You are currently browsing the tag archive for the ‘Cooks River Alliance’ tag.
Print made by someone at the Cooks River Day Out. To me it summed up the whole event.
‘Mike’ is Mike Baird MP & Premier of New South Wales. I hope he & his party listens to the loud call from the community for a Cash for Containers scheme to be returned to NSW. The environment needs it desperately.
Showing some of the tents at the Cooks River Day Out. They chose a great place to have the event because there was lots of shady trees where people could get respite from the heat,
We have just come back from a terrific time at the ‘Cooks River Day Out’ organized by the Cooks River Alliance & held in Gough Whitlam Reserve Earlwood.
One of the exhibits
There were lots of stalls providing information – The Cooks River Valley Association & The Mudcrabs, The Wolli Creek Preservation Society, the Total Environment Centre & the Ethnic Communities Council. The Taronga Zoomobile brought along native animals inside fish tanks to view.
Travelbugs Mobile Mini-beasts brought along a number of stick insects, which were impossible to find until we had them pointed out to us. There were also a number of other living insects providing an educational display.
Gaawaa Miyay Designs was holding a very popular workshop where young & old were scratching designs on pieces of Styrofoam, which was then made into a print for people to take home. People had created some wonderful work.
Aside from the print-making, there were workshops on weaving, creating rain gardens, bush tucker & also guided bush tucker walks & Aboriginal history along the Cooks River.
Leon from Taronga Zoo with Spike the Echidna.
I saw my first echidna close up & what a gorgeous lively animal ‘Spike’ was. He was 10-years old & very used to being the centre of attraction at educational events. When I asked what would happen if he were left to dig, the zookeeper said he would need a shovel to get him out of the ground. That fast! Who knew.
Plus there was a Reverse Vending Machine for 10-cent refund on plastic bottles. I do not understand why these machines are not everywhere. NSW should have a Cash for Containers scheme. I remember people collecting cans & bottles on garbage night in the mid-90s. Instead we have an environment where drink cans & bottles are everywhere destroying the environment & causing great harm to wildlife. A Cash for Containers scheme is a no brainer.
It was a beautiful hot summer’s day despite still being winter. People were seeking shade under the trees. The music was great & so was the atmosphere. It was wonderful to see so many local groups whose focus is to clean up the Cooks River, as well as to protect the environment. See my blog roll for contact details.
Well done to everyone involved. I hope this becomes a yearly event.
Volunteers of the Cooks River Valley Association with their new green t-shirt on display – “Cooks River – Safe to Swim by 2020.”
Volunteers of the Wolli Creek Preservation Society.
A Spiny Leaf insect, which looked just like leaves when in follage.
To end, here is a close-up of Spike the echidna. What a cute face.
A free event not to miss. The Cooks River Catchment Community Forum is on this coming Saturday. There will be lots happening, including presentations on the work being done on the river, all-ages entertainment, stalls & a sausage sizzle.
When: Saturday 13th September 2014.
Where: Canterbury Public School, Church Street Canterbury.
Time: Starts at 12 noon until 4pm.
Click to enlarge
Anything we can do to help the Cooks River is a boon for both the community & urban wildlife.
The Cooks River Alliance invites all Sydney residents to help give the Cooks River a health check. Working alongside scientists, volunteers will collect data to contribute to the long-term sustainable management of the Cooks River.
We will train you to collect & identify macroinvertebrates (waterbugs) in creeks & tributaries of the Cooks River. Community organisations, school groups & bushcare members are encouraged to volunteer.
Combined trainings and sampling days will be held on –
- Saturday 14th April 2012: 9-1pm, Coolibah Reserve at Hannam Street Arncliffe
- Sunday 6th May 2012: 9-1pm, Freshwater Park at Yarrowee Rd Strathfield
- Sunday 19th May 2012: 9-1pm, Bardwell Valley Parklands at Canonbury Grove Bexley North – parking near Preddys
Numbers are very limited, so please RVSP & let us know which date you would prefer. Places are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
Please note: Access is mildly difficult. You MUST have at least an average fitness level. Please bring a long-sleeve shirt, gum boots & lunch/drinks.
Bookings are essential. Please RSVP to Claire Evans on 0478 474 092 or email cevans@hurstville.nsw.gov.au
This Program is a partnership between the Georges River Combined Councils’ Committee & the Cooks River Alliance.
I want to thank Marrickville Council for installing a brand new audio system. It allowed us to hear clearly for the first time since we have been attending Council Meetings. The screen above the Chairperson is great & I am pleased this is continuing in the large format. A new screen has been provided to allow the Chair & staff members to read the minutes as they are being written which is also a good addition. I also think there will be many people who will be pleased to see the flags removed from behind the screen. The following is my understanding of the Meeting & all mistakes are mine.
