Bomaderry Creek Promotional Video

History of Bomaderry Creek

Because Bomaderry Creek Bushland is a natural Australian habitat, naturally, its history goes all the way back to before the days of when early European settlers walked the shores of our now heavily urbanized land. Its long natural history; and our luck at it still standing, beautiful and strong just show a responsibility that we should continue to guard the bushland from future city development.

Evidence of historical Aboriginal usage of the area is still present amongst a recorded more than 11 various sites all throughout the beautiful bushland. Aborigines have left evidence of art, cave paintings can be seen; stone artefacts; particular patterns dented into rocks known as grinding grooves; two shelter sites and various native plants found in the bushland known to be used by the Indigenous for food, sharpening tools etc.

The earliest shown evidence of European settlers is in evidence of damage to the bushland. Fortunately though, the bushland has naturally regenerated in areas where some damage has been, covering traces of past logging and grazing. Regeneration has also been able to cover up damage of some 1960s gravel extraction as well, although some of this area still remains damaged from heavy bike and motor vehicle use not helped with vehicle access being made in the 1960s. Other evidence of damage is with banks of sandstone but this has been used wisely and put to good use, one now holding the picnic area. Apart from negativity of damage, some positive outcomes have come from early European settlement.

Fourteenth of May 1938 the weir and Bomaderry’s first water supply was opened.The weir lost its use in the 1970s when a pipeline was installed and after a lack of Australian Bass and other fish swimming in the creek, a natural habitat of theirs, the weir then had a three-metre slot cut out of it in 1998.

But this was followed more ignorance towards the fantastic park as in between 1973 and 1984 Bomaderry Creek Bushland held an unsupervised community tip, this has needed 20 years of cleaning because of the unknown  dumping of noxious chemicals. The area where the tip was held now has a layer of clay holding down wastes to keep the bush safe and for protection of the clay, a thick top layer of mulch. Except, lucky enough Bomaderry Creek had a positive breakthrough in the 80s.

In 1984 the Bushland was recognised as a good use of education by Bomaderry High School this was closely followed by Bernie Johnston and Jim Walliss creating walking tracks which were built by the Deputy of Land and officially opened in 1985. This followed an educational loop station with information plaques, the picnic area and the camellia garden area set aside which recently in 2003 became available to restore with native plants. The same year (1985) Jim Walliss made a 60 paged booklet on the fauna, flora and geology of the Bushland. In 1988 a plant unique to Bomaderry Creek Bushland, the Bomaderry Zieria was rediscovered after not having seen it since 1943. Terry Barratt knows the inside and out of this very rare plant. Over the years he has done a thorough study on everything you can know about this plant.

In 1993 community members who love this bushland began to fight for a positive attitude and outlook towards the bushland, and by 1994 the Bomaderry Creek Landcare Group had been established to follow a positive attitude and to care for the land. The landcare group has put into action many plans to save this environment, including the building of a walking bridge to be builtover a wetland to reduce human impact which was done in 1996 by a training program, LEAP, which benefitted unemployed youth.

If you are thinking this finally reaches positivity you are very far from hitting the truth. In 1989 there was a proposal made by the council to put a North Nowra link road going right through our beautiful Bomaderry Creek Bushland. Of course, there was the point put across that this was to reduce traffic and have another option for drivers heading to and from North Nowraas well as clearing up traffic altogether. But, why on earth would you want to go attacking our natural native habitat which we are so lucky to have as an asset in our community for the measures of a road. Nowra is known for its rural bushland, we should be using Bomaderry Creek Bushland as an asset to draw tourists here, not wanting to destroy it for more urbanized use.

The point of saving it, was lucky enough, seen by fellow citizens like Terry Barratt, May Leach and Jim Walliss and many, many more. The councils want for a North Nowra Link was published in the South Coast Register in July 1990. Here, the newspaper’s view represents saving the Bushland. It is a key to point out that here, in 1990 there is mention of a different route “The Shoalhaven Bushwalkers Inc. have also condemned Council’s proposal as a very destructive one, and is writing to Council urging it to adopt the West Cambewarra alternative route.” The positive claim in this particular article, “Bridge to Threaten Bomaderry Creek Walking Track” would make you think it was a done-deal and the idea would slip away. But, again, that would be very wrong to think. A new group was made, Friends of Bomaderry Creek and alongside Bomaderry Creek Bush Landcare the battle of saving our precious bushland against the councils north nowra link road has lasted until now.

