At a celebratory dinner last week, North Central Catchment Management Authority (CMA) presented the final results of their Drought Employment Program (DEP).

Running for the first six months of this year, the DEP concluded with an impressive list of accomplishments, all which are benefiting local communities throughout the region.
The DEP was part of the Victorian Government's drought relief efforts. It represented an investment of $2.4 million and provided employment and training to over 150 farmers and others affected by the drought.

According to Allison Long, North Central CMA's community and partnerships manager, who coordinated the DEP, the outcomes have exceeded expectation.

"The real benefit with this funding from the Victorian Government meant that we were able to provide people resources to existing projects throughout the region, and at the same time support people struggling with the drought," she said.

"We had the situation where existing improvement programs with material resources were in place across the region, but were looking for assistance with people on the ground to complete the works.

"This is where the DEP crews have been invaluable to achieving great results at a local level."
During the six months of the DEP, a total of 20 crews have completed a vast amount of work throughout the whole Catchment including: 809ha of terrestrial and 256ha of riparian zones fenced with an additional 144km of riparian zone fencing covering nearly 320km of river
386ha of indigenous revegetation in terrestrial and riparian zones, including 30km of river
3,070ha targeted weed control works including blackberry, gorse, Paterson's Curse, wheel cactus and others 3,000ha of fox and 65ha of rabbit control works.

Full training and skills development was also provided to all DEP crew members which was essential to undertaking the work they were required to do, but will also be of value to them in the future. Fully funded 1080 Endorsement and Farm Chemical Users Permit (FCUP) courses were also provided for landholders. "1080 endorsements are now required by the Victorian Government to use 1080 fox bait. As part of the DEP funding we were able to run FCUP and 1080 Endorsement courses for landholders across the region," Allison said.

"The support we've had has been fantastic. Our crews worked with teams from across the region including Department of Primary Industries, Department of Sustainability and Environment, Goulburn-Murray Water, local Landcare groups, Northern Grampians Shire Council, Parks Victoria, and other community organisations."

Brendan Smith from Parks Victoria at Castlemaine has been very thankful for the extra support provided through the DEP.

"We were lucky enough to have four DEP crews working with us around Castlemaine, Kyneton, Maldon and Mt Alexander. During the six months they helped us with critical habitat works," Brendan said.

"The list of tasks finished by the guys is a long one, covering weed control, containment fencing, rabbit and fox control programs, and revegetation activities to name a few. In one major revegetation program alone they planted 5,000 seedlings.

"The overall results have been more than we aimed for. A detailed plan was developed to ensure the activities they completed achieved the best ongoing outcomes for the local community. They managed to cross a few things off the 'wish list' - the things that need to be done, but we've not been able to get to with current staffing levels.

"Crew participants were from Castlemaine, Maldon, Maryborough and Bendigo, and all equipment purchases were made locally. So through employment generation, cash flow to the local economy, and training and practical work placement of future natural resource managers, the DEP has been a great success to both the individuals involved and the local community."

Allison agreed: "It's been a great opportunity to help all our communities in the Catchment - from individuals involved in each of the projects, to the larger local community who will benefit from the works we have been able to complete with our partners.

"It really has been an exercise in community spirit and the results speak clearly for themselves. They have been outstanding."

For further information please contact: 

Communications Officer, North Central CMA
PO Box 18, Huntly VIC 3551
t: 03 5448 7124
e: info@nccma.vic.gov.au