A changing climate, changing water management practices and environmental change are all impacting the way in which the Yorta Yorta people access, harvest and use one of their traditional weaving sedges (Carex tereticaulis). Most of their Country is developed; land-use activities vary from multiple crop species of wheat and corn to dairy farms.
The weaving sedge is an ephemeral aquatic species that relies on regular seasonal watering from the Murray River, its associated waterways and rainfall. It grows throughout the area, known as Barmah. The Yorta Yorta people refer to this area as Pama.
The weaving sedge relies on multiple factors to maintain conditions that are favourable for healthy growth, such as inundation with water, soil health, climate and rainfall. A changing climate and changing water regimes are affecting the resilience of this species and, therefore, the availability of this important plant for traditional knowledge and cultural use by the Yorta Yorta people. Records show 2 important climatological events in south-east Australian history: the ‘federation drought’ at the turn of the 20th century and the ‘millennium drought’ at the turn of the 21st century (Griggs et al. 2014). They also show that a pattern of episodic flooding was evident before settlement and that cultural uses of traditional plant species were affected by these drier episodes (Griggs et al. 2014).
The impacts of low rainfall, hotter summers and a changing climate are evidence that these species are struggling to survive. This means that the Yorta Yorta people cannot harvest at this site and use the species in the same traditional setting as they had once done. Yorta Yorta Country and the weaving sedge are forced to adapt to change, and the Yorta Yorta people are forced to adapt as a result of these changes:
If this plant is no longer available on Country, then my connection to my heritage and our traditional practices have been impacted. If the plants are healthy, we can harvest the reed for weaving. If the plants are not healthy, the reeds won’t be healthy and cannot be used. This tells us that there is something wrong. This is our barometer check of healthy Country. (Denise Morgan-Bulled, 2020)
While improved water management and rainfall are seen as critical to supporting the weaving sedge, fire was recently applied to the sedge to see whether the recovery of this species was possible under adapted conditions:
To see Country burn – I felt a sense of calm; to see and feel fire – my skin felt good; to see and smell smoke – I felt I could breathe; to stand on Country – I felt strong. Country felt good that day, I felt good that day. (Sonia Cooper, 2020)
Immediately after the burn, rain fell and some parts of the forest were inaccessible, and some new growth was triggered. This project allowed the influence of fire to be investigated as an additional management tool to help recover the species. The response of the weaving sedge to fire provided cultural outcomes for traditional weaving species for the Yorta Yorta people.