Is your legacy that you lived and enjoyed nature, or lived and cared for nature?
Is your legacy that you lived and enjoyed nature, or lived and cared for nature?
Translating caring into action
“I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.”
― Edward Everett Hale
Actions we take on behalf of our monotreme friends include:
Monitoring of Hobart Rivulet platypuses
Ongoing monitoring of Hobart’s urban platypus population is central to our mission to protect and conserve. In addition to spending many hours per week monitoring Hobart’s waterways first hand, we also operate Platycam, a network of trail cameras that operate 24/7.
Fighting for what is left of the Hobart Rivulet
We unapologetically fight for what is left of Hobart’s waterways. All living entities, including waterways have the right to exist and flourish, to be restored, regenerated and respected. Our efforts are guided by the City of Hobart’s own State of our Rivulets report.
Hobart Rivulet Platypus Database
Behavioural data, images and video gathered through monitoring are grouped by individual animals and entered into our @HRP database, and shared with platypus researchers.
Community Campaigns
@hobartrivuletplatypus runs ongoing community engagement and awareness campaigns including:
- Social media feeds on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter & Threads.
- Community art projects including the South Hobart platypus mural and signal box art.
- Community Information Sessions
- Seize it, Snip it, Bin it! looped litter campaign
Central to our community campaigns is the authentic sharing of the Hobart Rivulet platypus’s lives.
School Program
Empowering the next generation of nature guardians is critical to the future of all living things.
In 2023 we began rolling out the Seize it, Snip it, Bin it! looped litter campaign, along with our Platypus School Program. Both encourage kids to take responsibility for their own rubbish, along with direct action around the problem of looped litter.
In the second half of 2023 we ran sessions in 20+ schools, located in Tasmania, mainland Australia and the United States.
School sessions are scheduled to restart in late 2024 following the release of our new documentary Becoming Platypus.
Entangled Platypus Rescue
On average, between 1-2 Hobart Rivulet platypus are entangled in looped litter each month. Thanks to our Platycam Network and community reports we are usually able to provide prompt assistance.
With over 1000 hours of experience working in close proximity to platypuses, we have developed techniques to:
- locate and identify platypuses
- confirm entanglement prior to capture
- capture & assess entangled platypuses
- minimize stress & disturbance to entangled platypuses
Contact [email protected] if you suspect a platypus may be entangled in litter.
Monitoring of Hobart Rivulet pollution
Our ongoing monitoring of the Hobart Rivulet means we are often amongst the first to become aware of a pollution event.
Hobart Rivulet pollution events since 2020 include:
- Rubbish from the the city tip and Hobart’s stormwater system repeatedly entering the rivulet following heavy rain events
- Hobart based construction companies washing toxic building materials ‘down the drain’ and into the rivulet.
- Sewer contaminating the rivulet due to aging infrastructure
All pollution events are documented and reported to the City of Hobart and the EPA.
Monitoring of Hobart Rivulet works
Works in the Hobart Rivulet are a contentious issue. The period of lowest rainfall when works are often planned, coincides directly with the platypus’s breeding and nesting season. We speak and act on behalf of platypus!
Matters we have been involved with to date include:
- Reporting and subsequent investigation of damage to a platypus burrow during works in the Hobart Rivulet. Platypus burrows are protected by law, under Tasmania’s Nature Conservation Act.
- Cessation of bridge works until necessary permits and environmental protection measures were put in place.
- Timing of the Cascade Gardens Boulder Trap maintenance to minimize disturbance to the platypus breeding season.
Waterway Litter Collection
@hobartrivuletplatypus has a permit from the City of Hobart to enter the waterway to collect rubbish, including immediately after storm events.
Collaborating with Platypus Experts
We regularly communicate with platypus scientists including the Australian Platypus Conservancy and DPIPWE, to ensure the guidelines that relate specifically to platypus behaviour in Southern Tasmania are accurate.
We share significant findings from our monitoring program with the scientific and conservation community.
Lobbying Government
We continue to vigorously lobby the City of Hobart with regards to:
- McRobies Outfall Upgrade
The city tip remains the largest source of loose litter pollution in the Hobart Rivulet. The impact of litter on platypus is unacceptable. - Boulder Trap Management
Recognize the critical role the Cascade Gardens Boulder Trap plays as the largest pond in the Hobart Rivulet and manage it accordingly. - Interpretive Platypus/Litter Signage
Install litter and platypus focused interpretive signage along the Hobart Rivulet. Despite the frequent entanglement of platypus in looped litter, there is currently no signage along the waterway. - Wheelie Bin Latches
Provide wheelie bin lid latches to all residents living in wind affected areas of the Hobart Rivulet catchment. Strong winds often blow full wheelie bins over on collection days, leading to rubbish entering the stormwater system.
Partnering with like minded conservation organizations
We partner with, and provide resources to, like minded organizations such as World Wildlife Fund and the Australian Conservation Foundation.
Revegetation Trials
We work with local stakeholders to revegetate strategic habitat.
Platypus Documentaries
Media Coverage
- Radio spots
- TV News
- Newspapers & magazines
Hobart Rivulet Platypus was founded by Pete Walsh in October 2020.
