Welcome to the spring edition of EnviroNews
Spring is in the air, plants are budding, birds are singing and there are so many good reasons to get out and about in nature again. In this edition, find out about environmental events for you to enjoy, new rebates for solar, sustainable gardening, Boomerang Bags, and lots more.
Explore nature on our doorstep
Guided ranger activities in the September school holidays
Spring is a great time to discover some of our beautiful local natural reserves. Join us for educational, family-friendly activities with a Council Ranger and be amazed by the history, geology, native flora and fauna and scenery right here on our doorstep. Stunning locations include Kananook Creek Reserve, Bunarong Park, Paratea and Stringybark Bushland Reserves, with two evening spotlight walks to spot nocturnal native animals. Bookings are essential and a small booking fee applies.
Aussie Backyard Bird Count
Monday 22 October - Sunday 28 October
Celebrate National Bird Week by taking part in Australia’s biggest citizen science project. The Aussie Bird Count is a great way to connect with birds in your backyard no matter where your backyard happens to be – a suburb, local park, patch of bushland, the beach, creek or a street in your neighbourhood. Last year 72,000 people took part across the country, counting almost 2 million birds. You can count as many times as you like over the week (in 20 minute periods). The data helps Birdlife Australia understand more about our bird population, particularly in urban areas. Talking of birds, if you love identifying and learning about them, two new local events will get you chirping. Tune in to our local birds, so you can identify
those you see and hear in the wild. See events below.
We are delighted to welcome volunteer experts from Birdlife Mornington Peninsula to share their knowledge about local birds on an engaging 'walk and talk'. If you have binoculars bring them along and make sure to dress for the weather, as we will go outside to discover some feathered friends near Kananook Creek. Where: Seaford Community Centre,
1/6 Broughton Street,
Seaford When: 9.30–11.30am This is a free event, but bookings are essential.
Birds at Seaford Wetlands
Join a Council ranger to take part in an Aussie Backyard Bird Count and discover the wonderful bird life in our local, internationally recognised wetland. Bring or borrow some binoculars and dress for the weather as we'll be going for a short stroll around the perimeter of the wetlands. Where: Meet at the bird hide at 43R Austin Road, Seaford (near the corner of Austin Road and Erwin Drive) When: 10am–12pm This is a free event, but bookings are essential.
From scraps to soil: home composting
After a tour of a productive vegie garden at The Village Baxter, learn how easy it is to compost your kitchen scraps to create a healthier garden for all your plants. You can put your waste to good use - if you don't eat it, your garden will. There will be ample time for questions, followed by afternoon tea. Where: The Village Baxter, 8 Robinsons Road, Frankston South When: 1– 3.30pm This is a free event, but bookings are essential. To book, phone Cheryl on 5971 1349.
Garage Sale Trail comes to Frankston City
Saturday 20 October and Sunday 21 October
Join 400,000 Australians for the nation's biggest ever weekend of garage sales. Choosing to reuse, by buying and selling pre-loved items to give them a second life, is a great way to reduce waste. The Garage Sale Trail is an opportunity to do that 'declutter' that you’ve been putting off, sell your unwanted hidden treasures and get to know your neighbours.
War on Waste tour:
Visit our sites
Visit local sites, Replas and Frankston Regional Recycling and Recovery Centre to learn how waste is recycled and how you can help through daily actions. Where: Bus departs from and returns to central Frankston location; details provided upon registration. When: 9.15am - 1pm
Waste wise living: Christmas and beyond
The inspiring ‘Rogue Ginger’ (Erin Rhoads) shares practical tips to reduce and avoid single-use plastic and other throw away items, any time of the year. Where: Frankston Library,
60 Playne Street,
Frankston When: 11am - 12pm
50% rebates now available
The Victorian Government wants to help Victorian households cut their electricity bills through the Solar Homes Package. Eligible households can claim a 50% rebate on the cost of a home solar PV system, up to a maximum rebate of $2,225 (the value of half the cost of an average 4kW solar system). The offer is available until 30 June 2019. Also on offer is an ‘early adopters’ rebate for households who installed solar PV systems before 1 November 2009 and solar hot water rebates of $1,000 for six thousand Victorian households. To be eligible for the solar PV rebate, applicants need to: - have a combined household income of less than $180,000 per year before tax
- be an owner-occupier of a home valued at under $3 million
- not already have a solar PV system installed on your property (unless an early adopter)
- use a Clean Energy Council (CEC) Accredited Installer and only use CEC approved products
For help choosing a solar system that is right for you, check out the information and free guide to installing solar PV for households on the Clean Energy Council website.
