The Jaliigirr (the Gumbaynggirr word for a tree) Biodiversity Alliance is a voluntary partnership of 20 natural resource management groups working to rebuild important connections and maintain the diversity of the landscapes between the Dorrigo Plateau and the coastal plains of the mid-north coast of NSW.
What makes this landscape special?
Covering a catchment area of 337,000 hectares that encompasses Coffs Harbour, Bellingen and the Upper Nymboida-Dorrigo Plateau, Jalliigiir provides an important regional link in the Great Eastern Ranges. Stretching from the plateau to the coast and including an altitudinal range of 1,564 metres, this tropical, subtropical, temperate convergence zone contains a unique diversity and complexity. Its values include 100 regional vegetation communities, 102 threatened animal species, 50 threatened plant species, 13 endangered ecological communities, and the World Heritage Gondwana Rainforests of Australia. These natural systems contribute billions of dollars to our local economy annually through the provision of clean air and water, crop pollination, food, medicines, building materials and soil nutrients.
The values of the region covered by the Jaliigirr Biodiversity Alliance have been recognised in a number of local and regional plans and strategies. These include the Northern Rivers Regional Biodiversity Management Plan, Northern Rivers Catchment Action Plan, Reserve Plans of Management, values of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia, Threatened Flora and Fauna Plans of Management, and Coffs Harbour Biodiversity Action Strategy.
About the partnership
The Jaliigirr Biodiversity Alliance exists within the Gumbaynggirr Aboriginal Nation, and the Alliance appreciates and values the attachment of Aboriginal communities to this landscape. The lands of the Gumbaynggirr people cover the coastal strip from Nambucca Heads in the south to Red Rock in the north, extending inland to Grafton, and westward to Glen Innes, Guyra and Wollomombi. The Gumbaynggirr traditional custodians maintain strong cultural connections to, and across, this landscape and continue their practices in natural resource management consistent with tens of thousands of years of knowledge and experience.
To learn more about the Jaliigirr Biodiversity Alliance, visit www.jaliigirr.com.au
