Education
Wimmera CMA is always looking for ways to educate the community and next generation about natural resource management in our catchment.
We try to work with the primary and secondary schools in educating the younger community as well as holding seminars and conferences open to the wider public.
Together with the Geography Teachers’ Association of Victoria (GTAV), Wimmera CMA have developed a set of 5 lessons for Year 7 Geography teachers and students.
GTAV Resources – Water in the World – Wimmera region case study
Water is not only vital for life, but also has economical, recreational, spiritual and aesthetic importance. As our climate continues to change, water availability is becoming less predictable and extreme weather events such as drought and floods continue to impact people and places. It is the role of Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) to plan and coordinate the management of environmental values within their region. This includes protecting waterways, biodiversity and the land surrounding the catchments.
Catchment management is achieved through the combined efforts of the community. Government and non-government organisations work together towards common and sustainable targets in order to achieve this balance.
The Wimmera catchment boundary is in western Victoria and covers an area of approximately 30,000km2 or 10% of Victoria. The Wimmera catchment region extends from the Grampians National Park in the south to Lake Albacutya, near Rainbow in the north, and from the South Australian border in the west to past Stawell in the east.
Rivers and streams are iconic in the Wimmera and provide a place of relief for the often hot and dry landscape. Rivers and streams provide social and recreational opportunities across all councils and are of significant cultural value. Rivers and streams create natural wildlife corridors and support much of the flora and fauna. The major waterway in the catchment is the Wimmera River.
The catchment is approximately 2.4 million hectares with numerous tributaries. The Wimmera River flows west to Horsham where it collects the waters of Burnt Creek and, just downstream, the MacKenzie River and Norton Creek from the south.
Resources
In this resource, the Wimmera is used as a case study to explore the following ideas:
- how water moves between and connects places,
- water scarcity in regional areas and how this is managed through environmental flows,
- the spiritual connection and local history of First Nations Peoples, and
- the impact of hydrological hazards over time in the region.
Opportunities to practise foundational geographical mapping and geospatial skills are presented throughout each of the 5 lessons.
Download the:
Teacher unit outline and lesson plan series, PDF, 1 MB
Student worksheets PDF, 883 KB
Teacher worksheet solutions PDF, 954 KB
If you would like to find more resources or information see https://www.gtav.asn.au/resources/secondary-resources-7-10
