We attack rubber vine on the ground and from the air. Now you can join us fight it over the Internet from the comfort of your own home.
Rubber vine is Australia’s worst worst weed. To see what only a small rubber vine core looks like click here. Rubber vine was found at Willare on the Fitzroy River in the West Kimberley of Northern Australia in 2005. It threatens to completely overrun the mighty Fitzroy. If this happened, much of the National Heritage listed West Kimberley would become a monoculture of rubber vine with few local plants remaining. Magnificent places like Tunnel Creek, Windjana and Geike Gorge would be overrun. Access to the river humans, local fauna and cattle would be almost impossible. Natural habitats and biodiversity would be lost and destroyed. When this happened in Queensland, the cost to pastoralists alone was estimated at 35 million dollars annually. The cost to the environment is incalculable. We cannot let this happen to the Kimberley but the good news is we defeating the vine and in the last phase of eradication and with your help we will achieve total eradication.
During the dry months of each year, Team Rubber Vine, our ground team, walks 25 kilometres a day searching for and controlling the vine.
During the end of each wet season, Team Astro completes an aerial search of the entire infestation area looking for flowering rubber vine. Even though we are on full alert we are not able to spot every vine, but spotting every one is critical because it means we can destroy breeding vines before they release seed. This is where you come in.
POST SCRIPT The government agencies have now taken over the program and we wish them well in their endeavours.