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Eye contact with an incredibly cute Koala
We have just visited the Koala Hospital in Port Macquarie. I didn’t want to visit the hospital because I thought it would be far too sad an experience. However, the car rental man at the airport pretty much insisted we visit saying it was wonderful, so we took him at his word & are so glad that we did.
My knowledge of koalas was mostly about their continuing loss of habitat & the risk of extinction in the wild if we do not save their habitat. I had only seen one wild koala before & this was a male walking across a field bellowing for a girlfriend at Healesville in Victoria.
The Koala Hospital is within city limits in the Macquarie Nature Reserve next to historic Roto House, a rare late Victorian country house built for surveyor John Flynn & his family in 1891. The NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service manages the house & nature reserve.
The first thing that hits you when you drive in to the reserve is the truly enormous trees on the property. There are all kinds of Eucalypts, some Bunya pines & at least one Fig tree, plus a forest as a backdrop. Next to the house is an almost hollow Mulberry bush that is still very much alive. I’d guess it was planted in 1891 or shortly after. For more information see – http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/macquarie-nature-reserve
The shop
The Koala Hospital has been in Macquarie Nature Reserve since 1975. According to the National Parks website Macquarie Nature Reserve is a major habitat corridor for the koala & home to a number of threatened species – “the barred cuckoo-shrike, square-tailed kite, grey-headed flying fox & glossy black cockatoo.” It’s no wonder looking at the reserve, as to me, it looks like heaven for wildlife.
As we walked towards the Koala Hospital a small sign beneath a massive tree read, ‘Koala up tree.’ This was my first surprise. A tiny brown circle was visible way up in the furthest branches. I had no idea koalas were so small. I wondered whether the similar shape I’d seen in the grove of Eucalypts in the airport was a koala or a bird’s nest – they look so similar. A staff member told us that people generally know that a koala is above by their scat on the ground.
We went to the rehabilitation area before we went to the low-key shop & information area. A very friendly & knowledgeable volunteer explained how the hospital works & introduced us to a number of the koalas. Some were permanent residents because of such diverse problems as scoliosis (curvature of the spine), amputation of a leg & the loss of one eye due to an accident & blindness from Chlamydia.
Other koalas come in for a variety of reasons, get patched up, given time to recover & heal, then are released back to the area they came from. Koalas at the hospital are given names that include the area from where they came & the first name of the person who brought them in. eg. Lighthouse Harry.
The koalas outside live in fairly large pens with what looks like a picnic kiosk in the centre. They all have trees, though some have their trunks wrapped at the bottom to prevent the koalas from climbing. You can’t have a sick koala high up in a tree when you need to give him medication.
The kiosks have a roof & there is a range of very big branches that offer perches for the koalas to sit. Some perches are set up to offer full support to the koala, while others look more like a fork of a tree. Huge bundles of four types of gum leaves are attached to the branches around the kiosk offering meals on demand without the koala needing to struggle to access food.
This is a lovely thing to do for visitors.
While we were there the one-eyed, one-legged koala, a permanent resident who gets room service, decided to climb a very high tree, then clamber along a long side branch until he reached the leaves that were growing on this branch. Then he sat down & started to eat. They can move fast if they want to.
Was it sad visiting the Koala Hospital? Not at all. Their living conditions mimic the wild. They are safe. They have lots of food & a range of climbing conditions. Apart from the fences & man-made structures, the surrounds are essentially the bush, so they can see, hear & smell everything that they are used to. The hospital was nothing at all like I had imagined. It is a terrific place for children to visit to learn about koalas.
We spoke to two volunteers. They absolutely loved their work & of course the koalas. Incidentally, I met another volunteer of the Koala Hospital in the Fair Trade shop in town who also loved her volunteer work with the koalas.
As with any animal hospital & rehabilitation centre, the Koala Hospital exists on very little money & with the assistance of volunteer workers, so you can help by becoming a member or simply making a monetary donation. They are a registered charity, so donations within Australia are tax deductable. More information is available here – http://www.koalahospital.org.au/membership
They also have an ‘Adopt a Wild Koala’ program – “Your adoption helps with the rescue & treatment of sick & injured koalas & release back to home range if possible; also the preservation & expansion of habitat, collection of information for research relating to habitat, disease, nutrition & habits of wild koalas & to provide educational material, to increase public awareness of all aspects of the koala.”
