Earthcare News
September 2001
I do what I can, where I
am.
Call to Action
on For the Coast
Planting and
Muck Raking Day (seaweed)
Sunday 14th
October
11am - 3pm
The St Kilda
Breakwater Fauna Reserve
Meet at Breakwater gates. Melways 57 H9
Come and plant salt marsh
plants on this special spot providing nest materials for the penguin colony,
enjoy a delicious healthy lunch, and lively conversation.
Please bring your own weather
protection and gloves and tools (if possible, we have some), Bring your friends
(if possible, we have some).
This is a suitable place to
bring children, although due vigilance is always needed.
Earthcare thanks Coast
Action\Coastcare for their assistance in staging this event.
Penguin Party
Come and Celebrate 15 years of Penguin Research with Earthcare
Featuring the Launch of our new 'The St Kilda Penguins' Booklet
Plus Zoe And Angela will put on a Penguin Show.
A night not to be missed!
Thursday 27th September
7.30pm at the EcoCentre
Food
and Drink supplied
Planting at
Johnson Reserve
Sunday 30th
September
1pm - 4pm
Lunch Supplied by Excell
Corp!
Johnson Reserve is at the
corner of Canterbury Rd and Cowderoy St, West St Kilda.
Bring your friends and enjoy this
delightful park, full of wild flowers, plant a few more, while enjoying
Excell's hospitality. Johnson Reserve is a fantastic model of what a small
urban park should look like. Please bring your own weather protection, and
tools & gloves if possible.
Further details Alison 9532
4138
Melways Ref 57 K7
The
Future of the Rakali Watch
The
Rakali Watch was initially a curiosity-based response to the migration of the
water rats into the St Kilda breakwater area. The initial goals of the study
group included finding the density and range of the population, the
effectiveness of the animals in the water (eg their swim speed and dive time)
and their behavioural characteristics. Observation alone has answered many of
these questions with results published in The Marvellous Rakali booklet
(1998). As the contributors to the watch have found, proper analysis of the
population has been hampered by the inability to tell individuals apart. This
now means the current goal is to tag the population. Once tagged we will be
able to more properly assess the stability and needs of the rakali on the
breakwater. As the Rakali Watch is under the Earthcare banner we need to
remember that we have a conservative role rather than a scientific focus and
hence limit our investigations to those which are beneficial to the animals
themselves. Part of this may include raising the public awareness of our unique
native water rat.
Next Rakali Watch, Meet at the start of St
Kilda Breakwater, then on boardwalk behind St Kilda Kiosk. 7.00pm Details
Jessica 0412 103 550
What's On
22nd Sept, Greening Aust. Landscaping with Indigenous
Plants Meet 10 Buckingham Dr, Heidelberg (mel32 D3) 9.30am-4pm Cost $30member
Ph: 9450 5304
27th Sept, Earthcare Meeting Featuring a celebration of
15years of Penguin Research, at the EcoCentre cnr Blessington & Herbert St,
St Kilda 7.30pm
30th Sept, Earthcare Planting
Johnson Reserve, Corner of Canterbury Rd and Cowderoy St, St Kilda Melways 57
K7. 1pm-4pm. Lunch Provided.
7th Oct. Penguin Research, Meet at start of St.
Kilda Pier 8.00pm Details call 9527 8334 Warm clothing essential.
14th Oct. Call to Action For the Coast, Planting and
Muck Raking Day at The St Kilda Breakwater, Melways 57 H9 11am-3pm details
Alison 9532 4138
14th Oct. Parks Vic, Walk, Talk and Gawk Day Trips - Brisbane Ranges
Nat. Park & Steiglitz Historic Court. Lunch Provided. Departs 8.30am Free
for Earthcare & community group members, Bookings essential Kate Hayes 13
1963
16th Oct. Rakali Watch, Meet at the start of St
Kilda Breakwater, then on boardwalk behind St Kilda Kiosk. 7.00pm Details
Jessica 0412 103 550
21stOct. Friends
of Port Foreshore, Working bee, Perc White Reserve, 9.30am- 12noon info. 9645 2269
melways 56 f3
21st Oct. Penguin Research, Meet at start of St.
