1.           Meeting Opened at 1.25pm  at Parks and Wildlife Fogg Dam
Present  Leisa Baldwin, Wayne Bennett, Alan Anderson, Gemina Corpus, Heathe Boulden, Jeremy Hemphill and Dean Lonza, Senior Ranger Parks & Wildlife.             

Apologies: Jane Moore, Veronica Edwards.

2         Minutes of meeting 29 January 2011.   Approved: Jeremy/Leisa

3         Business arising from minutes & ongoing issues

Donation box at Fogg Dam – see item 9.

4.            Correspondence:  Out:

• 8 Feb 11, email to NT members and contacts inviting to meet at the Trailer Boat Club on Sunday 13^th Feb at 6pm.
• 23 Feb 11, email to Jan Hills, asking advice about getting the Humpty Doo Rice Project Rice Mill heritage listed.
• 23 Feb 11, email to Becky Myers, advising of changed plans for working bee.
• 22 Feb 11, email to Jennifer Cunningham, providing information about FOFD and advising we don’t have a working bee planned for March.   She’s added to the contact list.
• Notes to P&W re the working bee starting at 9.00am 27 February.

Correspondence In:

• 1 Feb 11, email from Bob Hulands, advising that Harrison Dam is named after Wing Commander Arthur Harrison who was the OIC of 5ACS which built Fogg Dam.
• 3 Feb 11, email from Peter Walker, re foggdam email address.
• 7 Feb 11, email from Jennifer Cunningham, Community Education Ranger, asking about FOFD and advising that she’s currently registering Junior Rangers for 2011 and they won’t be available for the 27 Feb working bee.  However, some junior rangers and their families would be keen to be involved in other working bees.  She asks for dates of future working bees.  She thanks FOFD for offering to have a ‘bird expert’ attend their group at Fogg Dam on 19 June to talk about birds and their adaptations.
• 22 Feb 11, email from Becky Myers, enquiring whether the working bee would still be happening due to the excessive rain.  About 5 guides interested in coming.
  
  

Correspondence accepted: Jeremy/Gemina

5.           Business arising from correspondence: 

• We need to find a bird expert to meet up with Junior Rangers on19th June at Fogg Dam to talk about birds and their adaptations. Possibilities include: Denise Goodfellow, the Reids, Peter Kyne.

6         NRMB grant with P&W Fogg Dam to Control & eradication of olive hymenachne

           Project Milestones:

           Jan                 Weed identification training, airboat operations, GIS training

                                 Map infestation sites & identify priority sites

           Jan-Mar         Chemical control of olive hymenachne

           Apr-Jun          Follow up control after initial treatment

           May                 Burning dead plant material

           Ongoing        Monitoring of control sites, mapping post work populations

           July                 Admin, insurance, report preparation and submission.                                

The project is running behind schedule (few Rangers available, Christmas/New year holiday period and unusually wet weather).

Olive hymenachne has been mapped in all areas of Fogg Dam accessible by air boat (Dean/Jeremy). Friends of Fogg Dam personnel and volunteer girl guides have been trained in the use of GPS units for mapping weed infestations. Follow-up training is planned on Sunday 27 March. Mapping of Fogg Dam’s upstream creeks, planned for 27 February has been deferred as the area is inaccessible due to flooding. Mapping on the floodplain below the dam wall and spraying is proposed in March.  

7         Humpty Doo Rice Trail.    

·      Funding to be sourced for posts/markers along the Rice Trail and for messages to be made available for downloading onto MP3 player or CD. Leisa offered to check how to seek a grant ot do that.

·    The rice mill at the 14 mile is on private property which could be sold – needs to be heritage listed. Jeremy has asked Kezia Purick to check, Heather will contact Jan Hills.

8         Opening Fogg Dam water & wetlands proposal

·   P&W project to install the sluice gate and dredge open water has been deferred to the dry season next financial year.

·   Bird & open water monitoring  – photo points still to be identified with P&W staff: 
Remind Norm Greenfield to co-ordinate site selection with the Bio-diversity  group.

·   Discussion on those led to a decision that we need to publicise what we are doing and that we are looking forward to the planned improvements. – also see Item 12 Membership.

9         Donation box & brochure holders

           Door has been removed a second time. Options of proceeding or dropping the idea were discussed with a decision to proceed, make the door tamper roof with a unique lock/key set. Alan to discuss with Parks.

10       Finance – from January

         $2,000.00 in fixed deposit.   $6,053.83 in regular account.

$4,700.00 in general account is a payment from the NRMB for the hymenachne mapping eradication project.  

11       2011 Business Plan

            The plan prepared by Heather and Leisa was discussed.   Endorsed:Alan/Leisa..

12       Membership  -  membership renewal is due to commence at the end of March.  Discussed what we might do to retain members’ interest and attract new members. Agreed we should provide an email newsletter whenever there is something newsworthy  on activities, developmenets, sightings, etc. Leisa to manage.  

13       Other business –

We are awaiting advice from Parks to make payments for fuel and chemicals on the olive hymenachne control project.

Dean advised a contractor to P&W, Terry Carew, observed a rice project plough between the Parks buildings and the adjacent melon farm.

14       Next meetings:

·      Sunday 27. Working Bee to progress the olive hymenachne project.

·      Sunday April 17: General meeting  

Su        Summary of issues to follow up.