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FOR EVERY SHADE OF GREEN
CLEAN UP MORE IN '24
Clean Up Australia Day is approaching and we’re encouraging everyone to get a group together and register now. Help conserve our environment and keep our open spaces litter free.
On Sunday 3 March thousands of community members across the nation will work together to clean up rubbish from open spaces and waterways.
To get involved, you can either choose to join a registered Clean Up event happening across Casey or register your own local site and become a site supervisor.
To learn more about Clean Up Australia Day and register, go to: cleanup.org.au
Join the Green Living in Casey Facebook group for even more tips, activities and ideas.
National Sustainable Living Festival - All February
Healthy Lunchbox Week - Monday 4 to Sunday 10 February
Lunar New Year (Year of the Wood Dragon) - Saturday 10 February
Nirvana Day (Parinirvana Day) - Thursday 15 February
Wetlands Walk at Myuna Farm - Thursday 22 February
Schools Clean Up Australia Day - Friday 1 March
Clean Up Australia Day - Sunday 3 March
Bird walk with Dads - Monday 4 March
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Beyond only bags
"Boomerang Bags is a grassroots, community-driven movement that aims to tackle plastic pollution at its source. Join us on a weekly basis to create these sustainable bags, which we can then donate to local support organisations that would typically rely on plastic bags. Don't worry if you don't know how to sew - we'll teach you! All the necessary materials will be provided.
If you happen to have a sewing machine, please bring it along!"
Mosaics Magic - Beginners Workshop
Want to recycle broken material into art?
Learn how to create mosaics with repurposed materials and brighten up your home and garden. Clyde North.
Healthy Cooking on a Budget
This 8 week course is designed for those interested in learning about healthy eating on a budget.
Covering everything from safe food handling, food hygiene, kitchen basics, prep techniques, extensive cooking skills and food storage. Please bring an apron and a container to Balla Balla Community Centre.
Be an eco-kid!
The Green Living team recently visited Balla Balla Community Centre in Clyde to run an Eco-Kids session.
The kids (and adults that came with them!) learned all about what goes into which bin and why, a bit about the Container Deposit Scheme and how they can reduce their waste,
Then they got to work making some re-usable celebration decorations! Here are some of the fabulous results.
Boomerang Bags regional get-together
Boomerang Bags started in 2013, and Casey’s groups started in 2018. Since then, many thousands of bags have been sewn by volunteers out of reclaimed fabrics, and given out to the community.
There are many groups around Victoria, but nothing has previously been done to allow these groups to network, as many groups (Casey’s included) were feeling a bit “over” sewing bags, as well as noticing that there already are a lot of bags out there.
The regional get-together brought together groups from Baw Baw shire, Mornington Peninsula, Frankston and Philip Island. Groups shared their experiences, ideas and road blocks, and worked together to try to inspire each other to making other reusable items (to replace single use plastics, as was the point of Boomerang Bags in the first place) and share their knowledge to help solve problems.
Greasing the wheels of change
Cleanaway's newest addition to the Casey rubbish and recycling fleet is powered by used cooking oil!
It's run on biodiesel created by cooking fat collected by Cleanaway - a truly circular solution. .
A BURNING ISSUE
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Batteries and all bins You may have noticed that it's not only been a summer of wildly chaotic weather - it's been the summer of truck fires. In Casey and nearby councils, there have been at least five bin and truck fires caused by e-waste and batteries over the summer. The photos above were taken this January in Timbarra. It's not only household bins that are affected. Hard waste collectors might not get fires in the trucks themselves. But once the materials are compacted back at the depot, another fire hazard is created. |
So please remember to double-check your hard waste material for forgotten batteries. That way you, the community and the environment stay safe. |
Vape disposal One of the most common causes and contaminants in bin and truck fires have been single-use vapes. Although now banned, many are still in circulation. As part of the solution, the City of Casey has developed a vape disposal program of its own - and local students are playing their own part! |
Just breathe air Congratulations to all the participants in the video competition warning of the dangers of youth vaping. ‘The Vapourisers’ from St Francis Xavier College were awarded third place; Get Puffed’ from Fountain Gate Secondary College came second; and in first place, ‘Just Breathe Air’ (J.B.A) from Lyndhurst Secondary College. Watch this space for the winning video! Photo: Lyndhurst Secondary College students, Michelle Prak, Olivia Argaet, Janelle Bias and Cindy Phao created ‘Just Breathe Air’ |
Sustainable home series
Orana Community Place in Clyde North is hosting a three-part sustainable home series. Join us for session one on Thursday 8 February, learn about the features to include in your house design to ensure your home is resilient and ready for climate change.
