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Scientists discover the cause of catastrophic mangrove destruction in Gulf of Carpentaria
In the summer of 2015-16, one of the most catastrophic mangrove diebacks ever recorded globally occurred in the Gulf of Carpentaria. Some 40 million mangroves died across more than 2,000 kilometres of coastline, releasing nearly 1 million tonnes of carbon.
Norman Duke, mangrove ecologist and senior research scientist at James Cook University, said. “The key factor responsible for this catastrophe appears to have been the sudden 40-centimetre drop in sea level caused by severe El Niño events that lasted for about six months, coinciding with no rainfall, killing vast areas of mangroves”.
Dr Duke said it was unlikely the gulf’s mangroves would recover due to the growing intensity of El Nino events. A $30 million fishing industry is expected to be impacted.
Historic Kosciuszko hut rebuilt after being destroyed in the 2019/20 Black Summer bushfires.
Built as a travellers’ rest house in the 1900s, Sawyers Hill hut was one of the most renowned historic structures in Kosciuszko National Park.
Rebuilt by NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service staff and volunteers, the timber was sourced from burnt trees that were felled during a roadside fire risk reduction program.
It is now back in business and is the first of the 11 historic huts that burnt down during the Black Summer bushfires to be rebuilt. The entire rebuild project is expected to be finished by 2025, pending weather conditions.
