Neerim Site

History

Some areas of the Tarago Catchment are prone to landslips due to the soil type and the slope.

This property has a large landslip that had occured many years ago. Cattle access and lack of any vegetation (including grass) was causing the slip to erode further and further back creating steep sides and depositing a large amount of silt and nutrients to the watercourse below. The site has poor productivity due to the compaction, slope and loss of topsoil.

Photo: Landslip with cattle degeradation evident before fencing and revegetation in 2006 taken from top

Works

In 2006 the farmer approached the Tarago Catchment Sustainable Farms Project for information and advice on the landslip site. It was agreed that the best solution was to fence the slip off from cattle access and revegetate the site. There was little advantage in continuing to graze this site.

Another erosion site on the property was also fenced and revegetated at the same time. In total 3.5ha was fenced off and revegetated. In addition 3 stock crossings were also provided to minmise impact of cattle on the waterways above and below the landslip site.

Update

One year on the ungrazed pasture grasses are dominant on the site. To some this may look messy but the tall grass has longer roots than short grass that is helping to stablise the soil. It has also colonised the areas that were previously bare. Grass and plants at the bottom of the site are now able to capture sediment and nutrients in the run off.

The soil is compacted from cattle and most of the topsoil has washed away. You can still see bare earth that is on the sheer cliff sides of the landslip for this reason. The roots of the plants on top will help stabilise this soil over time and small grasses and herbs will eventually grow there.

Photo: Landslip site in Autumn 2008 taken from top. Note the 1 year old plants on site

By fencing off and revegetating this site we have ensured that the flow of sediment and nutrient into our waterways is reduced, meaning better water quality in the long run. It also ensures that the area surrounding the landslip remains a productive pasture rather than slowly eroding it away. 

In time the site will form a valuable link in habitat for native flora and fauna from the Tarago State Forest and increase the biodiversity in the area. Many predators of pasture insects live in these areas so surrounding pasture benefits from their assistance too. There are also benefits for stock with better insulation from temperature lows and highs as well as wind chill.

October 2009 (above) 

A Fantastic example of one of the 42 projects completed in the Tarago Catchment