The Natural Resources Information Management Toolkit (the Toolkit) has been prepared by the National Land & Water Resources Audit (the Audit) and ANZLIC - the Spatial Information Council (ANZLIC), to assist regional natural resources management groups to discover, access, visualise and manage their data and information. The Toolkit has been developed in close cooperation with all jurisdictions and has been targeted at regional groups to build capacity and facilitate the two-way flow of data and information. It can be used as a textbook document, teaching aid or as a series of stand-alone modules.

Project Summary - The project is developing and testing a range of tools and processes that will help regional natural resource management (NRM) bodies and others to better plan, implement, review and adapt their investments in NRM practice change.

This fact sheet provides a brief summary of the importance of ephemeral streams and the need to ensure ephemeral streams receive careful management, even during times of drought. While there is a common perception that biota within ephemeral streams are drought hardy, a large number or species require refuge in rock pools and water holes in order to recognise streams during flow events.

In this issue of Thinking Bush, articles by the Audit and BRS explain the mechanisms for compiling nationally consistent data sets and standardising the methods of describing and mapping vegetation. High quality data and information provided at the appropriate scales for decision making can lead to better resource management decisions. Over time, users of this data such as policy makers and land managers can make better adaptive decisions with respect to sustainably managing our vegetation resources. The articles provide an entry point to accessing further information on national vegetation data sets and how this information can assist users in making informed regional planning and investment decisions.

On the land and in country towns, the battle to survive goes on forever. Increasingly, the world needs food and fibre, but squeezes out the communities which provide them. Young people leave, farmers sell up, towns die, football teams amalgamate...

By increasing our understanding and predictability of three large-scale climate drivers - El Nino (the Southern Oscillation), changes in the Indian Ocean sea surface temperatures and the Southern Annular mode (hemispheric changes in windiness and storm activity over the Southern Ocean and Antarctica) - researchers now have a better understanding of their influence on rainfall variability in the region.

In this issue: In a changing world, what next for Managing Climate VariabilityΓ; Yield prediction tools save input costs in extreme season; Farmers and scientists brief parliament on climate variability; Monsoon magic; Building the kitbag of grazing tools; Using soil moisture to quantify drought; Piecing together the climate and water puzzle

How does riparian vegetation affect floodsΓ; Shade, temperature, large woody debris and river models; Experimental reintroduction of woody debris into rivers; Going with the flow: Cooper Creek floodplain; Stock management: Burdekin River Catchment, Murray-Darling Basin; Assessing community capacity through riparian restoration Demonstration and evaluation projects in the Goulburn Broken Catchment Mapping the journey: an environmental travelogue Working with industry; Making riparian research relevant for industry; Identifying best practices in the Gippsland dairy region

Guide book for identifying, scoring and solving saltland in areas of above 600mm annual rainfall