One other campaign by the Koala Hospital that I love is planting koala food trees – the more common being Tallowood, Swamp Mahogany & Forest Red Gum.
Each tree costs only $15 to buy & plant in the ground. !!!
The trees grow big in Port Macquarie, so $15 will pay for a tree that will not only increase much-needed habitat for koalas who are being hounded out of existence, but also provide habitat & food for all sorts of other wildlife from insects to birds. I’ve not seen such value for money before. http://www.koalahospital.org.au/act-now/plant-a-koala-food-tree
If you get the chance to visit this place, do so. You will not be disappointed. The koalas are easily visible in their pens. The environment is lovely. The staff are friendly. The atmosphere is great. The only thing the hospital asks of visitors is not to make noise or use a camera flash when taking photographs. Entry is free.
Off along a side branch to get to the tastiest gum leaves right at the end.
A close-up of the above photo. This is the one-legged, one-eyed Koala who was climbing incredibly well.
I was impressed with the living conditions for the Koalas.
1. The community lost its fight to retain a children’s tree house in a very beautiful street tree on Narelle Avenue in North Bondi last week. Waverley Council said the tree house was unsafe & they would “build a compliant play area in a nearby park.” The community is upset, especially the children who used to play in the tree house. http://wentworth-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/north-bondi-treehouse-removed/
2. Wahroonga Council planned a new park & playground at Water Street Reserve, Wahroonga. To do this they would need to remove 400 square metres of shrubs & grasses in an endangered Blue gum high forest. Council said no trees would need to be removed. The community protested so the Councillors have asked for a report, including “funding & restoration options.” http://north-shore-times.whereilive.com.au/news/story/council-cant-see-good-for-the-trees-residents/
3. Bardon Park Coogee is used by the Coogee Dolphins Rugby Club to practice, but the community say it is a small park that is meant for use by the residents & not the sporting clubs. Randwick Council had intended to returf the park. http://southern-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/feud-over-park-continues/
4. Lot 4711 Bambara Road, Kariong zoned Conservation & Scenic Protection (Conservation) was allegedly cleared without permission from Gosford Council. The Department of Environment, Climate Change & Water is investigating. http://express-advocate-gosford.whereilive.com.au/news/story/investigation-into-land-clearing-at-bambara-road/
5. A vandal has damaged or destroyed new street trees on Walnut Street Carnegie on 6 occasions over the past 18 months. The residents are upset & want the trees replaced. Glen Eira Council said they probably wont replace the trees immediately – so the vandal gets exactly what they want despite living on a street where the residents do want new street trees. http://caulfield-glen-eira-leader.whereilive.com.au/news/story/carnegie-tree-killer-strikes-six-times/
6. In a fantastic move, Tweed Shire Council passed a new Tree Preservation Order that extends Koala habitat in the region. Another 1,870 hectares of land in the Tweed will now be protected. This is great as we are seriously in danger of losing wild Koala populations due to habitat loss. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/02/17/3141055.htm?site=northcoast§ion=news&date=(none)
7. Elm beetles & cedar moth caterpillars have stripped the leaves of scores of Elm & Cedar trees in Wagga Wagga. Wagga City Council say they have 500 Golden elms as street trees which they intend to progressively replace over the next 10-years though they don’t say why. They do however, say that the affected trees won’t die as a result of the insect damage & their leaves will grow back . http://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/news/local/news/general/wagga-trees-under-attack-from-insects/2079055.aspx
8. Shepparton Council intends to remove 63 mature London Planes trees in Corio Street Shepparton. The residents are campaigning to retain the trees. The Greater Shepparton City Council said some of the trees were dangerous while others were dying. The trees are 80-years old. http://www.sheppnews.com/members/login.aspx?noaccess=1&from=/article.aspx?id=1202303
9. Conservationists protesting logging at Rats Head Road in the Bodalla State Forest Narooma successfully stopped work by suspending a platform 10 metres above
Norfolk Island Pines Tempe
