Hearty congratulations to our President, David Redfearn, on being awarded the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) in the General Division, in the 2012 Australia Day Awards.
David was honoured for his service to conservation and the environment, to local government, and to the community. Besides being President of Friends of Merri Creek since 2004, there is a most impressive list of organisations to which he has made a substantial contribution.  These include, among others: President of Merri Creek Management Committee from 1990-99; inaugural President of Yarra Riverkeeper Association from 2004-09; Mayor, City of Northcote from 1984-85 and 1986-87 and a Councillor from 1982-93. In 2000, David was also was awarded the City of Darebin Citizen of the Year.

We are saddened by the death of Life Member, Harold Mackrell, on Sunday 1 April. Harold’s connection with the Merri began in 1975 when he was a Fitzroy City Councillor (1973 to 1976 and 1979 to 1982 - becoming Mayor in his last year). He helped establish the group in 1988, was a Committee member, a reliable representative on Merri Creek Management Committee until 2009, and a regular at litter clean-ups with his special hooked 14ft folding pole for hard to reach litter. For decades he hosted Asian students in his Fitzroy home and was active with a number of Asian friendship organisations, and this work led to him being presented with a special gift by the Chinese Consulate. A documentary was even made about him in Mandarin. In 2002 he was awarded the City of Yarra Citizen of the Year and the Order of Australia Medal for his work in the Fitzroy community. Even after death, his humble nature and community values were revealed when, as he requested, no funeral was held and Melbourne University established a scholarship for Indigenous students in his name. Tributes can be left to Harold at: http://haroldmackrell.blogspot.com.au/

We have written to the Chief Executive of Parks Victoria, Dr Bill Jackson, asking him to ensure action on Marran Baba (Merri Creek Parklands – north of the Western Ring Road) and enclosing a timeline showing a list of delays extending over almost ten years (see the May Merri Growler, p 4-5).

We have expressed our discontent at being unable to work on sites along Merri Creek in the City of Yarra, including Hall Reserve, Clifton Hill, and the area from Rushall Station to Queens Pde, Nth Fitzroy, after a Council directive has prevented Merri Creek Management Committee (MCMC) from doing revegetation work on these sites. They have been established and continuously maintained through partnerships between us, MCMC and Yarra Council.

The Friends of Merri Creek have been successful with the following grants:

$19,998 Port Phillip & Westernport CMA Community Grant for the project: Stepping together to care for Bababi Djinanang (Jukes Rd Grassland), to enable restoration and management of Bababi Djinanang along with Wurundjeri.
$20,000 Caring for our Country Community Action Grant to MECCARG for the project: Restoring the Murnong fields and cultural landscape of the Wurundjeri, which aims to address loss of biodiversity values and the disconnection of human communities with the natural environment.

Thanks also to Melbourne Water for the following River Health Incentive Program grants:
$20,000 for the project: Bringing ‘The Merri Island’ back to life in Northcote, for restoration of understorey streambank shrubland and control of invasive weeds.
$19,612 for the project: Linking up the Merri Creek habitat corridor in Fawkner, for weed control and revegetation alongside the Merri trail from Hare St to Jukes Rd Fawkner.
$15,020 for the MECCARG project: Linking Rosemary Grevillea escarpment & Pentridge quarry: riparian & wetland development, for linking sites to increase Biodiversity values.
$980 support grant to MECCARG for volunteers to tour Mt Rothwell Biodiversity Interpretation Centre.

Huge thanks to the MCMC Conservation Program Manager, Katrina Roberg, without whom we wouldn’t have such success with grants.

See photos of Merri Creek by Darron Davies at: http://www.darrondavies.com/merri.html

The Victoran National Parks Association has started a campaign to save Threatened critters, like the Growling Grass Frog and Golden Sun Moth from urban sprawl.  See their website to see you you can help.

The Victorian Government’s is following an illogical out-of-sequence planning process for the new growth areas. The Government has released the Northern Growth Corridor Framework Plans simultaneously with the Golden Sun Moth strategy, which which should have been released beforehand.

On Thursday 16 September, Friends of Merri Creek Secretary, Ray Radford was lucky enough to see a Platypus about 30cm long in the Thornbury/Coburg area of Merri Creek.

Ray was able to watch it for about 20 minutes while it hunted, swam, went in and out of its refuge and even had a scratch while on a rock.

Geoff Williams, from the Australian Platypus Conservancy, said: “As far as we are concerned, this is the first really confirmed record for Merri Creek itself since the Australian Platypus Conservancy conducted trapping surveys (with negative results) in 1995."

Friends of Merri Creek (FoMC) has won the Port Phillip and Westernport Landcare Award in the category Community Group Caring for Public Land.

The Awards took place on Saturday 11 September and FoMC’s award was accepted by the President, David Redfearn, the Secretary, Ray Radford and the Membership Secretary, Monica Williamson.

In the words of the judges, "The Friends of Merri Creek have shown great leadership and innovation in regards to protecting and enhancing the environs of the Merri Creek."

This Award is great recognition for the work done by FoMC and the honour is shared by our members and all those who have helped out at any of our events. This award is particularly special for FoMC as an urban-based group, when Landcare tends to be associated with rural-based groups.

Next year, FoMC will be proud to represent the Port Phillip and Westernport catchment in the same category at the Victorian Landcare Awards.

In December 2008, the State Government announced investigations for a significant expansion of the Urban Growth Boundary. One investigation area covers most of the Merri Creek catchment from north of Craigieburn to Wallan.

In response, the Friends of Merri Creek present their vision of parklands, habitat links and rural and urban landscapes that sustain natural ecosystems and provide spaces for recreation:-

A Melbourne of 5 million people without sacrificing the plants and animals that have made the Merri home for millennia.

The Friends of Merri Creek seek protection for creeks, wetlands, significant native vegetation, volcanic cones, Aboriginal and historic heritage. We envisage a network of habitat links through urban and rural areas, to connect larger conservation reserves within and beyond the Merri catchment. Green wedges would be retained between growth corridors, and rural communities and landscapes sustained, both for their own sake and as breathing spaces for the metropolis, complementing the habitat in conservation areas. These measures will help to maintain Melbourne’s liveability for people, and maintain the diversity of life on our northern doorstep.

Click here for more information

FoMC now has the pronunciations for the innovative Wurundjeri names, provided by Doreen Garvey-Wandin, for the grasslands along Merri Creek.

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FoMC congratulates Life Member, Brian Bainbridge, on winning the 2008 Port Phillip & Western Port Landcare ‘Caring for Commumnity Groups’ Award.

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Comments on the Green Paper: Land and biodiversity at a time of climate change

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The importance of urban Landcare