The newly formed Friends of Mortlock and Mortlock South Group was presented today with two cheques with a combined value of $50, 000 from the State Government.

Agriculture and Food Minister Terry Redman accompanied by the Hon Mia Davies and Paul Brown, Nationals WA candidate for the Agricultural Region, presented the cheques to the Wheatbelt NRM sponsored community group at the funding launch.

The Avon NRM strategy, produced by Wheatbelt NRM, identifies the Mortlock River system as a high priority for the implementation of management projects.

“The Mortlock discharges into the Avon River, and contributes to sediment, salinity and nutrients in the Avon” said Mr Redman.

Wheatbelt NRM’s Operations Manager, Rebecca Palumbo said that “We are proud to be supporting the establishment of this project with the newly formed Friends of Mortlock and Mortlock South Group. It will be exciting to see the implementation of these projects and we are looking forward to the possibility of new projects in the future.”

“The Mortlock River system is so large and has such a wide range of potential management issues that these initial projects really are just the tip of the iceberg.”

The Friends of Mortlock and Mortlock South projects aim to protect and enhance the asset of the Mortlock River for future generations, by working with the community to identify the areas most at risk and to initiate restoration activities.

The project’s main outcomes will be to reduce and control secondary salinity and weeds, protecting against fire; controlling erosion and restricting stock access to the river.

For media enquiries, please contact: Wheatbelt NRM’s Rebecca Palumbo on 9670 3100 or 0428 834 926