the ground from a tree with the rope attached to logging equipment. However, during last Tuesday night, an unknown person cut the ropes that supported the platform while a protester was up in the platform. “South East Forest Rescue (SEFR) representatives presented Forests NSW & the logging contractors with a ‘Statement of Guarantee.’ The statement set out terms & conditions requiring Forests NSW to guarantee there will be no impacts on the environment as a result of the logging & ‘to guarantee any logging Forests NSW & their authorised contractors undertake will not impact on the health & wellbeing of the citizens of New South Wales, being both present & future unborn generations.’ The logging contractor refused to sign the guarantee.” Later the tree that held the viewing platform was chopped down by an unknown person. http://www.naroomanewsonline.com.au/news/local/news/general/night-attack-on-forest-treesitter-at-narooma/2078489.aspx
10. Woolahra Council is attempting to cut down tree vandalism done for views by allowing residents to prune public trees for views & sunlight, including trees in public parks. http://wentworth-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/draft-plan-to-manage-trees/
11. Orange City Council plans to rezone & sell Fred Dobbin Park. This park is only one of more than a dozen similar community parks that the Council plans to sell. The residents are fighting the selloff saying they need their parks. http://www.centralwesterndaily.com.au/news/local/news/general/we-will-fight-to-save-our-park/2075907.aspx
12. Marrickville Mudcrabs reported that on Saturday 19th February 2011 a car was dumped into the Cooks River near Tempe Railway Station. Marrickville Council was informed & sent a Ranger to assess the situation. Apparently the car was leaking petrol & oil into the river. I am unaware as to whether it has been removed yet.
This is very well done. It's in Stanmore
Marrickville Council section of Parramatta Road on right. Leichhardt Council on left
An article was published in Reuters Health this week about research done by Dr Robert A Silverman of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New York. Dr Silverman studied the link between particulate matter (pollution from vehicles & coal-fire power plants) & 8,000 heart attacks in New York City between 2002 & 2006.
“As the levels of particulate matter air pollution increased, more cardiac arrests occurred.”
“When they looked at fine particulate matter (particles 2.5 micrometer or less in size), they found that the risk of having a deadly cardiac arrest rose by between 4 & 10% with every 10-microgram-per-cubic-meter increase in fine particulates.” The current EPA standard of 35 micrograms per cubic meter is grossly inadequate.
“Being indoors may offer only limited protection since small particles can penetrate into buildings and homes.”
As far as I can ascertain, there are only 3 things that stop particulate matter –
- removing all vehicles from the roads,
- closing down coal-fire power stations &
- trees.
In 2003 there were 204 million vehicles on the road in the US. This increased to 246 million vehicles on the road by January 2010. In 2009, there were 50 million more vehicles on US roads than 6 years previously, though in 2010, it dropped to only 46 million more. In comparison, China is estimated to have in excess of 70 million vehicles on the road by the end of 2010 & expected to have over 200 million by 2020. Still they wont have caught up with the Jones’s.
Australian statistics were hard to get though I did find that 13.2 million vehicles, including motorcycles, were registered in Australia at 31 March 2003. I would expect the numbers to be much higher for 2010.
Worldwide it is predicted there will be 1.2 billion vehicles on the road by 2015.
Only the cost of petrol or a severe shortage of oil is going to bring down vehicle use numbers. You can see why most cities are trying to encourage public transport use, walking & cycling.
As for coal-fired power stations, Australia does not look like it is planning to reduce or stop them with up to 12 new coal-fired power stations planned across the country. Unfortunately, in NSW they intend to mine for coal in the small bits of land that is Koala habitat. If you are interested in this – https://www.savethekoala.com/ is a terrific resource & Deborah’s (Tabart) Diary gives regular updates about the Koala situation in Australia https://www.savethekoala.com/deborahtabartsdesk.html
Everyone loves this end of Crystal Street because of the large trees
Lastly, we come to trees. Trees remove up to 60% of street level particulate matter & dramatically improve air quality, which is why their presence is so important in high traffic areas. The more trees in an area, the better the air quality. Trees also absorb other pollutants such as Ozone, Nitrogen Dioxide & Sulfur Dioxide through their leaves.
A street tree removes 9 times the amount of air-born pollution from passing traffic than does a tree on a nearby property. Street trees also improve the air that enters people’s homes, especially important as particulate matter penetrates buildings even when the windows are closed.
Large trees provide the most benefit as they provide greater absorption of particulate matter. Small stature trees that are the perhaps the most common sized tree across Marrickville LGA have far less ability to do this.
