Banyule's Environmental Sustainability News No Images? Click here Get involved in steering our environmental efforts!The latest term for the Banyule Environment Advisory Committee (BEAC) has finished and all committee positions are vacant. We're encouraging you to register your interest and join the committee! What is the Banyule Environment Advisory Committee?The committee formally advises Council by providing feedback and/or advice on environmental matters and sustainability issues. The committee is also involved in the development of our long term strategies, and measuring the success/failure of their implementation. Be a part of the strategic environmental efforts in Banyule and register by 15 March. Class has commencedWe were delighted to kick off our annual Community Leaders in Sustainability course in February. The course builds skills and prepares participants to run a local environmental project in Banyule. Graduates have a run a range of projects from a bike ‘rodeo’ for children to learn bike skills, to a public speaking group for sustainability advocates. With 17 students this year from a range of backgrounds and interests, we are excited to see what will emerge from these leaders! Home Harvest 'FEASTival'In its 6th year, the Home Harvest Feast was a great success, with over 300 people attending the February event. The action packed day featured workshops on everything from how to build your own wicking bed to making your own ricotta. Kids loved the interactive walks around Edendale - especially the chooks! In a new format, a picnic style of eating was adopted this year. This, together with music and delicious finger food, encouraged a relaxed and informal feel to the day. Thank you to all who participated and generously contributed harvest. We look forward to seeing you all next year! Council and our grants program - Have your sayCouncil runs a number of grant programs, including our annual environmental sustainability grants. These grants provides groups, organisations and individuals with financial support for initiatives that strengthen the community. A new Banyule Grant Program policy is currently being develop to apply a consistent and transparent approach to grants programs across council. If you have ever applied for one of Banyule's programs we would love to hear about your experience at Shaping Banyule. Be sure to visit before consultation closes at the end of March. Waste education for the Banyule of tomorrowWe are proud to offer both excursion and incursion waste education programs free for schools in Banyule. Rethink CentreIf you would like to visit a working materials recovery facility including an educative and entertaining session for your students then the Rethink Centre is for you. The Rethink Education Centre is located in Bellfield. Focusing on waste minimisation and litter prevention, the Centre offers a host of entertaining programs for all age groups. While the Litter Sisters sing and dance their way through litter prevention, stormwater and marine pollution with the Lota Less Litter Show. Avoid, reduce, reuse and recycle, as presented by the Material Girls, has never been so much fun. Waste Wise Outreach programIf you would like a Waste Wise outreach program to visit your school and have an incursion program that is holistic including educational sessions for your students and teachers then this program is for you. The Waste Wise Outreach program is conducted at schools including our Waste Wise Education Van which has inactive panels to enhance student learning. Here the program focuses on waste avoidance activities which could be implemented in the school, as well as home. A site waste audit before and post visit is valuable in measuring the success of this program. What do you think about dumped rubbish and litter?Maintaining a clean city involves:
We are developing a four-year plan and associated action plan, to make Banyule a cleaner, more liveable city with a culture rejecting rubbish dumping and littering. The actions are based on the principles of shared responsibility between businesses, land managers, industry and the community to prevent dumped rubbish and litter. Have your say on making Banyule a cleaner, more liveable city without littering and rubbish. "Passion Mashin" workshop for volunteersWe are partnering with a number of neighbouring councils to host a “Passion Mashin” workshop, tentatively scheduled for Saturday May 6th with change 'guru' Les Robinson. The workshop is for Friends of groups and volunteers to inspire members, re-invigorate the groups and help attract new volunteers. If you're currently a member of one of the many Friends of groups or are wanting to join one, give Jim Mead a call (9457 9885) to RSVP. Numbers are limited. Stay warm this winterWith winter approaching, we’ll be hosting a free workshop in May:
The workshop explores the easiest, most effective ways to stay warm. We look at different types of heating, insulation, draft sealing and simple products that save money and can keep you warm. There is something for everyone as the workshop will cover:
Keep an eye on the Sustainable Homes and Communities Website for event details Council rolls out carpoolingWe have been getting into green travel lately with the introduction of our Green Travel Plan. The plan encourages staff to use environmentally friendly transport to reduce the environmental impact of commuting. One exciting initiative being trialed is priority parking for carpoolers at our Ivanhoe and Rosanna service centres. Staff are able to book a convenient parking space close to the office if they share their car trip with colleagues. Sharing the journey can take up to four cars off the road! Diaries from Our Bushland Management CrewsEach edition we include insight into the crews' activities to help you understand what is happening in your own backyard. Managing weeds
The warm season of summer has almost ended. Our primary work over this season has involved: Controlling noxious and invasive weeds such as blackberry and thistles around the billabongs of Wilson Reserve in East Ivanhoe. There's also been lots of general weed maintenance of our other sites, fire break pruning, brush-cutting, path pruning and maintenance. While doing these tasks we are always rewarded with seeing nature’s ever surprising beautiful spectacle. Some highlights this summer have included the flowering of the native Hyacinth Orchids which can be found in some of Banyule’s north eastern bushland areas. Friend of Groups - activities in full swing
Heading into a new year is always an interesting time with the weather doing crazy things like heatwaves and then huge downpours of rain – usually in the same day! We have an exciting year coming up with a number of Friends Group activities planned. We run working bees every month with the Warringal Conservation Society throughout the Warringal Parklands and Banyule Flats Reserve. Activities include hand weeding, spotlight tours, helping other Friends Groups, revegetation plantings, Clean Up Australia Day and National Tree Day, to find out more visit them on Facebook. We also hold quarterly working bees at Andrew Yandell Habitat Reserve in Greensborough. Activities include hand weeding, woody weed removal, wildflower identification, and planting. For more information check them out on Facebook. Spotted!
