Baynton West Primary School children help plant mangrove seeds at Cowrie Cove in Murujuga National Park

Baynton West Primary School students have taken part in a program to re-vegetate degraded areas of mangroves in the Murujuga National Park. The Mangrove Mates program, a Pilbara Ports Authority environmental education initiative, was developed to teach primary school-aged children the importance of mangroves to the environment and re-vegetate a 1500sqm area of degraded mangroves in Cowrie Cove. The mangrove seeds were gathered from Withnell Bay and cared for at PPA’s nursery until they were ready for planting back in the Murujuga National Park. The program is a collaboration between Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation, the Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions, Pilbara Ports Authority, Baynton West Primary School and Yara. MAC ranger co-ordinator Peter Cooper said the program would help re-vegetate a significant mangrove community. “It’s great to have our rangers out there working with school kids, the DBCA, PPA and Yara to help re-vegetate the area and teach kids about protecting the environment,” he said. Pilbara Ports Authority chief executive Roger Johnston said the Mangrove Mates program was part of PPA’s commitment to environmental conservation. “Mangroves are an important part of our ecosystem, so it’s vital that we get the local community on board to help look after them,” he said. “PPA’s mangrove nursery in Port Hedland holds more than 2200 viable mangrove seedlings and around 1000 of those will be planted in the Murujuga National Park as part of this partnership. “In the last year, more than 350 children from eight Pilbara schools participated in the program, replenishing our mangrove nursery with seedlings for use in rehabilitation and offset projects like this one.” The program will move to other areas in 2023.