Blackwood Basin Group Home Page

Welcome to the Blackwood Basin Group Website

The BBG is a non-profit, community-based organisation that coordinates environmental management within the Blackwood River catchment area within the South West of Western Australia.
The catchment is divided into nine Landcare Zones and all on-ground activities in these Zones are coordinated by Natural Resource Management Officers (NRMOs) in direct collaboration with community groups and landholders.

Our core philosophy is that community ownership of catchment problems will produce appropriate solutions, given adequate resources and technical assistance.

Blackwood Basin Area
Click to See Map

The Blackwood basin is the largest catchment area in the Southwest and covers 22,000 square kilometers.

The Blackwood Basin Group developed BestFarms in 2003 to help landholders develop, implement and structure environmental management systems on their properties across the Southwest of WA.

Over 120 landholders in the southwest of Western Australia are currently implementing BestFarms systems on their properties. Participants range from small landholders with one acre to broadscale farmers and other industries such as certified organic, viticulture and horticulture. BestFarms is a flexible system that will help you manage environmental impacts on your property, no matter how big or small or your land use.
BestFarm website.

BestFarms Environmental Management Systems

BBG News, NRM Education

The Blackwood River Foundation (BRF) received its Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status from the Department of Environment in early July.
The BRF is a not for profit incorporated body established by the BBG for the purposes of attracting funding for environmental research and restoration works in the Blackwood basin and adjoining regions.
For more information go to our BBG News page.

The BestFarms team celebrate their 5th Birthday, delivering EMS to the Southwest of WA.

The conference went off - 'literally'! The spoken word is a wonderful thing specially if its to over 400 anxious NRM conscious souls, who were eager to listen and interact.

Some of our special key note speakers made a flying trip to or through WA to be here John Dell from Planet Ark on route back from London, Ian Keirnan popped in for 24 hrs from Sydney and Peter Andrews on his grueling schedule with Natural Sequence Farming.

With a very creative start (first rainfall) with the welcome barbecue. In true Bridgetown style it was set up in the external foray of the main conference venue and the food, prepared by most of Bridgetown's best chefs who came together for the cook-up. A great time for people to meet and greet over local wines and ciders.

Our Nungar friend's gave us a welcome to country on the first morning of the 3 day conference elder Angus Wallam (Uncle Angus) led the proceedings.

Ian Keirnan opened recounting the drive from Perth to Bridgetown and the war memorial's along the way and made a statement about how the young lads were eager to go off and fight for king and country yet added, 'where are they now the real war is within Australia's failing environment'.

Peter Andrews outlined how we have to look at the Australian Landscape with new eyes and realise that water moves through the root system creating ponds at the same time. He explained how trees and planets act as solar pumps moving water through the atmosphere while also watering neighboring plants and how we can use these simple facts to revegitate salt effected areas.

The intake of ideas and workshops was an exhausting time for all and before we knew it the town was quite again.

This was hailed as a comprehensive and inspiring gathering for the much needed work that we have ahead of us and for the opportunity to net work with others in the industry.

Thanks to all who helped. A job well done and appreciated by all that participated, thankyou.

A picture tells a thousand stories so I hope you enjoy some of our selected images
Click on the above image to see the photo gallery.