New South Wales Sites
Nungatta Station Land Management Program
introduction / overview / images / location / Projects
Landscape Architect: Material Landscape Architecture
Location: inland from Bombala/Eden, South East New South Wales
Overview
OVERVIEW:
Site area: 5,000 ha
Location: Genoa River Catchment
Client: Nungatta Pty Ltd
Existing landuse: Cattle Station, Plantation (timber)
Budget: To date $ 500k
Projected additional $ 1.5 million
SPECIAL FACTORS:
Developed strategies for managing Endangered Fauna Species and Endangered Ecological CommunitiesContributed to protecting downstream high conservation landscapesParticipated in developing implementation strategies for controlling major weed of national significance infestationEngaged with multiple government agencies, private sector and volunteer groups to create an inclusive, resilient outcome.
Instigated change to a 160 year old farming model by proving external funding was available and change would in turn make the property more viable.
DESCRIPTION:
Material Landscape Architecture was presented in 2004 with a 5,000 ha site that:
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50% of the site was infested with blackberry, a Weed of National Significance
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Grazing land was under threat from woody regrowth; pasture area had diminished from 3,685 ha in the 1970’s to 2,300 ha in 1998 and it was projected to further diminish to 1,500 ha by 2015 if left unchecked.
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The farmers pride in the land had significantly diminished and there was no funds available to pay rectify the problems
Through investigation, additional issues were identified:
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At least 400 ha of Endangered Ecological Communities exist and were under threat from grazing
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24 threatened fauna species had been recorded on the site, 3 are classified as endangered on a State and National level
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Significant soil erosion existed throughout the site
Excellence and Functional Quality
Material identified that the process to tackling such huge problems over a very large area was to RESTORE the site and, through the management techniques ENHANCE the site. This was achieved by separating out (3) projects:
- land restoration,
- ecological enhancement
- weed management
Material’s approach to each of these projects was to collaborate, map, strategize, implement, review and educate.
Through this process, Material developed techniques that were proofed, evolved and then applied to a master plan that will be implemented over the next 10 years. The principal steps, restore and enhance, were quickly identified as the beginning of a much longer process which would eventually see the introduction of other non-agricultural land-uses such as ecotourism.
Although these (3) projects were undertaken separately, the activities were co-dependant and interrelated and often over the same area; the involvement of a landscape architect allowed for an understanding of their connectivity and, as a result, was fundamental in allowing government decision makers to see the projects in a very positive light and thus make available various different funding grants.
Material’s approach to the project was to seek a highly functional outcome that respected the landowners desire to continue grazing on ecologically sensitive land while developing strategies to ensure that cattle production did not compromise the ecological resource.
The incorporation and collaboration of many resource management agencies in the project allowed for the landscape architect to contemplate and assess multiple opinions and create excellence beyond the original brief. In addition, a benchmark was created for future projects with similar environmental and cultural issues.
The landowner was relatively unaware of the ecological value of the land and treated the native vegetation with scant regard; for 60 years he had been unsuccessfully seeking ways to eliminate the woody vegetation and establish exotic pasture. A fundamental to the projects success was to engage with the landowner and allow him to develop an appreciation of the major ethos change that was required, extending the brief considerably beyond the original bounds of beef.
Relevance to the Profession of Landscape Architecture
The landscape architects recognized that capacity building was reliant on finding and engaging with the right experts, work-shopping their skills with other experts and adapting/implementing their knowledge. Given the ecological value of the site, highly skilled scientists, practitioners and extension agencies from all levels of government were very keen to be involved and their engagement ensured the practices adopted were not only highly functional but also sustainable and treated the land and the downstream resource with utmost respect.
The landscape architect’s role in agricultural natural resource management is not common, especially in regard to this type of decision making.
Material effectively demonstrated the relevance and success of having a landscape architect involved in the project by adopting stewardship principles, using a contemplative structure and applying master planning techniques such as overview and analysis.
Material generated a holistic approach and allowed multiple practitioners to collaborate, successfully establishing management techniques for a very large, important, problematic landscape.
Addressing the AILA Landscape Principles
Value our landscape
Material, in collaboration with a raft of stakeholders (5 Governments, extension agencies, scientific organizations, private companies and the local community) identified, analyzed, developed management strategies and shared knowledge about previously de-valued/unknown high conservation value landscape. Concurrently Material developed an understanding of the fundamental requirements of the existing agricultural pursuits including understanding the cultural/historical context. Combining these elements allowed Material to create a recognizable value for this landscape that could be easily interpreted by all stakeholders in a format that was inclusive and collaborative, resulting in a truly sustainable project on all levels.
Protect > Enhance > Regenerate
Material’s land management strategy for Nungatta clearly identifies a three stage process. Protect, enhance and regenerate underpin this project, ensuring this landscape is recognized as a valuable asset now and in the future
Design with Respect
Reverting Nungatta to a responsible, sustainable entity required multiple challenging and often irreversible interventions. Understanding the complex array of needs allowed Material to make informed decisions, ensuring the land and the culture of the land was treated with respect.
Design for the Future
Nungatta has secured a sound future through the interventions developed by Material. This has principally been achieved through inclusion, appreciation and education of interested parties, ensuring change occurs within a sustainable Corporate Governance model. This model change allowed for a flow on to the other pillars of sustainability, Economic, Social and Environmental, to evolve and generate a dynamic decision making process
Embrace Responsive Design
A responsive design process was a fundamental to Material understanding the complexity of the problems; by establishing a framework of testing, improving and monitoring processes, dynamic results were achieved.
COLLABORATIONS:
National Parks and Wildlife Service, Bombala, Franz Peters and Rachel Butterworth
Bega Valley Shire Council Native Vegetation Recovery Officer, Jock Waugh
Weeds Inspector, Greg Madden
South East Fibre Exports Pty Ltd, Eden NSW Deane Goodyer, Garry Hunter
introduction / overview / images / location / Projects
2010
