Dear Friends of Grampians-Gariwerd,
We find ourselves at the end of what can only be described as an amazing year. It is a good thing to reflect on the key challenges and milestones of the past 12months, and also re-program our thinking for the coming year ahead. It is easy to talk about 2011 as doom and gloom, however we have experienced many highs along the way. Flooding and landslips have initiated change across the park landscape and Parks Victoria has responded by reinstating, remodelling and redesigning roads, bridges, walking tracks and picnic areas. Although this response has been hectic, we are confident that the decisions we have made will hold the park in good stead for many years to come.
Our environmental program has also had a very busy and challenging time. We welcomed the arrival of Ryan Duffy to the team and undertook a rapid review of our overall priorities. The importance of our core business was reinforced and the basics of pest plant and pest animal along with Threatened Species management was committed to moving forward. The Grampians Ark program successfully worked with communities in the Victoria Valley to expand the fox baiting project beyond 200,000ha, further reinforcing the view that the Grampians is a state-wide leader in such predator control programs.
Our cultural program focussed on Rock Art assessments associated with our fuel reduction burning areas and a lot of effort put into community consultation, information gathering and site visits. This is an area of our business that needs to grow in the future to allow for our custodial role to be achieved and our partnerships with Traditional Owners realised.
Fire took a most welcome back seat this year however our prescribed burning program continued to grow and continues to challenge us in terms of ecological outcomes, asset protections and the operational realities of a major focus area.
2012 presents as an equally busy time with the flood recovery program in full swing, and our day to day business being even more critical to deliver. We will continue to learn and adapt, but also rely on the broader Grampians community to assist us in the important job of caring for this country that we all hold so dear to our hearts for a variety of reasons.
Thank you for your help and interest this year, have a safe and Happy Christmas and New Year, and we look forward to working with you in 2012 to achieve a range of initiatives across this fantastic landscape.
Regards
David Roberts, Ranger in Charge