In 2001 the Bomaderry Creek Bushland Walks was made by Terry, Jim Walliss, May Leatch and illustrated by Trudi Last, this helped get the commutnity to see the beauty and become more intorduced to the area. In 2002 one third of the Bushland was dedicated as Bomaderry Creek Regional Park, but unfortunately the rest still remains property of the council. In 2006 part of the Bushland was destroyed for extension of the tennis courts. This showsa ‘same-old’ disregard for the Bushland and Bomaderry Creek Landcare Group are still fighting for a positive attitude towards the bush and they hope more of the land will be deicated as Regional Park.

Terry has kept newspaper articles from over the years of this very political battle. To talk about the time between then and now would be a whole other case study, that’s how deep it really digs it even went to a court case, which Bomaderry Landcare won. But lucky enough for us we can still enjoy its beauty. Its main points of saviour are the rare flower, Zieria, the Aboriginal heritage areas, the danger a road would present to native species of wildlife and plants and the big winner was the community fighting for their natural habitat.

Now, with the Nowra Link Road fight finally down, Bomaderry Creek Landcare Group and Friends of Bomaderry Creek can focus on important things within the bush, like weed care, putting in a new bridge after three have already fallen down from floods and loose logs.

Newspaper articles

Sources

Friends of Bomaderry Creek March 2012, Friends of Bomaderry Creek, viewed 1^st November 2012, <http://www.friendsofbomaderrycreek.com.au/>

 Barrat, T, Walliss, J, Leatch, M 2001, Bomaderry Creek Bushland Walks, The Bomaderry Creek Landcare Group, Klimpton Press Princes Highway Falls Creek.

Terry Barrat, Chairman of the Bomaderry Landcare Group

 Bomaderry Creek Regional Park|NSW National Parks n.d, viewed 29 November 2012, <http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/nationalparks/parkHome.aspx?id=N0690>

 Bomaderry Creek Regional Park|NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service n.d, viewed 15 November 2012, <http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/nationalparks/parkHome.aspx?id=N0690>

Bomaderry Zieria

Photos

Latest Flood
Terry Barratt's Picture

The Walking Bridge Now

Aboriginal Art
Terry Barratt's Photo

Historical Pictures

Picnic Area Now
National Parks Image

Picnic Area Before
Terry Barratt's Picture

Historical Photos

The Weir Before
Terry Barratt's Photo

The Weir Now

Map of Bomaderry Creek Bushland and Surrounds

Future Developments

Bomaderry creek is not a very well-known area and people don’t understand its true value as a Shoalhaven community asset. Many future developments for the Bomaderry creek have been discussed such as further positive community knowledge about the park and more support for land and bush care groups from the council. Currently old gravel winning sites have been left to regenerate but are being destroyed by constant motorbike disturbances.
Possible future solutions to this current problem include giving youth an area nearby for trail riding or fire trails within the park to isolate the damage. Bomaderry creek land care groups discuss issues such as this and the old North Nowra tip off Falcon Crescent which has been capped but doesn’t help the environment and is not aesthetically pleasing. The group has discussed possible future development for this site such as sports areas, camping grounds, or a possible solar panel farm.

These are still in brain storming stages and benefits and disadvantages of each are being discussed, but the main prospect from the group for building something here for the community is so that the community can help appreciate the natural asset in their community and help them preserve its beauty.
Another way Bomaderry Creek Bush care groups wish to spread the awareness of the park is by making a field guide with all the information of the park, as well as its history information on endangered species of flora and fauna. The book is planning to be based on the Field Guide to the Bushland of the Lane Cove Valley by John Martyn ©2010 Step Inc. which is an incredibly informative and interesting way to help people understand and know more about their local area.   

By Keanu Paisley-Topp                            

Graph of Fauna Species at Bomaderry Creek Bushland

Overview of the Present State of Bomaderry Creek Bushland

500 word Overview of Present State of Asset

Bomaderry Creek Bushland– ‘Present’

The Bomaderry Creek Bushland is a great asset to the Shoalhaven. The creek itself is located just north of the Shoalhaven River, and flows south-east to merge into it. The Bushland, of which one third has been dedicated as a regional park, is nestled in between the developed suburbs of North Nowra and Bomaderry.

