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Rainforest in Kalimna on National Tree Day Sunday 2 August

Kalimna Gully is something of a management nightmare.

On its 0.5 hectares are private land with a Trust for Nature conservation covenant, private land without a covenant, foreshore reserve, East Gippsland Shire roadside, Crown land reserve......the list goes on. Into the mix has come the East Gippsland Rainforest Conservation Management Network which has formally adopted the gully as an ongoing project (as featured in our last issue) and is bringing all those land managers together. CMNs were formed to deal with such management mosaics and the challenges they present.

EGRCMN member Paul Harvey has drawn up a management plan for Kalimna gully which hosts nationally endangered Littoral Rainforest and state endangered Warm Temperate Rainforest. The Swift Parrot and Grey-headed Flying Fox (see page 7), also nationally endangered, use such rainforests, as well as Powerful Owls, Sooty Owls and the White-bellied Sea-eagle, all State threatened species. Paul identified the threats (see opposite) to the rainforest and the possible way forward. The dream? Ideally, the whole length of the water course is restored to help provide connectivity with other areas of remnant vegetation, enhancing the site’s habitat values.

This management plan was prepared by Paul Harvey as part of a Diploma in Conservation & Land Management, and involved consultation with fellow members of the East Gippsland Rainforest Conservation Management Network (EGRCMN), which has adopted the gully as an on-going project. The practical assistance of the Lake Tyers Indigenous Work Crew is acknowledged.

Weeds, waste and warming: the threats

Threats to Kalimna Jetty Rainforest Gully include: weeds, garden waste dumping, nutrients from upstream, pest animals, theft of tree ferns, catchment hardening from nearby developments, isolation of the site and the complex mix of land zones. However, the threat of most concern is climate change.

Its potential effects could include:           Changes in species • composition           Higher sea levels,•           Increase in fire activity • and intensity,           Increase in rain/storm • events,           Higher run-off and • erosion.

THE WAY FORWARD

The major management recommendations to come out of the management strategy were:

The significant natural features of the site will be • preserved, protected and enhanced. Pest animals and plants will be eradicated or • controlled in cooperation with adjoining land managers and land owners, in accordance with the management strategy. Visitation will be maintained at the current low, • discrete level in order to protect the site’s natural values during restoration. Community participation and continued involvement • by the East Gippsland Rainforest Conservation Management Network will be encouraged. Liaison with the primary land manager (DSE) to • continue in order to consolidate the site into an adjacent reserve.

Korthalsella rubra subsp. rubra  Jointed mistletoe is a threatened species found in the kalimna gully

 

Weeds, waste and warming: the threats

PROJECT SUMMARY Property manager: DSE with support from East Gippsland Shire Council Community: Littoral Rainforest                   Status: critically endangered in Australia Community: Warm Temperate Rainforest Status: endangered in Victoria Funded action: management plan Outcome: management directions identified including liaising with DSE to have sections consolidated into the adjacent reserve. This project is supported by the East Gippsland Rainforest Conservation Management Network, DSE and East Gippsland Shire Council through funding from the Australian Government’s Caring for our Country.

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