Love eating take-away but hate the packaging?
Many cafés and restaurants are happy to use your clean, reusable containers for takeaway food. Some even offer a discount! Food safety regulations in Victoria do not prohibit a registered food business from serving food or drink in a container provided by a customer. Businesses can decide whether or not to use a customer’s container and can consider the cleanliness, quality and suitability of the container when making this decision. Check with your local takeaway or search the Trashless Takeaway website to find a BYO container friendly café or restaurant near you.
Have you heard about Boomerang Bags?
Locals tackling plastic pollution one bag at a time
Boomerang Bags groups are springing up all over Victoria and the good news is we have one in Frankston City. These not-for-profit volunteer groups aim to make a positive impact on the environment by collecting fabric that is no longer wanted and upcycling it into reusable bags, as a sustainable alternative to plastic ones. People can either borrow and return them for free (hence boomerang) or buy them for a small donation if they want to keep them. Now that single-use plastic shopping bags are being phased out in many shops across the state, Boomerang Bag’s time has really come. These volunteers rely on the time and generosity of our local community. They would love new members to help make bags (sewing skills not essential). You
can also help by donating second hand materials (linen, curtains and fabric offcuts) and by spreading the word about Boomerang Bags. Through the group, members start conversations, make friends, upcycle materials and work towards shifting society’s throw away mentality to a more sustainable 'revolution of re-use' – one community, needle and thread at a time! To get involved or find out more, visit the Boomerang Bags Frankston group on Facebook or call Mara on 0490 919 577.
Cherry Ballart or Native Cherry
The fruit of the Cherry Ballart (Exocarpos cupressiformis) is unusual - its seed sits outside the fruit. Technically, the seed is in an inedible nut with the stalk forming a fleshy edible 'fruit' which is highly regarded as a bush food rich in vitamins and quite sweet. At first glance it looks like a cypress tree, but closer examination reveals small nuts that start forming in late winter and develop red fleshy stalks during the summer. The local Boon Wurrung People call this plant “Nyora” while the Wurundjeri of the Melbourne area call it “Bulait”. This tree was very important to local indigenous people. Aside from being a food source,
the hard durable timber was used for making tools such as fire drills and spear throwers, and the sap was used as a treatment for snake bite. For ceremonial smoking, green branches were used along with Manna Gum and Black wattle to produce healing and cleansing smoke. The Cherry Ballart was thought to represent children, as it is thought to be parasitic in the early stages of its life, attaching to the roots of other plants until it becomes large enough to produce its own food via photosynthesis. This species is common around Victoria and occurs in most of Frankston City's Natural Reserves. See if you can spot one next time you're out and about.
Creating a water-wise garden
Now is a great time to invest in your garden and prepare for the warmer months ahead. With Melbourne’s water storage levels at 63% and drier than average conditions predicted this spring, what you do now can affect how much water you’ll need to keep your garden healthy during summer. Council has recently updated its Sustainable Gardening in Frankston City booklet, a joint publication with Sustainable Gardening Australia. You will find lots of great tips on saving water in the garden, including information on: - garden design and plant selection
- caring for your soil
- rainwater tanks
- greywater use
The booklet also includes a handy list of local indigenous plants that, once established, require little watering, plus lots more! Drop in to a Council customer service centre to collect your own hard copy, or download it from Council’s website.
Did you know that Council supports a Miscellaneous Grants program that "encourages community connectedness and wellbeing"? Applications can be made throughout the financial year or until funds are fully spent. Recently a new category, Youth Action Grants, was added to the list. Grants of up to $500 can support eligible groups of young people aged 12 – 25, who are involved in youth led movements or student representative councils, to advocate and/or implement positive improvements for the benefit of the wider community. Other Miscellaneous Grants include: - Community Group Membership Drive
- Quick Response
- Charitable Support
- Inclusion Support
- Representative Support
Win a $50 Hoyts gift card for 10 minutes of your timeComplete a short online activity to help us learn how to better structure our Frankston City Council website, for the chance to win a $50 Hoyts Gift Card.
To be in the running to win, complete the activity by Sunday, 23 September.
Terms and conditions apply.
That's all our EnviroNews for now. We hope to see you at one of our 'Greening Our Future' events or out and about enjoying the delights of spring in our beautiful corner of the world.
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