Central West Lachlan Landcare (CWLL) have farewelled their second Skillset Green Army Team after 20 weeks of work in the Parkes and Forbes Shire Council areas.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The team consisted of five participants between the ages of 17 and 24 years, overseen by Team Supervisor, Guy Bennett.
The Green Army is a hands-on, practical, environmental action programme that supports local environmental and heritage conservation projects across Australia.
It is an Australian Government initiative for young Australians aged 17–24 years who are interested in protecting their local environment.
The participants obtained Work Health Safety, First Aid and other training as well as working on several projects including
- commencing the Gum Swamp Painted Snipe Project at Forbes,
- follow up work with plants at the Central West Livestock Exchange (planted by the previous team and community members),
- work on Memorial Hill at Parkes,
- Bedgerabong,
- Trundle,
- Peak Hill,
- Bulgandramine,
- Beargamil Dam,
- Lake Endeavour and
- significant weed control work in both Shires.
CWLL Chair, Margot Jolly said the team had the opportunity to work in many smaller communities, which was a pleasing undertaking.
“The second team commenced during the heat of summer in January, which meant that they have had a variety of jobs,” Margot said.
“some of this time has been spent working with Parkes and Forbes Shire Council staff addressing weed problems in many outlying areas and undertaking several larger scale planting projects in the cooler weather.”
CWLL Co-ordinator, Marg Applebee said the team have done well to make the most of the opportunities that they have had, maintaining and improving biodiversity in the local area.
“It has been a pleasure to work with Skillset to provide work opportunities for young people in our community,” Marg said.
“We hope this is the beginning of many great things participants undertake and CWLL hope they will be able to build on the skills they have obtained over the last 20 weeks to pursue further employment.”
The focus of the project has been working on increasing the biodiversity and connecting our Weeping Myall Woodlands.
Margot said the woodlands are listed as Endangered Ecological Communities under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.
“It provides an excellent opportunity for us to work on connecting woodland areas and corridors to increase habitat for native species,” she said.
“The group haven’t just been planting trees. They have also been learning to identify, collect and grow local seed, learning how to work as a team and gain experience that will provide a platform to future work opportunities now that they have left the Programme.”
CWLL will be partnering with Skillset again to undertake more projects with a third and final team commencing next week.
They are keen to hear from local landholders who are willing to work with CWLL to undertake projects suitable for the Green Army Team.
Landholders are encouraged to contact the Landcare Office on 02 6862 4914 and speak with Marg Applebee to find out more information.
PICTURED ABOVE: From left - Graham Stirling, Skillset Environment Green Army Field Co-ordinator, Forbes Mayor Cr Graeme Miller, Bradley Dunn, Sebastian Berry, Kyasha Palmer, Troy Gibson, Laura Harvey, Parkes Mayor Cr Ken Keith, Marg Applebee (Landcare Co-ordinator) and Guy Bennett (Team Supervisor). Photo by Barbara Watt.
