As part of our 40th Anniversary celebration Queensland Conservation has recorded many stories from our history.
Interviews with several of Queensland's Champions of Conservation will be available soon on a special commemorative DVD to be released very soon.
The full length interviews provide an extraordinary insight into a Queensland that is very different, yet often still hauntingly familiar for those of us who have joined the movement more recently.
Learn which QCC Coordinator went undercover to witness landclearing for herself
Discover how a beer and a game of pool bridged the gulf between angry logging truckers and greenies in the Wet Tropics
The Queensland Conservation Oral History Project has turned up some unexpected and riveting tales.
Have you heard about the time that:
Special Branch asked us to spy on a political group, all unaware that their request was being recorded...
QCC Coordinator, Liz Bourne, lost patience with 'Minister for Everything' Russ Hinze and demanded that if the Brisbane River was as clean as he claimed then he should prove it by taking a swim...
A reporter at the Ekka led Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen straight to the Littoral Society tent where Eddie Hegerl asked him to sign up to save the Great Barrier Reef from oil drilling...
The police turned up at the QCC office with a warrant to investigate a suspected case of poisoning with a bottle of 'Contaminated Condamine' water at RiverFeast...
We thought these stories were too good to be forgotten so we employed the talents of cartoonist Brian Doyle who has brought ten stories to life in his own inimitable style.
You can hear these stories and many more by purchasing a copy of our 40th Anniversary Commemorative DVD.
Click on 'Full Story' to see more of Brian's cartoons
High Quality prints of these cartoons are available to purchase.
For more details please see this order form 551.56 Kb
Hundreds of Queensland’s environmental legends and champions converged on the capital this weekend to celebrate the 40th Birthday of Queensland Conservation.
At a Gala Dinner on Saturday the eighteenth Minister for Climate Change and Sustainability, Kate Jones unveiled our inaugural Champions of Conservation List to honour the many individuals who have made such a significant contribution to the protection of the Queensland environment over the last four decades.
1969 Born on the 22 July as the South Queensland Conservation
Council, with 12 local groups. Eddie Hegerl was the first QCC Chair. In
the first year of operation, issues included the establishment of
Cooloola National Park, protecting the Great Barrier Reef, Mt Etna
Caves, Round Hill Head housing development protests, Sand mining, Water
Pollution, Double Island Point, Miala National Park, Raby Bay canal
estate and the Sanford quarry. The secretary, Mrs Eileen Beswick, wrote
that after one year, ' …. I feel confident that with an enlarged
executive, and hopefully with full-time staff, the conservation
movement of Queensland will finally come of age.'
1974-1975 QCC now served 66 organizations, and had more than 300
individual associate members. The QCC staff were endeavoring to visit
regional conservation groups, and attend their meetings, thus enhancing
communication. A grant from the Australian Schools Commission
Innovations Program was received ($1500 for an environmental Education
Resources Library to be housed at the Environment Center, $400 for
Ecopacks for schools and $400 for audio visual aids). In campaign news,
The Public Action Transport Group was formed in Brisbane to coincide
with National Public Transport week. The Save the Great Barrier Reef
campaign returned in earnest when the Premier, Mr Joh Bjelke-Petersen,
and the Prime Minister, Mr Whitlam, released a summary of the report by
the GBR Petroleum Drilling Royal Commission that was in favour of
allowing drilling for oil on the reef. The first major pieces of
environmental legislation were introduced in Parliament, and National
Environmental Protection was now a legal requirement. Morale at QCC was
high. "You guys must be everywhere. How do you do it?" said Brisbane
Journalist handed yet another QCC press release. "The most obvious
feature of QCC operations in the last 12 months has been this ability
to operate relatively effectively in many areas at once".
1979-1980 QCC celebrated its 10th birthday at Mt. Cootha Botanic
Gardens Theatre on 22nd July. Speakers included John Sinclair "The
State of the Environment", Tor Hundloe "Where We've Been and Where
We're Going" and Eileen Beswick "How We Started". It took QCC 8 months
of correspondence with Southern Pacific Petroleum to obtain a copy of
the Environment Report prepared by Rankine & Hill on the Rundle Oil
Shale project. Submissions were made to the Federal Parliamentary
Standing Committee and other Government authorities. QCC worked on
campaigns including Shoalwater Bay Army Training Area, uranium mining
at Ben Lomond, Cape York National Parks, Daintree/Bloomfield River
region, kangaroo harvesting, car emission controls, government
compliance with environmental legislation, wood chip, the effect of
1080 baits on wildife and the need for deposits on beverage
containers. The Capricornia section of the Great Barrier Reef was
finally proclaimed as a marine park. The Minister for Science and
Environment, Mr David Thomson, was the first Federal Environment
minister to visit the Environment Center and QCC. The QCC launched a
recycling pamphlet in keeping with World Environment Day's "Living
Better with Less". John McCabe was QCC Chair during this period.
