LANDHOLDERS west of Casterton are questioning the consultation process and logic behind site selection for a project to reinstate wetland habitat in the Strathdownie area.


Last week The Casterton News announced the Nature Glenelg Trust project, which proposes to “regulate flows at the artificial outlet, to hold back a greater depth of water and restore the wetland”, at the site it refers to as Wirey Swamp.


“The site has been artificially drained for several decades to support cattle grazing, resulting in seasonal dehydration of the once permanently saturated peat soil,” a press release stated.


“This (project) will enhance habitat for the Brolga, which urgently require additional choice of wetlands in the landscape for breeding to sustain their numbers.


“The nationally threatened Growling Grass Frog, Australasian Bittern and fresh-water Little Galaxias fish, among other wetland dependent species whose habitats has been lost across south-eastern Australia, will also benefit from the restoration.”


The artificial drainage referred to in the press release, is the Strathdownie Drainage Scheme – a series of engineered drains stretching around 120km and covering 52, 00 hectares of farmland.


First gazetted in local newspapers in the 1910s, the need to alleviate inundation of farmland in winter months was developed into a formal system in 1960, when the Strathdownie Drainage Scheme, overseen by a committee of local landholders, was formed.


Construction was complete in the mid 1980s and since then, the Strathdownie trust has engaged the local shire to strike and collect a rate each year for the scheme’s maintenance, which is overseen by the committee.


The proposed site for the brolga wetland is a swamp which is surrounded by farming properties and forms a critical element in the drainage scheme, as a central collection point for water from farms to the north.


Fourth-generation farmers, Kevin Stark and David Headlam, whose properties lie to the north of the swamp and are connected – both directly and indirectly – to the scheme, say the alteration of water levels in the swamp, would have a massively detrimental effect to their operations in a wet season.


“The connection to our land was developed in the early 70s; prior to that, a lot of it was inundated all winter and dry in summer,” Mr Stark said.


“You could not grow a pasture in some areas, could not graze anything in some of it … even if there’s only an inch of water on the ground, you get sun on top of that and it kills off the clover, it does not like it.


“It leaves nothing but bare earth when it dries out.


“There are drains out of neighbouring holdings that come onto our place and if the flow of water is interrupted, we’ll be back to where we were.”


Mr Headlam said his family saw “exactly the same thing”, with paddocks “totally transformed” from large swathes of country holding limited stock, to productive land which allowed farmers to do what they do best – feed the country.


“The scheme does not completely drain the country … it’s not meant to,” Mr Headlam said.


“It has minimal fall … around 1 metre every two kilometres … it removes the excess water over a few weeks.


“If it went back to the way it was before the scheme … well, we do not know, we do not have any information about how this is going to work, are they going to dam the swamp or … we just do not know.


“They have just announced this without any consultation.”


Both men said they had no qualms with a dedicated area for native fauna wetland – brolgas are a welcome sight in the Strathdownie and Lake Mundi areas and while landholders lament the damage caused and feed lost to kangaroos, the Nation Companion can graze valuable grain trails beside sheep, much to the farmers’ delight.


“We love the brolgas, they’re a sacred bird,” Mr Stark said.


“But we did not know about this until we read it in (the newspaper), I do not think there’s been any consideration of the fact that this is part of an engineered, properly planned infrastructure that serves a huge area of land and a lot of farmers.”


Noel Ogilvie, who has had property in the area since the 1980s and lived in the district for a time said he had had contact from NGT, but was also unaware of the project’s progress, until notified by Mr Headlam.


Mr Ogilvie’s property shares a fence with the swamp site, hosting a large section of drain which feeds directly into the swamp.


“Three or four months ago … I cannot remember if they left a message on the phone or they sent me an email,” he said.


“It was some sort of correspondence where they wanted to buy some land of me, which is probably down the back there, going through to that Wirey Swamp drain system there.


“I ignored it, thought it would go away and never heard any more about it.


“I have got a million things on my mind, thought I’d hear back from that mob and I never ever did.


“All I understood, they were going to buy some land off me for some wetlands proposal down there, that’s all I knew, that’s where I was left with it.


“But there was no follow up, I was just contacted with a query whether I’d be interested in selling some land down that end .. there’s been no follow up.”


In addition to the “4000-odd acres” of Como, directly adjacent to the swamp site, Mr Ogilvie also has around 2600 acres on the nearby Turkey Heath, which also feeds into the drainage scheme.


The land is fattening country – Mr Ogilvie buys-in cattle to fatten for sale to meat processors, which relies on stocking rates to produce the volumes required.


He said any inundation caused by reducing the flow of water off his property in a wet season, would severely impact his business.


However, he was not willing to make further comment on the matter, until he had all the facts at hand – something he hoped would come from the project proponent.


“I do not know what the facts are, how they’re going to work it … as I said, I just found out about it yesterday when David rang me,” Mr Ogilvie said.


“Are they going to let the main winter water run through and then just put a weir in it, sort of October November or something like that.


“I’m not dead against it if they let the main flow of water run through, then come Christmas time they put a block in there that just holds water which is below the main fall of the drain coming out of my place.


“We’ll just have to wait and see.”


The Casterton News contacted Nature Glenelg Trust Managing Director, Mark Bachman about the farmers’ concerns.


Mr Bachman said his organisation was “proud of always working closely and cooperatively with rural landholders and take an incremental, measured, well-reasoned and scientifically backed approach to projects of this nature”.


“NGT are also accustomed to working in agricultural landscapes where a range of constraints exist. NGT’s team have practical experience working closely with local landowners and key stakeholders to identify, test and trial workable solutions,” he said.


“NGT look forward to demonstrating this cooperative, flexible and open-minded approach when our organisation officially owns the site later in the year.”


He said NGT is aware of the drainage scheme and based on NGT’s preliminary assessments, drawing upon detailed digital topographic information, neighbouring landholders who were most relevant in the first instance were consulted about the project.


“Landholders further upstream with questions about the project have been reassured that NGT will be closely consulting with them in the design and technical stage of the project which will progress closer to settlement,” Mr Bachmann said.


“Local knowledge and experience will be critical in this process.”


He said it was worth noting that it had been several decades since many of the rural drainage schemes were built and, in the context of changing climatic patterns and depletion of water resources, there is a growing recognition that rural communities have an opportunity to improve how drains in agricultural landscapes could be managed in the future.


“This does not mean compromising a drain’s primary function of protecting agricultural land from inundation,” he said.


“NGT works closely with local communities to identify strategic locations where complementary outcomes for wetlands and water resources might also be achieved.


“The Wirey Swamp project site offers this potential, where water directed from agricultural land upstream can benefit a wetland environment connected to the drainage system downstream.”


He said NGT had written a detailed letter to the Drainage Trust Committee explaining the project approach once settlement occurs, which includes details on how NGT prioritises working with local people and organisations.


“NGT has also made a commitment to the committee that no work will occur that changes current water levels or flows through the site, without their involvement or consent.


“Given the project is flexible in its design, it can be adapted to suit the circumstances uncovered during the assessment phase.


“NGT has committed to the Strathdownie Drainage Trust, immediate neighbours and landowners situated several kilometres upstream from the swamp that this project will pose no negative impact to the local landscape.”


The drainage scheme committee was contacted about this story, but declined to comment.