Reef Catchments' Principal Project Officer (Waterways), Emma Jones, recently took to the stage at Greater Whitsunday Alliance's Future Finder Live event to share her career journey with local students and young professionals.
Drawing on her own experiences, Emma spoke about the opportunities that led her into the natural resource management sector and the rewarding work she now undertakes to improve waterway health across the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region. She also highlighted the wide range of pathways available for those passionate about making a difference to the environment.
By sharing her story, Emma helped showcase the exciting and meaningful careers available in regional Queensland, encouraging attendees to explore opportunities close to home. Her involvement reflects Reef Catchments' commitment to supporting the next generation of environmental professionals and inspiring future leaders to care for the region's natural assets.
Reef Catchments was proud to be part of the event and to have Emma represent the organisation and the important work being delivered across our region.
Reef Water Quality Report Card 2023–2025
The latest Reef Water Quality Report Card 2023–2025 released last week highlights continued progress towards improving water quality across the Great Barrier Reef catchment. For Reef Catchments, the results reinforce the importance of practical, locally driven initiatives.
Our work supporting landholders, restoring wetlands and waterways, and working with communities contributes to the broader effort to improve catchment health and protect the Reef. While there is still more to do, the report card demonstrates that sustained investment and collaboration can deliver positive change.
Healthy catchments are fundamental to a healthy Great Barrier Reef. Read the Reef Water Quality Report Card 2023–2025 here.
The project will run until 2029, and Reef Catchments is currently seeking additional landholders to take part in the project. If you own a property within the project area and would like to be involved in protecting and expanding koala habitat, please contact Carlos Bueno at carlos.bueno@reefcatchments.com.
The project aims to restore and enhance priority koala habitat through the installation of 6 kilometres of wildlife-friendly fencing, planting 3 hectares of koala-preferred vegetation, and managing 54 hectares of invasive weeds that can limit koala movement across the landscape.
Recently Reef Catchments partnered with CSIRO and Yuwi Rangers to survey koala habitat throughout the Mackay Isaac region. These surveys are improving our understanding of koala distribution, health and movement patterns, helping to guide future conservation efforts.
Community members can also support this project by reporting koala sightings through the Koala Spotter App, helping build valuable knowledge about local koala populations.
This project is funded by the Queensland Government through funding from the Natural Resource Management Expansion Program.Koala photo courtesy of Charley Geddes.
A New NRM Plan for the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac Region
Reef Catchments is developing a new regional Natural Resource Management (NRM) Plan, and we want local knowledge, experience and priorities to help shape it.
The new NRM Plan will set a shared regional vision and guide practical action, investment and collaboration to care for the region’s land, water, biodiversity, coasts, reefs, communities and productive landscapes.
Your input will help make sure the Plan reflects local values, priorities and opportunities. Find out more here.
Out & About: Inspiring Future Environmental leaders
Reef Catchments has been connecting with local students through a range of school engagement activities, showcasing the many career opportunities in environmental management, agriculture and marine science.
At Proserpine State High School's Careers Expo and Mackay North State High School's Finding Your Future event, students explored land and water management through interactive demonstrations, including our rainfall and soil simulator and fish ladder model. Many were particularly interested in careers involving animals, agriculture and the environment.
We also delivered How Ancient Geology Shapes Our Landscape, Soils and Future to around 80 Year 8 Geography students at Pioneer State High School. Using hands-on demonstrations and a 4.6-metre timeline representing Earth's history, students discovered how ancient geological processes shaped the landscapes, soils and industries of the Mackay Whitsunday region, while learning about the important connections between soil health, water quality and Reef health.
These activities are a valuable way to inspire the next generation of environmental stewards and showcase the practical work Reef Catchments delivers across our region.
Building Seagrass Monitoring Capacity on Sea Country
As part of Reef Catchment's (Sea)Grassrootsproject, five Yuwi Aboriginal Corporation Rangers and a Project Officer from OzFish Mackay completed a Seagrass-Watch workshop, building local capacity to monitor and care for seagrass ecosystems across the Mackay region.
Identified by the Yuwi Rangers as a key training priority, the workshop provided participants with practical skills and knowledge to monitor seagrass ecosystems across Sea Country. Strengthening local capacity for seagrass monitoring is essential for the long-term collection of high-quality data, helping track the health and condition of seagrass meadows over time.
Following the training, participants reported increased understanding of the important role seagrass plays in coastal ecosystems and greater confidence in undertaking monitoring activities. The workshop supports ongoing stewardship of Sea Country and enhances the region's ability to detect and respond to changes in seagrass condition for years to come.
This project is funded by the Australian Government’s Reef Trust and delivered by Reef Catchments in partnership with CQUniversity and OzFish Unlimited.
Join local seagrass scientists for a hands-on volunteer event restoring precious seagrass meadows in our region. Help collect seagrass flowers in Bowen and Seaforth to support restoration efforts and contribute to the long-term health of our coastal ecosystems.
For more upcoming events in the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region, click our Events Calendar button below.
Resources
Rubble to Reef Monitoring Report: Round 2 and 3
CS Environmental were commissioned by Reef Catchments to undertake post-deployment monitoring at two reef restoration sites near Dangerous Reef, Mackay coast, as part of Reef Catchments’ Rubble to Reef project.
Reef Catchments has released a new 10-year roadmap for improving water quality across the Mackay Whitsunday region; from the health of our creeks and wetlands to the condition of the Great Barrier Reef itself.
We're building a community-driven register of potential natural resource management (NRM) activities across our region. Share your knowledge. Register your idea. Shape the future of our land, sea and waterways.
Board Directors - Agriculture and Traditional Owner Sector Representatives
Reef Catchments is seeking two experienced, values-driven Directors to join its Board: an Agriculture Sector Representative and a Traditional Owner Sector Representative.
Communications and Media Officer
The Communications and Media plans, coordinates and delivers high quality communications across corporate, project, media, website, social media and event channels.
Human Resources Officer
The Senior Human Resources Officer provides senior operational human resources support across the employee lifecycle and assists the People and Safety Manager to deliver consistent, compliant and effective people practices across Reef Catchments.
Environmental Projects Team Managers
These positions provide leadership to project teams and are responsible for the planning, resourcing, delivery, monitoring and evaluation of projects to achieve agreed environmental and natural resource management outcomes.
Senior Project Officer - Great Barrier Reef
The Senior Project Officer leads the development and delivery of allocated natural resource management projects within the Great Barrier Reef Program.
Reef Catchments is proudly working with 11 regional organisations through NRM Regions Queensland to deliver coordinated natural resource management across the state.
Together, we’re delivering a $117.84 million investment in on-ground projects to improve soil, water and biodiversity, through the Queensland Government’s NRM Expansion Program.
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