We host three ranger teams, Normanby, Laura and Melsonby Rangers, and support the Joint Management of National Parks in south-eastern Cape York in partnership with Queensland Parks and Wildlife and Balnggarrawarra, Buubu Gujin and Waarrnthuurrinn Aboriginal Corporations.
On our Balnggarrawarra Homeland, Normanby Land Management is supported by South Cape York Catchments. We collaborate with our neighbours in catchment-wide strategic approaches to sediment mitigation and erosion control; planned burns and our annual aerial incendiary program; and invasive species control. We have a close working relationship with our immediate downstream partners, the Melsonby Rangers, who are based at Gaarraay.
The Normanby Rangers are funded by the Queensland Indigenous Land & Sea Rangers
program.
We also contribute to our own operational works program by reinvesting our own income generated from our cattle and tourism enterprises centred on Normanby Station.
Laura Rangers
The Laura Land and Sea Rangers are comprised of six Traditional owners and a Coordinator who live in the local community. The team undertake management of natural and cultural resources on their Country. Natural resource management work includes water monitoring (water flow rates, sediment, nutrient & chemical loads), fire management, weed control, sawfish research, biosecurity monitoring and biodiversity monitoring. They are currently involved in monitoring 30 sites to establish the long-term influence of fire patterns on biodiversity. In addition, they help with community projects as requested by the Elders in the vicinity of Laura.
Cultural heritage work involves systematically documenting the National heritage listed Quinkan cultural sites and lodging the records with the DATSIMA Cultural Heritage Unit. The majority of the estimated 10,000 Quinkan art sites have never been recorded. This work is a priority for the team as natural attrition will eventually destroy these sites and, if no attempt is made to document them, they will be lost entirely. These recordings will also provide a baseline for future assessment of site condition and the development of management plans.
In conjunction with site recording, the Rangers undertake cultural site management and conservation work that is within their training and capacity. This includes installation of signage, construction of animal exclusion fencing, vegetation removal, hazard reduction burns, and the positioning of dust suppression matting is undertaken as and where required. The Rangers also facilitate regular on country Traditional knowledge excursions with the Laura School and local community.
For over 10 years the Rangers work has provided great value to the community they serve and the funding bodies supporting them. They have been credited with generating a growing sense of community optimism and solidarity. With strong support from the community, the Ang Gnarra Aboriginal Corporation, and the Queensland government, a Ranger Base has been established to provide a building where databases can be securely held and from which the Ranger group can operate. Continued support of the ranger program is seen as essential for implementation of Elders aspirations for their county.
Laura Ranger Base: 07 40602251
Over recent years, Balnggarrawarra have worked in partnership with the South Cape York Catchments Inc group based in Cooktown to deliver natural and cultural resource management across their traditional estate through the Balnggarrawarra Ranger Project funded by the Queensland Government. This program enables the employment of traditional owners in Natural and Cultural Resource Management. Work has included; visitor management initiatives, weed management, cultural heritage surveys, erosion controls, pest management, biodiversity surveys and infrastructure management. Rangers have also completed certified training in Tourism, Conservation and Land Management.
The Balnggarrawarra Rangers and South Cape York Catchments were recognised in the 2014 Queensland Reconciliation Awards for their cross-cultural and land management successes as a result of well formed partnerships. In 2015 the Balnggarrawarra Rangers won the Queensland Government’s Landcare Partnerships Awards for creating strong and successful land management partnerships to achieve positive outcomes on the ground.
In 2021, the Cooktown State School formed an ongoing partnership with the rangers to deliver their Certificate II in Conservation & Land Management (CALM). Year 11 & 12 students engaged in this certificate have attended several field trips to Melsonby throughout the year to complete the practical components of this course.
