Grasslands Restoration Project

Project Overview

Wurdi Youang is located within 15,000 hectares of land that it is covered by a “Public Acquisition Overlay” (PAO) to protect native grasslands in Melbourne’s west. These grasslands have been identified as some of the most important areas for conservation in Australia due to their rapid depletion.   The property has been declared as an Indigenous Protected Area (IPA). As part of the IPA declaration process WAC applied the Monitoring Evaluation, Reporting and Improvement (MERI) framework to Wurdi Youang’s natural resource management practises. An outcome of this process identified the need to develop an ecological restoration management plan. Specifically, the plan was developed to provide clear management guide lines for undertaking restoration activities within Wurdi Youang over a five-year period.

Our Role

Ecobalance was engaged by Wathaurong Cooperative to prepare a detailed ecological restoration plan for their property known as Wurdi Youang.

Outcomes

The aims of the plan are to ensure that remnant and regrowth native grassland rehabilitation is implemented in an integrated and systematic way, through using best practice principles and methodologies. The Ecological Restoration Objectives were:

  • Provide a 5-year ecological restoration operational plan for Wurdi Youang,
  • Retain all existing patches of remnant native vegetation.
  • Reduce the total number and density of environmental weeds on the property.
  • Eradicate all emerging weeds (once identified) prior to becoming established.
  • Increase the area of Themeda triandra through planting to 20 hectares within 5 years.
  • Manage other grassland areas within the property so their quality improves.
  • Reduce total nitrogen and phosphorous levels to discourage exotic species and promote native species.
  • Ensure all EPBC-listed species known to be on the property are protected and retained.
  • Manage Wurdi Youang in a way that promotes diversity of other locally native species.
  • Ensure that any agriculture continuing within the property is consistent with the primary aims of biodiversity conservation; and/or is in the process of being phased out.
  • Ensure that areas without significant ecological values (such as crops) are not abandoned and do not present a management liability.

Location

Geelong VIC Australia.

Client

Wathaurong Cooperative.

Expertise