PPWCMA Community Grants now open
Landcare and community groups can apply for Victorian Government funding to improve and protect the natural environment via the Port Phillip and Westernport Catchment Management Authority (PPWCMA) Community Grants.
The grants must benefit the health of the region's land, water and biodiversity. Activities might include weed removal, the planting of indigenous species and/or the fencing of native vegetation.
This year, there are three types of grants. They are:
• Project Grants (up to $20,000);
• Group Support / Start-up Grants ($500 - $1,000); and
• 25th Anniversary of Landcare Grants ($1,000 to $5,000).
The 25th Anniversary of Landcare Grants are a special category that are available for this year only. Victorian Minister for the Environment and Climate Change, Ryan Smith, recently announced a special allocation of $60,000 to the PPWCMA to enable on-ground actions that commemorate this significant anniversary.
Guidelines and application forms for the PPWCMA Community Grants are available from www.ppwcma.vic.gov.au. Applications are due by Friday 23 September 2011.
Mr Neville Goodwin has been appointed as the new Chair of the PPWCMA by the Minister for Environment and Climate Change Ryan Smith and the Minister for Water Peter Walsh. Neville is a primary producer at Woodleigh in the Bass River catchment and is a former Councillor and Mayor of the Bass Coast Shire Council. He values community consultation and looks forward to advancing the work of the PPWCMA in this regard. Neville has applauded the excellent leadership provided by previous Chair Peter Akers over the past 2 years and looks forward to working closely with Peter who will remain as a PPWCMA Board member.
The PPWCMA has a new Corporate Plan that clearly outlines the strategic directions and priorities for the organisation. The plan places a focus on the development of the next Regional Catchment Strategy as a core responsibility. While the Corporate Plan sets a new direction for the PPWCMA, it also has a new look with the cover illustrated by PPWCMA Board member Victoria Mack.
The plan can be viewed or downloaded from the PPWCMA website.
Developing the next Regional Catchment Strategy
The development of the third edition of the Port Phillip & Western Port Regional Catchment Strategy (RCS) is underway. Previous editions (in 1997 and 2004) have helped improve integrated environmental planning at a regional and catchment scale, with the many government agencies, councils and community networks in our region.
This RCS will again focus on the condition of our region’s natural assets that are the building blocks of healthy and resilient ecosystems - namely native vegetation, native animals, rivers, wetlands, estuaries, rural landscapes, coasts and marine areas. The RCS will set specific, measurable and realistic targets for the condition of these natural assets throughout the region.
CMA staff are working closely with our partner agencies to negotiate these targets and to help ensure our partners’ readiness to work with us to achieve them. We are seeking our partners’ commitment to an ongoing ‘RCS Alliance’ to oversee the implementation of the RCS.
To date, the PPWCMA has worked closely with representatives of the Department of Sustainability and Environment, Parks Victoria, Melbourne Water, the Department of Primary Industries, Councils and community networks on target setting. Consultation will continue as the alliance takes shape and the RCS is completed over the next 12 months.
For further information about the RCS, contact Ian Morgans on 8781 7940.
Environmental Success at Grow West Community Planting Day
This year’s Grow West Community Planting Day proved to be the most successful yet, with 150 enthusiastic volunteers helping plant 6,500 seedlings on 9 hectares at Yaloak Estate in the Rowsley Valley near Bacchus Marsh.
Grow West Coordinator Helena Lindorff said “The planting day was again a tremendous success thanks to the energetic participants and the support of the Victorian National Parks Association, Parks Victoria, Friends of Werribee Gorge and Long Forest Mallee, Moorabool Shire Council, Yaloak Estate, Victorian Mobile Landcare Group and eTree”.
Grow West also had international attention, with four salinity specialists from Thailand visiting the site as part of their tour of Victoria to see how Landcare promotes community action.
PPWCMA Community Coordination team now in place
The PPWCMA has established a new regional team to assist Landcare and community groups, thanks to investment from Melbourne Water, the Australian Government’s Regional Landcare Facilitator Initiative, the Victorian Government’s Vision for Werribee Plains Initiative and the Victorian Government Landcare Program.
The team will be working closely with community environment groups to:
• develop their capacity to engage and influence landholders;
• partner in the delivery of a program of community engagement events; and
• encourage landholder uptake of Melbourne Water, and Victorian and Australian Government NRM programs.
The full team comprises:
• Emmanuelle Brunet, Yarra Community NRM Coordinator based in Christmas Hills;
• Grant Godden, Northern Community NRM Coordinator based in Sunbury;
• Will Hogg, Werribee Community NRM Coordinator based in Sunbury;
• Matt Khoury, Mornington Peninsula Community NRM Coordinator based in Frankston;
• Geoff Boyes and Bridgette McCallum, Central Western Port Coordinators hosted by Cardinia Environment Coalition and based in Pakenham;
• Kathleen Bartlett, South Gippsland Coordinator hosted by South Gippsland Landcare network and based in Leongatha; and
• Joel Geoghegan, Bass Coast Coordinator hosted by Bass Coast Landcare Network and based at Cowes.
