Young people involved in Macarthur’s Green Army project have rolled up their sleeves and got stuck into on-ground works in Campbelltown.
Hard at work at Fisher’s Ghost Reserve removing noxious weeds, pollutant waste and undertaking water quality monitoring, this week the team received a visit by the federal member for Macarthur, Mr Russell Matheson, along with the new mayor of Campbelltown, Cr Paul Hawker.
This Green Army project will benefit the local area by improving biodiversity in threatened ecological communities such as the Cumberland Plain woodland, shale sandstone transition forest, river flat eucalypt forest and Sydney sandstone ironbark forest.
This will be achieved through the control of weeds of national significance, noxious weeds, environmental weeds, removal of gross pollutant waste and revegetation activities.
“During the next six months we will see first hand the benefits and improvements made to our local environment through activities undertaken by the Green Army,’’ Mr Matheson said after meeting and talking with members of the local Green Army.
[social_quote duplicate=”no” align=”default”]“Macarthur has Green Army teams on the ground working on projects in Camden, Mount Annan and now Campbelltown.[/social_quote]
“These participants will not only be generating real environment and conservation benefits for our community, but they will be gaining valuable practical training and experience to help them prepare for the workforce or further training and improve their career opportunities.”
Local participants will also gain skills through undertaking water quality monitoring using the Bushcare water quality testing kits on a bi-monthly basis at Smiths Creek Reserve and Fishers Ghost Reserve and gaining nursery related skills through training at Wollondilly Council Community Nursery.
The Green Army is a key federal government commitment with $525 million budgeted over four years.
The program encourages practical, grassroots action to support local environment and heritage conservation projects across Australia.
It will provide training to 15,000 young Australians by 2018.
This investment in the Green Army will bring the Government’s total investment in natural resource management to more than $2 billion over four years.
Further opportunities to join a Green Army project can be found online in the green army website.
Pity he did not consider this first. At last, Infrastructure Australia’s concern, about Commonwealth Infrastructure been seen as a “gift” to assist in the delivery of a project or support a state rather than an exchange to improve national outcomes, are being recognised (SMH Comment Tue 29 Sept 2015) Something that need urgent investigation in this regard is the release of 35,000 lots south of Campbelltown. If this land release goes ahead the developers will turn a national road (the M5) into a local road for their development. National roads such as the M5 were intended to facilitate inter regional and interstate access. Not to allow easy local access will only encourage clogged roads and ribbon development.