Friends of Stradbroke Island

Friends of Stradbroke Island Issue #76 - April 2017 In this issue  Minjerribah's Wild Places Rehabilitation Obligations Not Being Enforced By State Government Island Conservation Cyclone Side-effects 2017 Glossy Black-Cockatoo Survey Bus Shelter Poetry Nature Notes Have you considered making a donation to support FOSI’s work?  Minjerribah's Wild Places A Nature Guide to North Stradbroke Island, Minjerribah. Book review by Julie Kearney Affectionately known to many as Straddie or Minjerribah, North Stradbroke Island has been a favourite holiday destination for south-east Queenslanders since it first began attracting boating parties to its shores in the nineteenth century. Millenia before this it was regularly visited by Indigenous mainlanders for similar purposes, as well as ritual business with the Quandamooka people. Now, hot off the press in 2017 we have A Nature Guide to North Stradbroke Island, Minjerribah , the first-ever compre...

Sourced from the Financial Review 09/09/2011 The Proposed National Park The government’s vision for North Stradbroke Island includes declaring further national park by the end of 2011. The area to be added to that declared in March this year will result in approximately 50% of the island becoming national park. While any declaration of any area as national park is obviously something we welcome because it enhances protection, how much credit does the government deserve? The new national park will in fact bear a close resemblance to the proposed national park map published in the mining company's own documents for a number of years, including in CRL's draft Enterprise Environmental Studies Report in 2002. The same map has also been regularly published in official company documents since. It is worthwhile comparing that map with the latest DERM national park map. Go to www.savestraddie.com to view both maps, under the 'library' tab. Unfortunately, a significant propo...

North Stradbroke Island National Park Declaration Map

Swamps fringe the Northern, Eastern and Southern shores of North Stradbroke Island. The Eighteen Mile Swamp, a great trough in the sand lying seaward of the huge dunes of the main sand mass is kept full of fresh water by seepage from the sand mass rather than surface run off. Straddie is the southernmost high dune sand mass in Australia and the second–largest sand island in the world after the World Heritage Listed Fraser Island. This swamp teems with life and interest and is so special that it is included within the Moreton Bay RAMSAR site, recognised as one of the world’s premier wetlands. It is in fact the longest wetland of its type in the world. Eighteen Mile Swamp It is only this year that it has finally been given the highest form of regulatory protection available in Queensland by being declared National Park. The park has been named NAREE BUDJONG DJARA  by indigenous people on the island who are engaged in its joint management with the state. This level of protection...

In 1990, the Goss Labor Government considered it appropriate that at least 50 per cent of North Stradbroke Island be declared national park. It did not happen. Less than 2% of the Island around Blue Lake - national park since the 1960’s- is protected. Over half of the Island is under mining lease, with the public excluded under threat of prosecution and mining destroying a valuable natural asset. Let’s stop mining before more of our island is gouged out. . . North Stradbroke Island mining operations from the air. (Photo courtesy of Peter W. Glynn. Photographer Terry Magee).  The needs of Greater Brisbane Given greater Brisbane's need for more public green space and the fact that about 20 of the mining leases have expired or are due to expire soon, it makes sense to bring mining to an end and declare most of the Island national park without delay. Since 1990 the population of greater Brisbane has doubled. Government policy appears to support population growth at unprecedented r...