Kilda Pier 7.30pm Details call Angela 9527 8334 Warm clothing essential.
21st Oct. Friends of Sandy Rail, watering, weeding and admiring our
handy work. Riddell Pde Elsternwick Melways 67 G4 10am till 12noon
21st Oct. Friends of Westgate Park, Check noticeboard Todd Rd Carpark
for exact location Free Vegie bbq Mel. 56 F1. 11am onwards
25th Oct. Earthcare Meeting, featuring a speaker from
Skinc on Wildflowers. 7.30pm at the EcoCentre
27th Oct. Parks
Vic, Walk, Talk and Gawk Day Trips - Langwarrin Flora & Fauna Reserve and
Seawinds Nursery. Featuring Leon Costermans. Lunch Provided. Departs 8.45am.
Free for Earthcare & community group members, Bookings essential Kate Hayes
13 1963
28th Oct. Alma Rail, weeding Alma Park East. (mel 58 E8)
2pm-4pm Jo 9533 8707
28th Oct. Federation Walks, Immigrants Trail. Meet at Station Pier, Port
Melbourne Melways 57A3 bookings or details 9690 9584 10am
I attended the first of
three meetings that facilitate community input into the future of the St.Kilda
Foreshore. There are reasonably
positive signs: Environmental sustainability is now included as a guiding principle. Even though the wording is currently weak,
the people with the power seem genuinely interested in Earthcare’s input.
We have an opportunity to
have an input into the wording. I hope
to receive an electronic version soon so anyone who is interested please email
me on mjsk@vicnet.net.au and I can email you a
copy for comment.
The chair of the committee,
John Lawson has asked us to put down on paper-i.e. on a map our ideas for the
foreshore. Zoe, Rob Scott and I (and
anyone else who is interested) will be working on this over the next few weeks.
Seastar
Eradication Programme
Last months Seastar Project
Launch was an extraordinary success with approximately 75 people attending the
meeting and enjoying the informative speaker Greg Parry. The follow up
organization meeting was also well attended; out of these a dedicated work
group has been assembled. The end of November is being considered as a date for
the first dive. Stay tuned for the exact time and date. Thanks to all who
helped make this happen, particularly Alan Budzairski the team leader.
Free Day Trips with Park
Vic
To celebrate the
International Year of the Volunteer, Parks Victoria invites Earthcare Members
to a series of one day excursions, to meet other friends groups and exchange
ideas.
Sunday 14th Oct.
Brisbane Ranges Nat. Park & Steiglitz Historic Court. Speakers Rob Giddings
and Ned Turcinov. Departs 8.30am
Saturday 27th Oct. Langwarrin Flora
& Fauna Reserve and Seawinds Nursery.
Featuring Leon Costermans. Departs
8.45am.
Saturday 10th November Castlemaine
Historic Area and Mount Alexander Diggings Departs 8.45am
Each trip departs from
Melbourne by Bus. Morning tea & BBQ Lunch supplied. All Free for Earthcare
& community group members, Bookings essential Kate Hayes 13 1963
Announcing Seirei no Kai 10th
Anniversary Event
November 18 (Sun) 1:00pm
At the Obu Workers' Cultural Hall
Film: 'Shimantogawa River', followed by a
discussion with the director, Mr Hieo Onji
Earthcare
Members are invited to attend Seirei Anniversary Celebrations, and accommodation
can be arranged. Those interested please email oia@ma.medias.jp
Water from a well (1) on higher
ground turns the waterwheel (2), which provides power for the pump (3), which
draws water from the pond (4). The water then passes down a channel through a
variety of filters before flowing back into the lake.
Further work to be carried out on
the channel
·
install more
PET bottle filtration tanks
·
incorporation
of charcoal and sand filtration tanks