The team will help groups build links at the local, regional, state-wide and national levels. The three roles filled by Grant, Matt and Geoff are part of a nation-wide network of ‘Regional Landcare Facilitators’ established by the Australian Government that will share information and experience.
The team will operate under the leadership of the PPWCMA’s Doug Evans. For further information on the program, contact Doug on 03 9712 2296 or email enquiries@ppwcma.vic.gov.au.
More Bandicoot habitat for Maryknoll
Local volunteers came out in force on Sunday 5 June to plant trees and shrubs along Back Creek at Maryknoll Recreation Reserve. The planting day was sponsored by Red Energy in partnership with the Cardinia Environment Coalition as part of the Spirit of the Bunyip project. The Back Creek area is important habitat for wildlife including the endangered Southern Brown Bandicoot.
Red Energy’s Marcus Kohn-Taylor said the company was delighted to once again support a great habitat improvement program. Red Energy previously sponsored coastal revegetation projects at the Harewood Homestead site at Tooradin.
The Maryknoll plantings will be followed up with additional Red Energy revegetation projects at two adjacent farm properties in Fogarty Rd to further expand the habitat corridor and help the local populations of endangered bandicoots.
10,000 new plants for Yellingbo’s Helmeted Honeyeaters and Leadbeater’s Possums
Volunteers from National Australia Bank and Conservation Volunteers Australia have joined forces in the past two months to plant over 10,000 local native plants in the Yellingbo Nature Conservation Reserve. Their work will now be extended by Zoos Victoria staff and the Friends of the Helmeted Honeyeater who will continue the planting and recreate valuable habitat for the critically-endangered Helmeted Honeyeaters and endangered Leadbeater’s Possums between the Cockatoo and Woori Yallock Creeks.
The planting days have been sponsored by Red Energy together with Yarra Ranges Council and SP Ausnet as part of the Yarra4Life program.
Funding sought to help our soils
The PPWCMA has submitted an application to the competitive component of the Australian Government’s Caring for our County initiative to conduct a soil health project. The project proposes to assist farmers to increase their property’s soil carbon in some parts of this region. Over two years, the project would support 200 farmers in trialling practices to store soil carbon and bring together a collaboration of farmers, community groups, government agencies, local governments and technical experts. Caring for our Country will announce the successful open call projects later in 2011.
Creating the environment for collaboration in the Werribee catchment
Representatives of Landcare groups and agencies involved in natural resource management (NRM) in the Werribee catchment area now have the opportunity to establish connections and learn about each others’ projects and plans.
The Werribee Catchment Advisory Round Table (CART) held its first meeting on the 29th of July and will convene again every 6 months. Participants in the Werribee CART are invited to provide local knowledge, input and advice in regards to:
• local environmental works plans, priorities and progress of each organisation;
• identification of shared priorities and issues for catchment management;
• identification of opportunities for collaboration and coordinated action; and
• connecting the Werribee NRM coordinator with relevant networks, staff, community leaders and expertise.
The first meeting of the Werribee CART involved participants sharing knowledge by marking up a large aerial photo of the catchment to depict the location and nature of their major NRM projects.
Similar round tables will be established for other parts of the region.
Walking the talk in the PPWCMA office
The PPWCMA was a carbon neutral organisation for 2010/11 in relation to scope 1 and 2 emissions and maintained a low environmental impact within our offices.
Through environmental education and training for staff, introduction of ‘green office’ mechanisms and a monitoring program, the PPWCMA achieved a number of highlights including:
• a 14% reduction in total greenhouse gas emissions;
• a reduction of 2.3% for electricity used for lights & power at the Frankston office;
• a 5% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions associated with the vehicle fleet; and
• carbon neutrality in relation to scope 1 and 2 emissions by offsetting the small amount of residual emissions for 2010/11.
Some of the in-house actions taken in 2010/11 were:
• introduction of an Environmental Policy;
• participation in Earth Hour by staff and their families;
• participation in the Frankston City Council ride to work day;
• increase in the use of electronic surveys and invitations rather than paper copies;
• use of suppliers that meet high environmental standards; and
• making all publications available electronically.
The PPWCMA is active in the pursuit of healthy waterways, wetlands and estuaries in a number of ways. One is through our participation on the ‘Waterways Advisory Committee’ of Melbourne Water. The committee brings together representatives of the community and Government organisations to examine the planning and management of Melbourne Water’s programs that relate to river health, environmental flows, flood management, rural land management, urban drainage schemes and water quality. The committee also has input to the development of important strategic documents including Melbourne Water’s Operating Charter, Healthy Waterways Strategy and Water Plan.
The PPWCMA CEO, David Buntine, is a member of the committee and takes this opportunity to strengthen the alignment of Melbourne Water’s work with other environmental work in this region and to encourage partnerships between Melbourne Water and the other organisations and community groups that are active here.