The issue of pollution from vehicles is becoming an issue that is too hard to ignore. I am of the opinion that many of our roads in Marrickville LGA are quite dangerous in this regard due to the large volumes of traffic every day. Even small suburban streets that are more like lanes can have in excess of 7,000 vehicles/day.
If the Marrickville Metro expansion goes ahead there will be a potential loss of 142 trees & an extra 4 million shoppers a year. You can just imagine the air pollution around the surrounding residential streets & the planned plaza.
Parramatta Road & the Princes Highway are mostly treeless in the section that is under the governance of Marrickville Council. It’s not just a matter of beautifying areas that are seriously lacking in aesthetic beauty, it is a matter of public health.
Parramatta Road under the governance of City of Sydney Council
This problem is not going to go away. I think the NSW state government should allocate money to Marrickville Council to plant trees on these main roads. This is a major project requiring funds that Marrickville Council cannot afford. For this reason it is imperative that the state government fund it as a special environmental project. It will save the government much greater amounts of money in the long run as people living in Marrickville LGA may just end up in the health-care system.
The population of Marrickville LGA is going to expand. We will all be living & shopping closer together & despite what the authorities say, I believe that the ‘culture of the car’ is not over by a long-shot. If I am correct, then the issue of pollution-related illness from vehicles is going to spike in the Inner West & we are going to need many more trees to try & lessen the particulate matter that the residents & workers are breathing in.
On 29th June 2010 I posted ‘Living close to a main road is bad for your heath’ which discusses this issue further.
https://savingourtrees.wordpress.com/2010/06/29/living-close-to-a-main-road-is-bad-for-your-health/
To read the article with a link to the research paper – http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100916/hl_nm/us_pollution_cardiac
1. Environmental groups plan to protest to stop National Parks in NSW being developed for tourism by private development consortiums TOMORROW 2nd June 2010 outside Parliament House, Macquarie Street Sydney at 12 noon . The web-site of the Colong Foundation goes into the issue of development of National Parks in detail. http://www.colongwilderness.org.au/tourism/Stop_exploitation_of_national_parks.htm
2. East Sydney residents are protesting against the RTAs plans to drop the creation of a garden at the corner of Bourke & Stanley streets around the Eastern Distributor chimneystack & instead, rezone the land for residential units. http://sydney-central.whereilive.com.au/news/story/east-sydney-locals-fuming-with-rta/
3. The Sydney Botanical Gardens Trust have been given the go-ahead from the Federal Environment Department to use noise dispersal & water spraying to remove the grey-headed flying foxes, a threatened species, from the Gardens. Respected conservation groups were against the proposal to remove the bats from the gardens. For background see https://savingourtrees.wordpress.com/2010/03/24/sydney’s-royal-botanic-gardens-trust-wants-‘threatened-species’-bats-banished/
http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/journal/syndeys-bats-to-get-the-boot.htm
4. Vandals destroyed more than 40 mature trees in Patterson Lakes & Moorabbin in May 2010. The trees were planted to replace other trees vandalized 18 months previously. http://moorabbin-kingston-leader.whereilive.com.au/news/story/trees-butchered-in-outrageous-attack-at-patterson-lakes-moorabbin/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
5. I’ve previously posted about the battle by the community who are against a DA for a new Woolworths supermarket at Newport. To date Pittwater Council has received 1,353 submissions from the community, most against the DA. The community fears that local shopping strips will be lost when the Woolworths giant moves in. There is a similar concern with the proposed Marrickville Metro development. http://manly-daily.whereilive.com.au/news/story/room-for-improvement-woolies/
6. More than 100 people attended a protest at the ADI site mid May 2010 including State Opposition Environment Spokeswoman Catherine Cusack, Liberal candidate for Londonderry Bart Bassett, Penrith Mayor Kevin Crameri, Councillor Ross Fowler & a representative of Lindsay Federal Labor MP David Bradbury. The community is trying to save 100 hectares of critically endangered Cumberland Plains woodland. Interestingly, the news headline is – ‘There is still time to put things right.’ http://cumberland-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/there-s-still-time-to-put-things-right-at-adi-site/
Pansies & Marigolds in an island bed on Botany Road - far better than cement
The 1535 hectare site is to be developed by Delfin Lend Lease to create a new suburb – Jordan Springs. It is one of the few green belts left in Western Sydney & is home to 110 bird species, 10 reptiles, 9 mammals, 8 frog species, 3 of them endangered & many plant species, including 4 rare ones.
