Erosion Control workshop - NT

Peter Hazell takes participants through the theory of landscape rehydration.

Peter Hazell from the Mulloon Institute travelled to Batchelor, NT to deliver an ‘Erosion Control – Landscape Rehydration’ workshop during July, just before large parts of Australia were locked down due to Covid.

As part of the Northern Territory Soil Consortium established by Territory NRM to build land manager capacity and knowledge in soil health and conservation, the workshop gave participants and landholders an introduction to innovative approaches for rehydrating landscapes and restoring landscape function. It was made possible through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program.

The workshop was hosted at Old Cameron Downs Station where landowners Peter and Fiona have previously built some small leaky weirs, which coupled with their land management, has resulted in increased groundcover so that large water flows are visibly slower and more spreading today than compared to six years ago when they first bought the place. 

The site has the potential to be a perfect demonstration site of landscape rehydration within the Top End context, with landforms that lend themselves to minor interventions which would have significant agricultural and environmental benefits – such as, a series of small leaky weirs through an eroding primary flow line, and a couple of well-planned and constructed contours aimed at dissipating flows entering the primary watercourse.

However, as we learnt through the course of the workshop, in the Northern Territory there are quite particular legal constraints around proposed landscape rehydration works.

Using a laser level to mark out the contour.

The second day was the practical component of the workshop. After choosing an appropriate tributary and location for a demonstration contour, and then going through all of the soil types and hydraulic risk factors, we stepped and pegged out the contour and moved the dozer into position for an initial rip along the contour. At this point it became apparent that a clearing permit wasn’t in place for this particular location which would have allowed us to disturb the native vegetation, which was a small number of waist high, regrowth Melaleuca.

While Peter and Fiona had clearing permits over most of their property, which they had inherited from the previous owner, they didn’t cover the paddock we were planning to rip – which was a cleared paddock. Either the previous owner had initially cleared this paddock without a permit, or it was cleared prior to 2002 when permits were not required. 

We decided it would be imprudent to act against the Northern Territory Government’s advice and halted any further progress on cutting a contour. There are also strict Water Act and Heritage considerations in the NT which the Mulloon Law Committee will be invited to investigate.

While our Territory NRM hosts were thrown a major curve ball by this turn of events, the obstacle thrown in front of them has fired their motivation, and that of the landowners and the other workshop participants, to get a decent landscape rehydration demonstration or two happening in the Territory. We look forward to helping facilitate this for them.

Hands-on learning stepping and marking out the contour.