1984-1985 The QCC moved to the Brisbane School of Arts Building.
Heather Drew left after much hard work. Liz Bourne was able to visit
the Northern centers now that QCC had an improved financial situation.
QCC continued to hold meetings, gathering the regional groups together.
This year was particularly successful, with the most comprehensive
representation yet. 91.2% of Moreton Island was now National Park. QCC
lodged its protest against the Brisbane City Councils proposal to
develop an area that includes Melaluca forests and mangrove swamps. The
Queensland Government was requesting comment on the Central Section
Zoning plan for the Great Barrier Reef. Jason Reynolds was QCC Chair
during this period.
1989-1990 Liz Bourne was farewelled, and Rosey Crisp was
appointed to the Coordinator's position. Adrian Jeffrey's was succeeded
by Jan Oliver as Project Officer, and Billie Watts replaced Mandy Stone
as Office Administrator. QCC was now proudly run by "green" women! QCC
had 51member bodies, and 436 individual Associate Members. On the
conservation front, the QCC had become active in contributing to a
review of the waste management proposals for shires around Brisbane.
The Murri community on Stradbroke island, along with the QCC, joined
forces to campaign against sand mining. An historic agreement between
joint groups, logging and forestry groups had been signed to protect
Fraser Island. The QCC made a submission on the Tully-Millstream Hydro
electric dam, suggesting an alternative energy package to replace the
dam was possible. The QCC was concerned about the Government's plan to
ensure resource security for the timber industry. There was also
continued concern about the impact of the Local Government Act and its
impact on development. Trish Ferrier was QCC Chair during this period.
1995-1996 Imogen Zethoven took over as Co-ordinator of QCC from
Nicky Hungerford. Lars Eriksson took over as librarian from Bill
Constantine. A newly created position appeared as Smogbusters Community
Education Project Officer. The Cape York Wilderness area was
designated, and local Aboriginal communities were involved in the
management of the area. Queensland and Federal Govts announced funding
for 3 years to protect habitat for the Mahogany Glider and other unique
and threatened Queensland coastal lowland plants and animals. The last
Cabinet meeting of 1995 agreed to all significant recommendations in
QCC's submission of Preliminary Policy on Tree Clearing. Ian Lowe
continued as chair during this period.
2000 Imogen Zethoven left, and there was a staff restructure
following a drawing up of the first QCC strategic plan. A new position
- Manager - was created, and Helenka King took on that position.
Felicity Wishart joined as Coordinator. QCC was still at the old School
of Arts Building at 166 Ann Street. The organization was vibrant, with
eight staff preparing a full calendar of events and campaigns for the
first year of the millennium. The Vegetation Management Act 1999 was
passed through parliament. This protected woodlands and forests that
were of concern (10-30% remaining) and endangered (<10% remaining)
on freehold land. The legislation was not proclaimed, hence there was
still no protection of woodlands and forests on freehold land.
Concerned conservationists and landholders dumped 100 kg of salt
outside parliament house to highlight the importance of protecting
Queensland’s woodlands against the looming salinity crisis. Leaked
government figures indicated that clearing had accelerated in
Queensland by an astounding 25% to over 4,000 square km per year, 2,220
square km was in Queensland’s part of the Murray Darling Basin. The ALP
Federal Conference passed a resolution supporting land clearing
controls in Queensland. On the 29th of October, the Queensland
environment movement held a public meeting, and announced the beginning
of a major state and national campaign to end land clearing.
Conservationists planted 100 trees on the lawns of Parliament House
Brisbane to protest the lack of action on protecting native vegetation
in Queensland. One tree planted represented 1,000,000 trees that had
been cleared since the passing of the Vegetation Management Act (1999)
one year beforehand. That was a total of one billion native trees
destroyed in 12 months. Susan Brown was Chair during this time.
Felicity Wishart was Coordinator.
order form
First meeting 1969
1969 members
70s Jobs & Environment
Cape York 1980
National Park Cape York 1980
Fraser 1985
Rosey Crisp 1990
Fraser 1990
Glider 1995
Bushviews 1996
Greenies Awarded 2000
Clearing 2000
More Clearing 2000 
Shelburne 2000