I found an article from the Green Left written in 1996 where they say residents have been fighting to protect this land for the past 6 years. This means the community has been fighting for 20 years to save this green corridor. This is an interesting article as it provides a background history. http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/12798
The ADI Residents Action Group website also provides a great synopsis of what is going to happen & why the ADI site is important to preserve. http://www.adisite.org/
7. Environmental protestors & Aboriginal traditional owners of the land continue to fight to prevent logging of the Mumbulla State Forest in South East NSW. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/breaking-news/anti-logging-activists-lock-on-to-timber-harvesting-machinery/story-e6freuyi-1225867563540?from=public_rss
It is the last remaining habitat for around 50 Koalas. This may not seem many Koalas to require the stopping of logging a forest, but at The Australian Koala Foundation website, https://www.savethekoala.com/ they say, “there are less than 80,000 koalas left in the wild, possibly as few as 43,000.” This certainly makes 50 Koalas extremely significant. Personally, I think every Koala is significant, but we are talking about big money to be made here versus the habitat & survival of an animal. This is always a problem because the animals generally lose. That the Koala is listed as vulnerable in NSW is supremely important.
The Nature Conservation Council of NSW is calling for urgent action to stop logging & save the Mumbulla State Forest & have outlined ways in which the community can become involved. http://nccnsw.org.au/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3002&Itemid=1
Last Friday 28th May 2010 a coalition of conservationists, including Chipstop & the Nature Conservation Council of NSW have called for the Federal Government to step in & order that the logging be stopped. Intensive wood-chipping of Mumbulla State Forest has taken place this week. Interestingly, due to countries buying less of our woodchip at the moment, there is some concern that they won’t even be able to sell the woodchips they have made from the torn down forest. The Tasmanian timber company Gunns recently posted a 98% drop in its ½ yearly profit, partly due to a drop in woodchip sales. http://bigpondnews.com/articles/Environment/2010/05/28/Fed_govt_needs_to_protect_NSW_koalas_467192.html
8. Landcare is collecting old mobile phones to help their aim of planting 30,000 trees along the Murray River, at the Mallee in WA & in the Daintree Forest in Far North QLD. 90% of each mobile phone is recyclable so giving your old mobile to collection points stops them landing up in landfill where they don’t degrade. Collection points are Australia-wide & to find a collection point near you – www.mobilemuster.com.au
9. Great news in that the Federal Government contributed to the purchase of a 14,000 hectare property called Bowra Station located in western QLD. The property, purchased by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy is home to 200 species of birds. Birdwatchers will be able to go there. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/05/21/2906362.htm
10. More great news as the NSW Labor government has decided to pay logging industry $97 million & in turn, they are to stop logging the River Red Gums by the end of June 2010. A National Park in the Millewa group of forests will be established in July 2010 & will be jointly managed with the Yorta Yorta people. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/05/19/2903840.htm
11. I found the Environmental Volunteers Newsletter on Marrickville Council’s web-site. It’s a great newsletter with information about current activities & contact details of all the environmental groups working in the LGA. http://www.marrickville.nsw.gov.au/environment/volunteering.htm
As of last weekend the historic Fig tree at the IKEA development Tempe was still standing. Its shape has changed so I think it has been pruned.
In the May 2010 edition of Marrickville Matters magazine, Mayor Iskandar said, “I urge Marrickville residents to find that piece of land that is not being used & come to us for help to establish their own community garden.” Marrickville Councils Community Sustainability Co-ordinator can be contacted on 9335-2222. May’s magazine has a environmental feel with many articles focusing on the environment across the LGA. Council also says Mackey Park in Marrickville South will be carbon-neutral with all power needs being offset by the use of photovoltaic cells which generate electricity when exposed to sunlight. This is really good.
