An investigation into the targeted community engagement in environmental management in Condamine Catchment, Australia

An investigation into the targeted community engagement in environmental management in Condamine Catchment, Australia

Condamine Alliance, Australia conducted a community engagement survey for land care and natural resource management in Condamine catchment to explore local landholders’ attitudes for their engagement in land care and other resources management through better planning and mapping. Using random sampling technique, 10 landholders groups were interviewed from the Condamine catchment.
The study, thus, found that 70% of local landholders discontented the general condition of the Condamine catchment landscape. Further, 80% of the respondents were dissatisfied with the adequacy of current governments’ investment in the environment. Most of the landholders, comprising 80% of the respondents, perceived that they were not consulted for environmental planning. 80% of the respondents opined that funding for weed and pest control is not enough. Respondents believed that currently available mechanical and chemical management techniques are not cost-effective control measures, and that weed eradication and pest control do not work. As examples of eradication that did not work, respondents identified
species that have been present in Condamine catchment longer than weed management, including Lantana and other weeds they mentioned. Extended and appropriate community engagement, through increased funding, ground level
project implementation, awareness and capacity building activities, are suggested to reverse the current daunted environmental condition and its poor and pro-top-down
management.

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