HEN - Hawkesbury Environment Network

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HEN NEWSLETTER March 2019

There is a lot happening this year. The new HEN Committee has started campaigning and working for the  protection of our beautiful Hawkesbury Environment.

Last week in Richmond Hawkesbury Environment Network co-hosted with Colong Foundation and Venecia Wilson the popular and important documentary Give a Dam https://mountvicflicks.com.au/sessions/give-a-dam-the-documentary/ which explains why the NSW Government wants to raise the Warragamba Dam wall (to continue to develop western Sydney floodplains and in the process destroy 65 kilometres of NSW wilderness rivers). This documentary showcases the spectacular landscapes under threat and the people who are devoting their lives to save it. 

Clean-up Australia Day was held last Saturday and a large group of HEN members and friends attended Macquarie Park Windsor to clean up the rubbish left there. The Park looked pretty good by the time we finished!

Hawkesbury Council’s Justin Murphy is organising a Citizen Science training program, “Understanding Urban Heat” https://citizenscienceproject.org.au/. Each session (you only need to attend one) will be held in 3 locations – Windsor, Bligh Park and Richmond – on 15th, 16th and 17th March. You can email Justin at Council to register Justin.Murphy@hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au

HEN will co-host the Candidates Forum at the Richmond Club 9th March so that Hawkesbury voters can hear what all our candidates from all political parties have planned, and maybe help us decide who to vote for.. 

Our next Committee meeting will be held on Monday 18th March in the Windsor Library Rozzoli Room at 6.30 pm. Paid-up members of HEN are welcome to come along as observers to hear about upcoming events for 2019. Please let us know if you plan to come via info@hen.org.au 

HEN’s Submission to Hawkesbury Council regarding the proposed sandmine at Freeman’s Reach has been sent off and we await further news on this matter. 

After sending off a request for information and action, HEN is still waiting for a response from the Water Minister, Niall Blair regarding the health of Bushell’s Lagoon. 

Preliminary planning for KoalaFest 2019 is in the works and looks like going ahead again this August after a very positive event last year in Kurrajong Park. Any members or supporters of HEN who would like to help out with this event or hold a stall, please contact me at info@hen.org.au  We need all the help we can get!

As a not-for -profit organisation we depend on membership and donations to fund our on-going operating expenses. Funds are need to maintain the website, our PO Box and other minor admin costs such as printing flyers for events. You are receiving this newsletter because at some time you have joined HEN or shown your support. We are most appreciative of those members who renew their membership annually (it’s easy via the website).

Please visit our website (below) and look at  HEN Facebook is where many events show up: Please Like us!

Keep in touch and encourage your friends to join up and be part of our campaigns! We are really keen to attract new paying members to HEN.

 

Kind Regards,

Jocelyn Howden
Vice Chair

HEN NEWSLETTER JUNE 2018

ARE YOU CONCERNED ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT AND WANT TO DO MORE TO HELP PROTECT IT?

HEN has recently run a successful campaign to reduce WASTE in the Hawkesbury. Our first step was to collaborate  with the Hawkesbury Council to bring Responsible Cafes to the region by encouraging the use of Keep Cups. Many local cafes have come on board and the waste from disposable cups is already being reduced.

You may have seen us at the Hawkesbury Show inside the HCC tent!

Our next move in the Waste area is to find and list repairers in The Hawkesbury who will mend all manner of goods/ clothes/ household items. This is to encourage reuse and recycling, and reduce the unnecessary purchase of new items. Please let us know if you are aware of anyone who might be interested in this campaign.

Hawkesbury region (and Greater Western Sydney) is under enormous pressure for development on a scale not seen before. This means more housing, industry, infrastructure, greater water use, air & water pollution, alteration of hydrology,  and waste  production; as well as decimation and fragmentation of the last remnants of Cumberland Plain vegetation, and surrounds, with the impacts on wildlife due to clearing, higher traffic, noise etc..
HEN is working with BLORCAG https://www.facebook.com/groups/352831875210393/about/
to highlight residents’ and landowners’ objections to this massive proposed road corridor known as the Castlereagh/ Bells Line of Road Corridor.

HEN is also part of a group bringing together community groups, industry and government who are  organising a Koala Awareness Day in Kurrajong Park 15th September 10am – 2pm to highlight the importance of keeping habitat for the iconic koalas still found in the Hawkesbury. In attendance should be a koala detection dog and Cranky Koala with kids’ competitions. Please come along!

Special Sydney Science Festival presentation: Tuesday 14th August 6-7pm Windsor Library

Protecting our Hawkesbury- Nepean River System

Join Dr Ian Wright as he explains what happens when you flush the loo or wash clothes and how much of this water waste makes its way into our river systems, the lifeblood for food, agriculture and our quality of life in the Hawkesbury.

Please keep in touch with us and let us know how you would like to help with any of these campaigns.

DONT WASTE THE HAWKESBURY

Following the ABC’s War on Waste series there is increasing interest in the
Hawkesbury region around reducing waste, recycling, minimising plastics,
using worm farms, clothes swaps and reducing household rubbish.
Join local members of your community, to discuss:
• Concerns and positve solutions to waste
• Food waste – keep it out of landfill
• Recycling
HEN AGM will follow this meeting. Supper provided.

How healthy are our waterways?

Two new Streamwatch teams formed

Cecil and group around kit..note the use of protective gear!

In a burst of enthusiasm, nineteen participants came together at the Australiana Pioneer Village to spend some three hours training with Greg McDonald and Cecil Ellis from AusMuseum Streamwatch program. Fully provisioned kits will be supplied to these teams to use on water testing at Bushells Lagoon and Australiana Village lagoon as well as further afield. Water quality is monitored on a monthly basis including testing oxygen, phosphate, saltiness, pH and turbidity levels. Water quality data is recorded and can act as an early warning system for pollution events and provides a valuable record of catchment health. [Read more…] about How healthy are our waterways?

Wetland update: Green Army have finished their role: now it’s time for Wetland Landcare!

How is the knowledge and works on our local wetlands progressing?

Wetland bank vegetation showing relationship of form to site and function. Missing in the diagram are the roots which are key to bank protection.

The map of Bushells Lagoon here shows (orange spots) where HEN and Green Army stages 1-3 began some on-ground works in 2015-2016, which now gives us much more clarity about what to undertake next. We have treated weeds, fenced, planted reeds, trees and shrubs; and learnt a lot..plant ID, bird ID, water tests, carpwatch, assessing damage to banks and how to protect them from erosion…there is much more to learn however!! It was a collaborative operation with WSU, TAFE, Council and Hawkesbury River County Council, as well as Local Land Services and several research students. A new youth team calling themselves Wetland Warriors was formed by the young GA team: despite calls on their time to study or find a job, they have inspired landholders to work together on more wetland protection.Plans are now on the way for workdays to be held at selected sites to continue bank protection and restoration. This is intended to encourage locals around the wetland  to give some of their time to develop a more stable, biodiverse and resilient riparian edge (against wave and carp action) by initially scoping the site and seeing some indicators of issues eg depth, turbidity, exposure, lack of plant roots, lack of woody debris etc; then undertaking planting of selected reeds, shrubs and trees on the day. The two photos taken before and after restoration works shows what can be done by simple means. Please get in touch with HEN Project Co-ordinator for more information about being involved.

Reed beds June 2015. No control on livestock grazing

Same reed beds after fencing to exclude livestock, and introduction of more species of reeds. March 2017