4ZZZ’s Eliot Rifkin spoke with Sandal Hayes of the Friends of Ninney Rise, which was John Büsst’s Bingil Bay home and centre for the inception of the ‘Save the Reef’ movement. | 4ZZZ’s Eliot Rifkin spoke with Liz Gallie - president of the Mission Beach Cassowaries on all things cassowaries. |
John Büsst the Bingil Bay Bastard of Ninney Rise - OG of Save the Barrier ReefSaturday, 10 December 2022 by Toni Pankaluic Did you know that the Great Barrier reef was almost mined for its coral as lime fertiliser for cane farmers? Are you aware of an unsung hero John Büsst who was the architect in the activism campaigns to ‘Save the Reef” and proved the reef was alive… counter to prevailing beliefs that the reef was just dead coral. For a deep dive… Ninney Rise is the base from which John Büsst organised the 'Save the Reef' and rainforest campaigns decades ago. Set in rainforest by the Coral Sea, it was a meeting place for the campaigners and scientists including Prime Minister Harold Holt, poet Judith Wright, and scientists Len Webb & Geoff Tracey. Two notable books on the Great Barrier Reef one may find interesting - 'Coral Battleground' by Judith Wright and 'The Reef - A Passionate History' by Iain McCalman The Australian Marine Conservation Society - AMCS (founded as Queensland Littoral Society) is one of the oldest conservation groups in Australia, and the only conservation group dedicated solely to protecting Australia’s amazing oceans and marine wildlife. Did you know the first bumper sticker used in Australia was ’Save the Barrier Reef’? Toni Pankaluic. | Cassowaries the Formidable Giant of Queensland's Wet Tropics Monday, 2 January 2023 by Toni Pankaluic Cassowaries… gentle giant of the Wet Tropics rainforest. How are they faring with human encroachment on their habitat? How do we live with them? For a deep dive… Visit Mission Beach Cassowaries for an aggregate of all kinds of relevant Southern Cassowary info and follow them on Facebook. The Australian Museum's Southern Cassowary page is also a good source on getting a primer on this magnificent bird. Check out the IUCN Red Listing for the Southern Cassowary. The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN Red Listing) is a critical indicator of the health of the world’s biodiversity. The IUCN Red Listing is far more than a list of species and their status, it's a powerful tool used to inform and catalyse action for biodiversity conservation and policy change. The Cassowary Recovery Team is a group of organisations working together to implement the Recovery Plan for the Southern Cassowary and ‘protect cassowaries, habitats and corridors from threats through better planning, monitoring and community involvement'. Literally get your hands dirty by volunteering to revegetate rainforest habitat for cassowaries in Mission Beach with the Brettacorp non-profit. ...and finally, sign the petition to Oppose the Mission Beach Helicopter Facility which will further degrade the established rainforest corridors and tranquility of the cassowaries' environment. Toni Pankaluic |