12. Go easy on the mince & bacon rashers if you feed Kookaburras because a Kookaburra was found in a Mosman Park being chased by dogs because he was too fat to fly. He is currently in rehab at Taronga Zoo Sydney & on a diet, poor birdie. http://bigpondnews.com/articles/OddSpot/2010/06/01/Hefty_Kookaburra_has_grams_to_go_468341.html
1. The Cumberland Courier reported that Energy Australia is to spend $62 million installing high-voltage power lines between substations at Allambie Heights & Balgowlah to protect endangered tree communities at River Flat Eucalyptus Forest & Duffys Forest Ecological Community & to not damage historic Sloane Crescent Bridge. This is a great thing they are doing. http://cumberland-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/power-plan-to-protect-trees/
showing the Optus cables clearance - extreme at this end of Renwick St Marrickville South. At the other end of this street the branches were pruned to & above the Optus cables
Pity about what Energy Australia did to the street trees at the Woolworths end of Renwick Street during ‘routine pruning’ last February. People just looked at the trees with their mouth open. As usual, the feeling was “the damage is done & there is nothing we can do about it.”
It is such as shame as we know they can do better. See https://savingourtrees.wordpress.com/2010/02/14/tree-pruning-planting-practices-compare/ where just last February I complimented Energy Australia for the good pruning they did in Excelsior Parade. Even Renwick Street has different pruning outcomes. The lower end, towards Carrington Road, the street trees were moderately pruned. Some trees that had been almost destroyed during the previous pruning cycle 7-8 years ago were looked after this time. Interestingly, Energy Australia workers did not clear branches below the Optus cables at this end of Renwick Street, whereas up the other end the Optus cables where given a huge clearance. The trees on the corner of Renwick & Excelsior had more than 2/3s of their canopy removed.
2. Brisbane City Council announced they will plant 2 million trees across the city by 2012. This is a fabulous initiative & the community can participate. http://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/BCC:BASE::pc=PC_2645
Their website http://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/BCC:BASE::pc=PC_694 says residents can request a street tree be planted & provides a list of suitable trees. Brisbane City Council also say they plant trees which will not interfere with overhead powerlines & that street trees are classified as “valuable Council & community assets” & protected under the Natural Assets Local Law making it an offence to prune, interfere with or remove street trees. Wonderful.
In another lovely initiative, Brisbane City Council has organised Tree Trail. Information & a map of 20 locations can be downloaded highlighting special & significant trees around the CBD. I think this is a terrific idea & believe it would be a boon for tourism. HTTP://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/BCC:BASE::pc=PC_936
3. Hornsby Councillor Bruce Mills’ proposal to plant mature trees to create ‘instant boulevards’ was voted in during a March Council Meeting. Residents need to request that their street become a tree-lined boulevard. Councillor Mills says this initiative will be “returning ratepayer funds in a way which adds to their property value.” http://cumberland-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/tree-lined-streets-are-a-reality-in-cherrybrook/
After pruning by Energy Australia, this tree on Renwick Street is a shadow of its former self
The Boulevard in Dulwich Hill is an excellent local example of a street loved because of its many, large street trees that cascade over the road. Ask any real estate agent & they will tell you this street is sort after with buyers paying more to purchase property here because of the presence of these trees.
The following is a short, but relevant article about trees & property value in America. Adelaide University has assessed the value of trees upwards to 25% of the property’s value in line with Australian property prices as they are more expensive than in the USA. http://www.keeferealestate.com/news/concierge.php?itemid=620
Personally, I would love it if our Council copied the ‘instant boulevard’ idea. Even planting more developed trees would be a step forward as these have a greater chance of surviving. City of Sydney Council planted 200 litre root-ball 4 metre high Simon Poplars along & on the corner of side streets in Glebe Point Road in 2009. All these trees have survived & are growing well. There positive impact was immediate & the area looks greener & prettier for it.
