The NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) and the Department of Planning and Environment (DPE) have partnered with the Queensland and Federal Governments to produce a film on tree fungus.
Leader of Forest Health and Biosecurity at NSW DPI Forestry, Angus Carnegie said the film, Myrtle rust, the silent killer, showcased the wide-ranging impacts of Myrtle rust on Australia’s native environment and hoped to generate better community awareness about the disease.
Dr Carnegie said the film’s important message included the work carried out to date to future proof vital ecosystems.
“So much effort has gone into managing this destructive disease, and by educating the community, they too can play a part in our control efforts,” Dr Carnegie said.
“In the film we learn about efforts to bring species back from the brink of extinction and the value of protecting our unique ecosystems from biosecurity threats for generations to come,” he said.
“Time is very short for some species that are severely impacted by Myrtle rust, but there are meaningful conservation actions that can still be taken.”
Dr Carnegie said the impacts of myrtle rust on Indigenous Communities were broader than just ecological and industry values as Country, Culture and Community were all connected.
He said global interconnectedness was increasing the risk of new threats to Australia’s irreplaceable biological heritage, including exotic plant and animal diseases to which native animal and plant life may have no adaptive resistance.
“Some of these diseases are broad-spectrum, affecting many native species,” Dr Carnegie said.
“Myrtle rust is a threat of this type,” he said.
“This plant disease, caused by an introduced fungal pathogen, affects plant species in the Myrtle family (Myrtaceae), which includes paperbarks, tea trees, eucalypts, and lillypillies.”
Dr Carnegie said these were key, and often dominant, species in many Australian ecosystems.
Myrtle rust, the silent killer was produced in partnership with the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, the Commonwealth Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Australian Network for Plant Conservation, Plant Biosecurity Science Foundation, Butchulla Land and Sea Ranger, and San Diego Zoo.
The 11-minute film can be viewed at this PS News link.
