Green Card Training, Nov 2023

Attendees:

Richard & Naomi, Penny, Alex, James, Dave F, Ki, Keith, Wayne, Jane & Don, Karen & Roger, Philip (Visitor), Mia – Dieback Working Group, Karyn – Dieback Working Group

Phytophthora is prevalent in and around the Perth and south west area. As All Tracks 4WD club conducts trips and ventures in and around these areas, it’s important that members know how to identify area affected and how to manage our activities to ensure the disease isn’t spread. I’m sure we’ve all driven past signs advising we’re passing through dieback free or dieback affected area – what do the signs mean to us?  What do we need to do to reduce the risk of spread of this disease?

We reached out to Mia Townsend, CEO of Dieback Working Group (DWG) to provide training for our members.  After working out when suited both All Tracks & DWG, we set the date to allow as many members as possible to attend.

We met at the Margaret Forrest Centre at John Forrest National Park, bright & early, caffeinated and ready to learn about Phytophthora (aka Phytophthora Dieback).

Growing up I knew it as Jarrah Dieback (maybe I’m showing my age!), however, as we now know, it doesn’t just affect Jarrah trees but approx. 40% of the native flora in the south west of WA!

Mia went through the science & history of Phytophthora.

We learned the various vectors (mostly human!), how Phytophthora is spread, the industries affected and recreational activities that increase the risk of spreading this water borne disease (eg trail walking, 4WDing etc). It’s interesting how areas are affected and we looked at the impact Phytophthora has on the flora as well as the ecosystem (if plants are affected, then what is the flow on effect to animals, insects, reptiles etc).

After a delicious morning tea, we went through how to inspect and clean both vehicles and boots/shoes (especially if walking/hiking), we were able to learn strategies to help us manage cleaning.

A yummy lunch was followed by more information regarding another biosecurity risk – Myrtle Rust. We learned what it is, how to identify it and how to report likely occurrences (via the My Pest Guide).

After an informative day learning about some major biosecurity risks in WA, our group received their green cards. Twelve members now have a greater understanding of Phytophthora, how it is spread, the impact on the environment and how we can manage our activities to reduce the risk of spreading it.

Thank you to Mia from Dieback Working Group for providing an informative and practical session, as well as the team at DBCA for allowing us to use the Margaret Forrest Centre for the session.

See you out & about!

Story by Naomi