4. City of Sydney Greens Councillor Chris Harris wrote about a proposed cycleway in Johnstons Creek that he says will destroy wildlife habitat. This new 2.5 meter wide cement path starts at Orphan Creek, an woodland & wildlife habitat area in Forest Lodge that was decimated for a similar path in 2009 despite enormous & organised community opposition. What is also disturbing in this article is residents from Minogue Crescent who are directly affected by the new cycleway, were refused permission to address the Councillors during a Council Meeting who ‘voted in a block’ to deny them this opportunity. I would have thought it a right. http://www.chrisharris.org.au/2010/03/10/johnstons-creek-cycleway-on-the-wrong-track/
5. The Daily Telegraph reported that State Forests NSW started woodchip logging in the Mumbulla & Murrah state forests on 29th March 2010 despite this being the last area in SE NSW where the threatened species Koala lives. A group of residents attempting to save the Koala habitat managed to stop logging by getting in the way of loggers. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/breaking-news/tense-stand-off-over-koala-colony/story-e6freuyi-1225847595335?from=public_rss
This street tree in Renwick Street had a naturally round canopy. Before it was pruned early 2010, it looked something like the area shaded in yellow. It may have been taller
Koalas are listed as a threatened species & classified as ‘vulnerable.’ From the NSW state governments own web-site – A ‘vulnerable’ species is likely to become endangered unless the circumstances & factors threatening its survival or evolutionary development cease to operate. Yet, they are taking down forests where Koalas are known to live. I just don’t understand this.
Everyone fell in love with the burnt Koala who was filmed drinking water given by a Fireman during last year’s Victorian bushfires, but we can’t rely on our government to save our national emblem. For more information about this issue including how you can help, go to Nature Conservation Council of NSW http://nccnsw.org.au/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3002&Itemid=1
On 24th January 2010 I reported in Tree News Local & International of a report by The Cumberland Courier of the death of a grove of 40 year old Gums on a property in Boundary Road, Box Hill which was being investigated by Hills Shire Council & Castle Hill police. Seems Hills Shire Council believes the trees have been poisoned as they have drill holes in them. Apart from the Gums, a number of Ironbarks thought to be older than 100 years are also dying on this property. Sad. Sad. Sad. You can read the first part of the story here – http://cumberland-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/what-s-killing-box-hill-s-trees/
& the second follow-up article here – http://cumberland-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/dying-trees-may-be-over-100-years-old-council-confirms-trees-poisoned/
Energy Australia is getting more negative publicity this time from the Inner West Courier. http://inner-west-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/wrights-rd-drummoyne-ruined-days-after-resurfacing/
Coffs Harbour City Council just won a court case against a company owner for the removal of koala habitat trees on a Moonee property in June 2009. The company received a hefty fine. To read this click on the following – http://www.lgtra.com/in-the-news/7-council/61-tree-preservation-order-fines-highlight-need-for-awareness.html
I don’t know if this type of offence has always made news, but it seems to me that tree vandalism is making the news globally at the moment. I think this is terrific. When I was growing up people did dreadful things to trees & there was no-one to call them to account for it. The attitude was ‘man conquers trees’ & we have huge loss of forests world-wide & a massive reduction in the percentage of urban trees to show for it.
Times have changed & it seems the community is insisting that offences against trees be punished. This type of attitudinal shift will only benefit us in the long-term & perhaps over the next 30 years we can leave the world in a much better state than it is currently.
The Cooks River Valley Times this week had the intended massive expansion (more than double) of Marrickville Metro shopping centre on their front page. If AMP do get approval to expand Marrickville Metro, we will lose another lot of healthy, mature & old Hills Figs. There are more than 20 which surround the shopping complex. Apart from the food & shelter these trees give to local wildlife, they serve a very important role in disguising the visually unpleasant complex, which is basically a cement box with entrances & ramps leading to car parking. Okay, this is what malls generally look like, but the Figs are way too precious to be chopped down to significantly enlarge a centre where shop-keepers have told me during general chit-chat over last 2-3 years that they are struggling to survive. There are also a number of tall Eucalypts with trunks around 2-3 metres which may also have to go if the building expands outwards & not upwards. This DA is going to have a big impact for the community if it goes ahead. I seem to remember Marrickville Council’s Draft LEP mentioning something about new units planned to house thousands of people within 800 metres from Metro. Oh boy. More high-rise.
http://www.torchpublishing.com.au/read/Valley_Times_4_February_2010/index.html
Integral Energy have “chastised some of its contactors for overzealous pruning of street trees” after the street trees in Christine Street Northmead were ruined. Intergal Energy admitted their contactor “got it wrong.” In the article written in the Cumberland Courier the energy company talks about their tree pruning practices & training.
http://cumberland-courier.whereilive.com.au/news/story/residents-cant-see-the-trees-for-deforest/
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