FrogWatch SA

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (15:04): My question is to the Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation. Will the minister inform the chamber about the most recent Citizen Science project, called FrogWatch SA, and how will this not only inspire many budding scientists but also provide environmental and biodiversity data?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Climate Change) (15:05): At last, a sensible question which goes to the heart of what we try to do as part of our government which is involve local communities in very important programs.

FrogWatch is a fantastic Citizen Science project designed to provide valuable knowledge about frog populations whilst getting children and the general public outside and more involved with nature. Collecting data about frogs is important because worldwide frog populations are in decline. In South Australia, I am advised we have 26 species of frogs, eight of which are either rare, vulnerable or endangered. Because frogs are well known for their sensitivity to pollution and changes to their natural habitat, any changes in the population provide us with important insights into the health of our environment.

FrogWatch SA builds on the highly successful frog census community monitoring program that was delivered by the EPA between 1994 and 2007. This census saw over 2,300 individuals and community groups monitoring frogs at more than 3,600 sites right across South Australia. Over the last few years, Zoos SA, along with financial support from Beach Energy, Natural Resources Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges, Natural Resources SA Murray-Darling Basin, Natural Resources South East and the City of Onkaparinga, has developed a new program based on a mobile phone app and a complementary website.

The new technology has been designed to appeal especially to younger generations and I hope that many schools and families will get involved. The app is easy to download to all mobile devices, allegedly, and enables users to upload their frog audio recordings, their GPS data and images directly to the FrogWatch website. Once uploaded, a member of the panel of experts will identify the species of frog and the person receives a report identifying the frog.

Since I joined some students from West Beach Primary School on Thursday 5 May to launch FrogWatch SA, 195 people have registered with the website. Twenty-three surveys have already been submitted and four sites have indicated the presence of rare frog Bibron's Toadlet. This is a great achievement in such a short space of time. It means that hundreds of people have worked out how to use this app, this technology, and I am sure one of them might show me how to do it on my flat screen at some stage.

Citizen Science projects like this provide an excellent and interesting opportunity for the public to contribute to authentic scientific research. Data from Citizen Science initiatives can be used to better manage environmental issues and build community input and support for those decisions. Data from the FrogWatch program is expected to be of sufficient rigour to include it in the regional state of the environment report cards. FrogWatch will encourage people to get out into the fresh air, explore their local creek or wetland and connect people to their local environment. Encouraging this local involvement and ownership can lead to community-driven environmental improvements in that environment that ultimately make our cities and our towns and our suburbs much more livable.

FrogWatch surveys will help us discover new species and monitor known and threatened species populations. It will also provide valuable information regarding numbers of introduced pest species, like the South American cane toad, and species introduced from other states. I would like to commend everyone who has contributed to this great initiative. Anyone who would like more information can go to the website frogwatchsa.com.au and try their luck at downloading the app.