Kate McLaren – Australian Government Individual Landcarer Award

Project Profile

Issues

Kate McLaren is the driving force behind Landcare and conservation forums, projects and field days in the Tamworth region, getting directly involved and sharing her knowledge and experience with the community. She has been instrumental in the formulation of educational brochures relevant to Landcare and has spent much time and effort lobbying and applying for government and industry assistance for a range of conservation projects in the area.

Project Detail

Attunga’s Kate McLaren has been nominated for a National Landcare Award for her work in establishing and sustaining the largest conservation area in the region.

Kate is the driving force behind Landcare and conservation forums, projects and field days in the Tamworth region, getting directly involved and sharing her knowledge and experience with the community. She has been instrumental in the formulation of educational brochures relevant to Landcare and has spent much time and effort lobbying and applying for government and industry assistance for a range of conservation projects in the area.

Kate owns two Voluntary Conservation Agreement (VCA) properties totalling 1,121 hectares, 30 kilometres north of Tamworth. The region has few other conservation areas and has been highly modified by agricultural activities. Coupled with the adjacent VCA, Kate manages a conservation agreement of 2,742 hectares, making it the largest conservation area in the Tamworth Region. Kate actively manages these VCA properties to improve and maintain the land’s conservation and integrity.

Kate has also made her conservation land fully accessible to the local aboriginal community, the Kamilaroi people, so they can enjoy and culturally connect with the numerous important sites located on her lands and maintain knowledge and skills pertaining to bush tucker gathering and hunting.

Kate also provides access to her conservation lands and assistance to the scientific fraternity, community groups and educational institutes to enhance their knowledge of natural and cultural heritage management. Additionally, Kate promotes ecologically compatible recreational activities on her lands and has held a number of educational field days and wildlife surveys on her land, which have been extremely beneficial to the community.

In her work for Landcare, Kate has been a driving force in the protection of significant cultural and aboriginal sites and has assisted in controlling weeds and pest animals as well as erosion control works on trails and drainage lines. Kate has also supported Landcare through her involvement in natural heritage surveys.

In addition to her work with Landcare, Kate was instrumental in forming the conservation group Friends of Klori in 2003. With government financial assistance, Kate and the Friends of Klori were successful in controlling the highly aggressive weed Coolatai Grass in remnant White Box Grassy Woodland, which is an endangered ecological community. Kate encouraged local landholders to be involved as well as lobbying government agencies and local government to assist. Kate and the group held field days to educate the community about the importance of weed control and the protection of valuable remnants of Grassy Box Woodland.

Kate is also heavily involved with the Northern Inland Council for the Environment – a local environmental group and Moonbi Landcare which manages and plants trees in the Moonbi Nature Reserve.

Kate has made an outstanding contribution to the conservation of biodiversity and cultural heritage in the Tamworth region and has lead by example, assisting and encouraging the community in the management and conservation of the area. A feat Kate says she could have only achieved “with the foresight of Raymond McLaren and the mentoring and support of Patrick Lupica (National Parks – Walcha), Toni McLeish (Coordinator Grassy Box Woodland Conservation Management), Phil Spark (Northwest Ecological Services), John Hosking (Agriculture NSW), Geoff Mitchell, Kate Boyd, Stephen Debus, James Austin, OTEN teachers, fellow Landcarers, friends and family.”

Kate McLaren is one of 88 finalists in the National Landcare Awards to be announced in Canberra on 24 June 2010.  Commencing in 1991, the Awards celebrate the achievements of individuals and groups that make a valuable contribution to the land and coast where they live and work.

Photography

Kate McLaren