14 November 2023 Mparntwe Alice Springs
Buffel grass weed declaration information night
When: 6pm-7.30pm tomorrow, (Wednesday, 15 November)
Where: The Roastery (DuYu), 9 Hele Crescent
What: This Buffel Grass Weed Declaration Information Night will outline what the next steps look like around buffel weed declaration
Why: This is a great chance for community members to have their questions answered and find out about ways to have their say.
We will hear First Nations leaders, legal experts, policy makers and weed practitioners about weed declaration and why this is a significant moment.
Background:
The Northern Territory Government is currently considering declaring buffel grass a weed.
Buffel grass is an existential threat to environment, culture, public safety, tourism, the arts, land management, as well as to the mental, social and physical health of Territorians. Buffel grass fuels hotter, more intense and more frequent wildfire events, transforming and degrading the health of Country.
Buffel grass threatens to invade up to 70% of the continent if left unmanaged. In 2014, the Federal Government’s Threatened Species Scientific Commission recommended states and territories to declare buffel grass a weed. In 2015, South Australia declared buffel grass a weed. In 2023, it is the Northern Territory Government’s moment to declare buffel grass a weed. This is the greatest opportunity in the Territory’s history to promote action on buffel grass, a devastating threat to the arid lands.
For more background info, please see ALEC’s Buffel grass weed declaration in the NT guide.