It has been a busy and exciting time for the Darebin Creek bush crew this summer. We were pleasantly surprised to spot a platypus foraging in the creek in early February. Having managed to take a few photos of the elusive monotreme, it was the first confirmed sighting of a platypus in the Darebin Creek for at least a decade. The sighting is a positive indicator that the health of the creek is improving as platypuses are reliant on good water quality with an abundance of crustaceans and macroinvertebrates. The most effective way we can ensure the creek’s quality continues to improve is to ensure litter and other waste is disposed of correctly and does not enter the waterway. The sighting of the platypus was certainly an unexpected reminder as to why we must look after our natural environment. Goat Tracks...
Autumn sees the return of the Friends of Anthony Beale volunteer group for their first full year of working bees. There’s lots to do and we’re really looking forward to seeing the difference a full year of weed control and wildflower planting can make to this beautiful, albeit degraded bit of bush. One issue we’re addressing at Anthony Beale is “goat tracks” – unofficial trails made by walkers who regularly take the same short-cut. Every step has an impact, and when lots of people leave the path and walk the same way, that cumulative impact can strip the plant life and topsoil away from an area - leaving bare, compacted earth where seeds struggle to germinate. Walking through the bush instead of around it also spreads weed seeds that you may not realise are stuck to your shoes. At Anthony Beale, we hope to redirect walkers back to the maintained tracks using fencing and signage. This way everyone else can continue to enjoy our bushland for many generations to come. To find out more about the Friends of Anthony Beale Reserve, visit their Facebook page, or contact Tim Dickinson. Thinning along Harold Pottage
The warmer months have kicked in and for us this means a lot of fuel reduction and firebreak brushcutting throughout our reserves. It has been a warm start to the summer period, so we have found ourselves tucked away starting our years planning on the really hot days and out spraying emergent pastoral weeds on the cooler ones. After the large rain event earlier in the year we have been busy doing storm clean up throughout or reserves also. One of the different jobs that we get to do this time of year is ecological thinning through Harrold Pottage grassland, where we have been removing large stands of senesced Acacia’s and smaller Eucalyptus that are growing too close to each other. We have been in consultation with La Trobe Wildlife sanctuary about this over the years and are following guidelines through their recommendations in regards to how many we remove. We are doing this to open up the grassland to encourage a greater diversity of species, in particular the more herbaceous types. The Indian Myna Control Trial is currently underway. There are still spots available for residents to take part. Register your interest and call our Parks and Gardens team on 9490 4415. Watch the video for information on the trial and simple ways you can discourage this invasive pest. Our Bush Management Crew will be hosting five events in various parks and reserves across Banyule on Sunday, 5 March for Clean Up Australia Day. Waste less, share moreReduce your waste and share what you have spare in your gardens. Spare Harvest connects you with your community so you can share your spare pots, tools, produce, seeds, plants, cuttings and even your time. Your extras are another person's treasure! Join the growing Spare Harvest sharing community! Friends of Darebin Creek help Sugar GlidersAfter last years success, Friends of Darebin Creek hosted another a nesting box workshop at Darebin Parklands on 12 February. 14 people attended the workshop, building nesting boxes for sugar gliders that call the creek their home. The boxes are built to replace tree hollows, as the trees along the creek are not old enough to have developed hollows. Due to urbanisation, many of the old trees have been cut down, which reduces the habitat for these creatures. Sugar Gliders, like many native birds and animals, nest and breed in the hollows of trees. Our Darebin Creek bush crew Samantha and Tom will be placing the boxes in suitable locations in the coming months. Look out for them if you are walking or riding along the trail. Friends of St Helena - Get involved!The friends of St Helena are a friends group that contribute to conservation works at St Helena Bushland reserve located in Eltham North, a remnant Box – Stringy bark woodland. The group meet at St Helena Bushland Reserve at Eskdale Crt in Eltham Nth on the fourth Sunday of every month from 10:30 am – 12:30 pm. Some upcoming working bee dates include:
Kids ArtyFarty Fest
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