Solar savers Thinking about installing solar, but still have questions? Join us for a free information session at the Old Cheese Factory on Monday 19 February to have your questions answered by industry experts. |
Keeping everyone's cool Beat the heat this summer, without risking high energy bills. Here are some ideas for keeping cool this summer - without running the air conditioner all day. |
Casey flora and fauna spotlight – Short-finned eel Anguilla australis
Spending most of their time in freshwater wetlands, lakes, dams and creeks, Short-finned eels (Anguilla australis) found in Casey migrate downstream to Western Port or Port Phillip Bay to breed in salt water. Image: Joss Simpson
Bird walk with Dad - Caey Dads Matter program Fathers, grandfathers and other father figures! Bring your children to walk around the Frog Hollow wetlands and see if you can spot the local birds, bats and fish. Monday 4 March 2024 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM |
Wetlands and human wellbeing It's not too late to pledge your support for World Wetlands Day. Since the 1700s nearly 90% of the world’s wetlands have been degraded. By protecting places like Frog Hollow Reserve in Endeavour Hills (above) we're helping protect our waterways, local species and help keep the City of Casey cooler. |
Buyers' guide - Toilet paper Choosing the right toilet paper is a great first step to living more sustainably. Try to pick toilet paper that is made from sustainable or recycled materials and comes in minimal and recyclable packaging. |
Recycle right -Container Deposit Scheme Just a reminder to please take your carefully-sorted CDS-friendly material to a local site. If you want to get your 10 cents; worth, see the interactive map below. |
Tricky topics - Avoid biodegradable or compostable plastics Keep plastic products marketed as being biodegradable or compostable out of your recycling (yellow lid) or food and garden waste (green lid) bins, as they can disrupt efforts to repurpose general plastics. |
Edible natives - Warrigal greens (Tetragonia tetragonioides)
This easy-to-grow leafy green is high in vitamin A and can be used or substituted in place of spinach in many recipes. Like spinach and other high-oxalate foods, first blanch or cook before using. Why not give Kyah Lulham's zesty Warrigal greens pesto a try?
If you'd like to share your edible native photos with us to be in the running for a Green Living prize, please post them via the link below.
What to plant Why not try some unusual root veg to see you right through the next six months? Burdock, celeriac, root chicory, carrots, root parsley, turnips, swedes, salsify (above) and radish will give you a long season of delicious produce. |
Use it up recipe - Shannon Bennett's peach tarte tatin Got a glut of end-of-summer stone fruit or found some for quick sale? Try this out on any stone fruit - or try them all! |
Sustainability Through Your Own Lens Photography Competition
There will be three finalist from each category.
Photo: Steele Aspland, Grade 2, St. James Parish School, Sebastopol.
Urban Rivers and Catchments Program (Australian Government) closes 13 February 2024 NFP organisations can apply for funding to deliver small to medium sized community-based projects that conserve native and threatened species and improve the ecological health of urban waterways (for example local waterway habitat, habitat connectivity, and water quality improvement).
Coastcare Victoria Community Grants (Victorian Government) closes 16 February 2024
This grant assists community groups to protect and enhance the coastal and near-shore marine environment. Funded projects contribute to stewardship and education, strengthening volunteer groups or supporting traditional owner self-determination.
Partnerships Against Pests Grants (Agriculture Victoria) closes 19 February 2024
This grant aims to support community groups to deliver workshops, resources and community engagement initiatives and promote cooperation between neighbours and communities on the management of established weeds and pest animals.
Tiny Towns Fund (Victorian Government) closes 25 February 2024
This fund supports local communities in towns with a population of up to 5,000 people in the targeted local government areas, including the City of Casey, to deliver quality tourism and community facility projects, such as splash parks and bike trails, playgrounds, community hall and library upgrades and public art.
James N. Kirby Foundation Grants closes 29 February 2024
This grant supports NFPs to deliver small innovative programs in a broad range of areas including education and technology, the environment, health, social welfare, and the arts.
SilverChef Community Grants Program closes 31 March 2024
SilverChef provides certified used hospitality equipment and cash grants to support community groups that offer hospitality and food services to vulnerable communities.
Circular Economy Innovation Fund – Capacity Building (Sustainability Victoria) closes 31 March 2024
Incorporated organisations can apply for funding for projects that improve awareness and understanding of circular economy or contribute to circular economy innovation in Victorian businesses.
What are your tips, hacks or even questions for using, reusing, upcycling and recycling? Please share them with us via email or through the Green Living in Casey Facebook group.
Finally, if you're not sure what to do with your waste, check out our searchable directory or our updated Recycling and Waste Guide.
