OzFish Unlimited and Landcare NSW have joined forces in an attempt to provide cleaner riverways, water and land habitats.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The partnership will allow Landcare workers and OzFish organisers to work together during river restorations and other cleanup projects.
READ ALSO:
OzFish's Director of Habitat Programs, Cassie Price said the partnership would allow the two organisations, who have worked along the Murray Darling Basin separately before, to be able to deliver better results in the areas of habitat protection and improvement.
"Native fish in parts of the Murray Darling Basin will soon have more areas to rest, shelter and breed and the landscapes along our waterways will continue to improve with our united efforts," said Ms Price.
Doctor Adrian Zammit, Landcare NSW's CEO, said that the work Landcare had done previously had a 'fundamental impact' on river health and that the partnership made perfect sense in order to provide greater benefits for the natural ecosystem.
"The benefit is massive, you get expertise form both camps in what you need to do to improve aquatic ecosystems," Dr Zammit said.
"We have to look at what our native fish need in order to breed and grow."
"Landcare in NSW is about 60,000 members, and obviously there are hundreds of thousands of recreational fishers across Australia, by joining those two groups," Dr Zammit said.
"We're going to get a lot more work done and we're going to be able to attract more funding and it's always good to present a bigger, united front when it becomes time to go to state and federal governments."
President of Inland Waterways and OzFish representative Matt Hansen said the proposal would offer an outlet for 'passionate, recreational' fishers who are interested in preserving the river and other ecosystems.
"There are so many passionate, recreational fishers that are out there, it's a natural fit," Mr Hansen said.
"There are a lot of recreational fishers who don't even realise that they already are a landcarer, but it's exactly what they are and they're passionate about native fish."
The two groups have already started work along the Macquarie river, planting trees to provide shade-cover.
"We want to co-ordinate with Landcare to see on-ground work come to fruition, for not only our native fish, but the health of our land overall."