Penrith City Council has welcomed a new community led nature conservation scheme, complimenting the Council’s raft of initiatives and events aiming to preserve the local environment.
The Land for Wildlife program is delivered by The Community Environment Network (CEN) in partnership with interested local organisations, with regional delivery of the initiative to be carried out by non-government organisations, community groups, Catchment Management Authorities or local councils who form a partnership with CEN.
The initiative gives landowners a chance to help conserve wildlife on their own properties, with the program launched in the Penrith local government area to show residents how they can continue to play a crucial role in protecting the environment.
As part of the program, landowners can apply for up to $2,000 in grant funding, which will allow them to undertake various nature conservation activities, such as removing and controlling weeds, establishing new nature strips, and more generally, improving biodiversity.
Penrith Mayor, Tricia Hitchen, said the community’s uptake and involvement in these programs is proof that the city is committed to conservation.
“Penrith City Council is passionate about biodiversity and doing our utmost to sustain our community’s array of native flora and fauna, so it is fantastic to see we have people right here in our City who care about wildlife and vegetation,” Mayor Hitchen said.
The Penrith Council is hoping that the new program will set a precedent for the rest of the city and encourage other landowners to apply.
The owners of seven acreage properties have volunteered to take part in the scheme which is a coordinated by the CEN n partnership with the NSW Government’s Office of Environment and Heritage.Landowners are required to have one acre of good quality bushland and have their property assessed for suitable nature conservation before being accepted into the scheme.
During the launch of the program on the heritage listed Fairlight Homestead in Mulgoa, Mayor Hitchen presented volunteers with Land for Wildlife signs and thanked the landowners for choosing to be local leaders.
The launch was hosted by Mulgoa Valley Landcare Group president, and coordinator of the new program Lisa Harrold.
Mayor Hitchen said Penrith is unique in the way it covers a vast footprint with high-density urban pockets, through to sprawling rural estates, offering a rare opportunity to attempt to maximise conservation efforts on larger blocks of land.
“Council has many of our own biodiversity initiatives and we are always thrilled when community members share the same eagerness to make a difference and protect a significant part of what makes our City special,” Mayor Hitchen said.
Regentville residents, Scott and Suzanne Bailey, call their Factory Road property their “piece of paradise.”
Their property is a private parcel of land where they are visited by wombats, wallabies, ring-tailed possums and even platypuses.
In recent years, the couple added up to 500 new plants but sadly lost more than half in the latest flood event as excessive rain and water swept through the property.
Mr Bailey said that grant funding would assist in their efforts to restore habitat on the land.
“What we are now trying to do is stop the erosion,” Mr Bailey said.
Find out more about Land for Wildlife at CEN online.
Image courtesy of Penrith City Council.
Photo caption: Mulgoa Valley Landcare Group president Lisa Harrold, local landowners Henry Cook, Kerry Spurrett and Scott Bailey, and Penrith Mayor Tricia Hitchen at the Land for Wildlife launch.
