cattle, pigs, cats and cane toads. The Warddeken Rangers are actively culling buffalo, cattle and pigs in certain areas where traditional owners want and allow it. More systematic culling of pigs and buffalo occurs as these animals are considered significant threats to natural and cultural resources, especially freshwater points (see Ens et al 2010). Buffalo and cattle are also often culled for food. Although pigs are consumed in other areas of Arnhem Land, they are not generally shot for food in this area. A feral cat eradication program is being discussed. Cane toads are present throughout the IPA in relatively low numbers however there is no active cane toad eradication program in the area, primarily due to the scale of the problem and relatively low and dispersed abundance of toads.

Ecological Research

Warddeken are conducting a number of ecological research projects in conjunction with various external experts from Government and universities in a two-way approach. For over a decade Warddeken have been working with the NT Government Bushfires and Biodiversity Unit on vegetation and faunal assemblages and species of the Arnhem Plateau and their responses to fire (Russell-Smith et al. 2009; Whitehead et al. 2008; Yibarbuk et al. 2001). Specific research has also been conducted on endemic and threatened species of the Warddeken IPA which include cycads, Allosyncarpia ternata (anbinnik), Callitris intratropica (anlarrk) and the sandstone heath communities as well as the endangered Golden backed tree rat (Mesembriomys macrurus).

Research on feral animals began in 2002 with buffalo and pig surveys of the Gumadir River catchment (Griffiths and Pardon 2002). Since then, the Manwurrk Rangers have also been working with the PoC ecologist, Emilie Ens, to gain a broader understanding of the impacts of feral buffalo and pigs on freshwater points within the IPA (Ens et al. 2010). Baseline information on the flora and macroalgae associated with freshwater points and frogs is also being collected (Ens et al. 2009). The Rangers and Emilie Ens are currently developing a field guide to the frogs of the Arnhem Plateau. The frog research story appeared in the NAILSMA publication Kantri Laif (Issue 6 2010 pp. 18-19), written by two Manwurrk rangers Kyrin Bulliwana and Seraine Namundja.

From a landscape perspective, Manwurrk Rangers and Emilie Ens have also been working on a rapid aerial assessment of wetland condition using CyberTracker technology and Fugawi mapping software. This assessment will allow the Rangers to prioritise areas for feral animal control and aid in the detection of areas that need more active land management such as replanting or erosion control.

Recently the Manwurrk Rangers and Emilie Ens have also initiated ant surveys of outstations within the Warddeken IPA. Recently fire ants were found at Manmoyih outstation which lies in the Warddeken IPA. They were eradicated however the Rangers want to monitor the ant species present in the area to facilitate early detection of invasive “bad” ants if they arrive. Ants are very important to the rock country people, especially the green ant.

Cultural Research

Warddeken has been a leader in Indigenous cultural research. Senior traditional owners were visionary in adopting a 'two-way' approach to cultural and natural resource management. Warddeken along with traditional owners have been active in a number of research projects that have supported land management and the return of people to country.