Financial support for The Pollys Club float in the 2010 Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade – A member of the Pollys spoke about the need for Council to have high visibility in support for the gay & lesbian community & supporting a float in the Mardi Gras Parade would achieve this. He said although
Our beautiful Cooks River, a precious gem that should be looked after to the best of our ability
times have changed since the first parade in 1978, there are still problems with covert discrimination & support from Council helps change the culture. He said The Pollys Club, a community-based organisation hold most of their functions in Marrickville LGA.
Clrs Wright & Kontellis supported the Mayoral Minute for Council to allocate $3,000 for the Pollys Mardi Gras float. Clr O’Sullivan also supported saying that the Pollys started when gay & lesbians risked gaol & being beaten up for their sexuality & thought Marrickville Council should have a clear association with the Pollys float.
Clr Thanos said he had ridden on the Pollys float one year & experienced homophobia for the first time with many watchers of the parade being abusive & offensive towards him. He said the allocation of money for the Pollys float came up annually via a Mayoral Minute & moved an amendment that the allocation of money to the Pollys float as part of Mardi Gras be part of the annual budget.
Clr Phillips asked whether the flags & banners were generic or included 2010. He supported rainbow flags down main-street, but wanted them to be reusable to save money as they were half the Banner budget. The Mayoral Minute & Clr Thanos’s amendment carried unanimously.
Formation of a Cooks River Alliance between Councils along the Cooks River – A resident
Cooks River from Mackey Park
who has a long history of participation on a number of local environmental committees spoke in support of the alliance. He said the Cooks River has 2 main structural problems. The river has been channeled destroying its natural eco-system & has been formed into a drain. He said most of the waste material collected by Mudcrabs (in blogroll on left) is plastic bottles & they are lobbying for a bottle-return program. Secondly, the state of the sewerage infrastructure is so bad that raw sewerage goes into the Cooks River & Sydney Water says fixing this is at the bottom of their list. (I think there is room for community protest about this). As the Cooks River is used as a boundary, there is no over-riding governing body. He said in the 90s the Cooks River Catchment Committee did a lot of good work regarding the river & hopefully the Cooks River Alliance will help the river. He said the Cooks River Catchment Committee functioned on a 1-tier level with residents the same as others & was concerned that this current proposal has a 3-tier level with the community in the third tier. He thought this was not the best way to engage with the community. He also said he would like the Alliance to co-ordinate the river monitoring system which is currently fragmented.
Clr Phillips said the formation of an alliance is exciting & thought there should be a forum where the Councils & the community got together. Mayor Iskandar responded that this current proposal stated 18 months ago, was still in draft form & everyone was interested in working with the community.
Clr O’Sullivan said the Report was a significant achievement & she has been serving on the Cooks River Committee with Clr Olive. She said that because the river has 2 banks it doesn’t work on boundaries & Hurstville, Bankstown & Botany Bay Councils are not committed as yet. She suggested that the Report be endorsed, the other Councils be asked to join & a Report come back to Council by end 2010 about who has signed up & then look at governance.
Clr Olive said previous attempts to set up alliance have been unsuccessful, but this Report looked like it may work. He said the Report was vague on community involvement. Clr Phillips moved a motion that Marrickville Council work within the Alliance to provide a forum with direct community interaction. Carried unanimously.
Establishment of a $3,500 Marrickville Contemporary Art Prize at the Chrissie Cotter Gallery – A resident spoke in support of the motion to fund an annual Marrickville Contemporary Art
Mangroves along the Cooks River Marrickville
Prize. He spoke about the resident-run arts initiative in King Street that has had over 70 exhibitions since opening 4 years ago. They have now initiated the Marrickville Contemporary Arts Prize that acknowledges & celebrates artists in Marrickville LGA. Vanishing Point Gallery has decided to hold an exhibition of this year’s winner as part of the Fringe Festival coinciding with the Art Prize. He suggested that a further $1,500 be included in next year’s budget for more prizes in next year’s event in consultation with Council staff.
Clrs Byrne, Phillips, Olive & Clr O’Sullivan supported the motion. O’Sullivan said Council needed to keep an eye on it because once it becomes a centerpiece event in Council’s calendar Council may need to consider what sort of work is acceptable. Carried unanimously.
The last item we remained for was the Auditor’s Report on Marrickville Council’s budget. This was extremely interesting & to do it justice, I will write about this as a separate post.
Trees reflected in the Cooks River
SAVING OUR TREES - Marrickville municipality 
Recent Comments