The spectacular, 63,000-hectare Boolcoomatta Reserve is an hour’s drive from Broken Hill on Adnyamathanha and Wilyakali Country in the arid rangelands of South Australia. This is classic boom and bust country, where it never rains but it pours.
It's a landscape of sweeping plains, Mulga Woodlands, floodways and rocky outcrops. Birdlife is abundant and residents – riding out the cycle of droughts and floods – include the critically endangered Plains-wanderer and the vulnerable Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby.
When the rains finally do come, every drop has to count. After many years of altered land use, our team on the ground and volunteers have worked tirelessly to rehydrate the landscape, slow erosion and restore balance to Boolcoomatta, but to continue this work we need your help.
Ecologist Graeme Finlayson explains…
“When a hard rain falls, water gets channelled into the tracks and roads, and rushes down and off the land, taking soil with it. We need water to stay in the ground to help counter the effects of erosion and regenerate native grasslands and shrubs.”
Aerial view of water patterns in Boolcoomatta landscape. Photo Maia Tschirner.
“There are a range of tools we can use for this work depending on the scale. For example, simply laying out cut-off tree branches can provide a natural filter to repair a small erosion gully. In some cases, more intervention is needed, and heavy machinery is called in.”
The work being done at Boolcoomatta is not just important, it’s inspiring, satisfying and ecologically productive. Together, we could help change the future for millions of hectares of land across Australia.
Our work gives the landscape a chance to ride out the next drought, stop soil erosion, provide opportunities for vegetation to recover and improve habitat for native species.
As global weather changes, we’re seeing more frequent and intense weather events, like droughts, floods, and storms. The impacts of intense weather events are buffered by good vegetation cover.
Together, we can combat soil erosion and degradation to bring thriving native flora and fauna back to our landscapes.
Donate today!