ENVIRONMENT MINISTER PRAISES QPWS RANGERS

A visit to some of the most pristine and hard to access areas of the state has given Environment Minister and Member for MundingburraLindy Nelson-Carr an insight into the daily routine of a Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) ranger.

Ms Nelson-Carr said she was progressively inspecting Queensland’s national parks and protected areas, and meeting with stakeholders.

First ports of call were the CapeTribulation section of the DaintreeNational Park, in Far North Queensland, and LakefieldNational Park, in Cape York Peninsula.

Ms Nelson-Carr said driving long distances on dusty, corrugated dirt roads in the bush was a novelty for her but just one of the many facets of a park ranger’s every-day duties.

“I take my hat off to the QPWS’s hard-working, dedicated staff, particularly those who look after our northern-most national parks.

“These fantastic people are out every day in harsh weather conditions, sometimes unbearably hot, sometimes very wet and boggy, helping to protect our native plants and animals.

“Their jobs are as diverse as cleaning toilets in camp grounds, to building walking tracks, managing major fire programs, controlling pests and weeds, and providing advice to hundreds of thousands of visitors yearly.

“It seems to me that a ranger’s job is never done.”

There are more than 200 terrestrial and marine rangers in the QPWS’s Northern Region which covers the Torres Strait in the far north, Camooweal in the west and just past Boulia in the south-west.

Media contact: Karla Steen 3336 8004 or Andie Gatti 3336 8002