The Bomaderry Creek Bushland is often used for picnics, dog walking, general recreation for kids and adults, inspiration for photography and artwork, an educational hands-on source for school groups, rock climbing, cycling, running and scientific research. It includes 4 bushwalks including ‘Weir to Mossy Gully’, ‘River Oak Crossing’, ‘North Nowra to Creek’ and ‘Bernie’s Lookout’. It provides extensive physical and psychological benefits and a chance to take a breath from the humdrum of everyday life.

The Bomaderry Creek Bushland  play a profound role in the lives of the entire Shoalhaven community by providing its residents with an untouched piece of nature for leisure, relaxation, education and for some, employment as caretakers, all within a short drive, and for some, just a jump over the fence or a jog down the street. It also features an Aboriginal mural (mosaic style) in the Narang Picnic Area. This all contributes to it being a great attraction for tourism, which also helps to boost the area’s overall economy.

One of the great things about the Bomaderry Creek Bushland is that it has incredibly dense biodiversity, or in other words, it is home to a very large amount of flora and fauna in a very small area, including over 500 plant species. It is also home to 12 animals classified as threatened and 3 threatened plant species, including the incredibly rare Bomaderry Zieria, which is named so because the only place in the world it is found is in the Bomaderry Creek Bushland, making it unique.

The Bomaderry Creek Regional Park is managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service and another large part of the Bushland is looked after by the Shoalhaven City Council. The community also places a significant role in looking after the whole 250 ha Bushland through the Bomaderry Creek Landcare/Bushcare Group. This group of volunteers is made up of community members from the inexperienced to the professional. They care for the physical needs of the creek and its surroundings by regenerating disturbed sites primarily by getting rid of weeds and replacing them with native plants and continuing to maintain them. The group also takes care of  non-physical benefits  of the Bushland by involving the community in guided walks, submitting informative articles in the local newspaper, creating and distributing leaflets and the book, ‘Bomaderry Creek Bushland Walks’.

Another caretaker of the Bomaderry Creek is the ‘Friends of Bomaderry Creek’. This is an organisation of over 170 members that has been set up to defend the Creek against any of those options for  the  ‘North Nowra Link Road’ which would go through the middle of the Bushland. FOBC maintains a proactive political stance against those destructive options while supporting an option close to the northern edge of the Bushland. The options through the middle of the Bushland would destroy many plants, including the rare Bomaderry Zieria, and by cutting a swathe through the Bushland would lead to many road kills of native wildlife.

Profile on Terry Barratt

300 word Personal Profile

Terry Barratt – Chairperson of Bomaderry Creek Landcare Group

Terry Barratt is an environmentalist that is well acquainted with the Bomaderry Creek Bushland. This has become his primary interest and the main focus of his work as part of Landcare. Terry has spent the past 33 years as a resident of the Nowra/Bomaderry area.

Terry has spent more than 40 years working for Landcare and Bushcare and, in particular, has spent the last 20 years with the Bomaderry Creek Landcare/Bushcare Group.   Professionally he has been a manager with the National Parks and Wildlife Service for 25 years and an environmental scientist with Sydney Water for 10 years. Terry has a Bachelor of Science Honours degree. His honours thesis involved research through the University of Wollongong into the conservation status, genetics and reproductive processes of the Bomaderry Zieria. This is an extremely rare plant restricted completely to the Bomaderry Creek Bushland and his research has established him as the foremost specialist on this species.

Terry takes a keen interest and a responsible role in the Bomaderry Creek Bushland. He does this because he has a comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the area and as a committed environmental conservationist, he feels responsible to protect it.

Terry is very passionate about the Bushland and enjoys spending time there. His reasons for this include its diversity, uniqueness, the high level of threatened species that it provides a home for, the bushland’s physically challenging nature and the many opportunities for recording scientific data. When asked his favourite part about the creek, Terry replied, ‘I like so much about the bushland I don’t have a particular favourite’.

The vision Terry has for the future of the Bomaderry Creek Bushland is a positive one. He sees it becoming increasingly more important to the community as an outdoor place for people to get away from their everyday lives. Terry also sees that the protection and proper management of the Bomaderry Creek Bushland will continue to grow.