Work is well underway on a revegetation project designed to help rejuvenate the natural wetland and woodland environment at Forge Creek near Bairnsdale.
Funded by East Gippsland Catchment Management Authority and East Gippsland Water, this partnership initiative also involves: Romawi Landcare; Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation (GLaWAC), through their natural resource management crew; and, the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP).
In addition to planting around 3,000 native wetland plants and installing some protective fencing, work involves removing sections of old fence likely to endanger wildlife, as well as constructing wildlife exclusion plots.
The project’s coordinator, Andy Booth, said, “Here is a great example of how a number of organisations can work very effectively together with the common goal of protecting and enhancing the biodiversity of the local area. This is particularly significant given that there are more than 30 animal species of conservation concern known to be living on or around Forge Creek, including birds and fish.”
Amongst resident species of conservation concern are glass eels, which undertake a massive migration all the way from Forge Creek to the Coral Sea to spawn.
