The group met on Saturday morning, 9 April. We meet in the reserve between 119 and 121 Bilga Crescent at 8 AM. New members are welcome and are given training and safety instruction. Tools and morning tea are provided.
Little Bay Landcare is a great way to get to know the pockets of beautiful bushland and the magnificent views around the Coast Golf course (without having to play golf). The group's efforts help to eradicate invasive plants and preserve this beautiful landscape and native animal habitat for future generations.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Changed date for landcare group in March
Our monthly landcare group has been postponed until the 12th March, 2011 from 8 am to 12. Its frustrating just to watch those weeds grow, especially in this warmer weather, so if you're feeling energetic, a little weeding of the turkey rhubarb before its seed develops would be most welcome. Last month we worked on the bush between the 11th and 12th fairways - a huge amount of weeding on the edges of this bush area.
We note that honeysuckle is taking over on the edge of the 12th fairway. Despite our many years of working in this area, escapees from neighbouring gardens are defeating our best efforts. We need cooperation from neighbours for this small bush patch area to remain viable.
You are welcome to join our small group. Meet us in the reserve between 121 and 119 Bilga Cres. We provide morning tea. Hope to see you then. Kerryg
We note that honeysuckle is taking over on the edge of the 12th fairway. Despite our many years of working in this area, escapees from neighbouring gardens are defeating our best efforts. We need cooperation from neighbours for this small bush patch area to remain viable.
You are welcome to join our small group. Meet us in the reserve between 121 and 119 Bilga Cres. We provide morning tea. Hope to see you then. Kerryg
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Should Little Bay be a Marine Reserve?
There is growing concern at the devastation being caused to the marine environment of Little Bay and the risks posed to swimmers and snorkellers by sea urchin gatherers and spearfishermen. Some of the issues:
* every summer, groups of people are intensively harvesting the sea urchins from the rocks in the intertidal zone; it is believed that the almost total loss of the sea urchin population that is now occurring each summer is contributing to the disappearance of other marine life
* sea urchin gatherers are carelessly leaving the shells and spines of these creatures on the sand and in the water where swimmers and sunbathers can tread on them; sea urchin spine injuries are painful and the spines difficult to remove, sometimes requiring medical attention
* spearfishermen, many of them equipped with spearguns, many of them also inexperienced, are fishing in the shallow waters of the inner bay amongst swimmers and snorkellers; it is only a matter of time before there is an accident and a swimmer is injured, possibly seriously
* the spearfishermen are taking many fish and it is now rare to see a fish of any size in the bay.
Some comments from people we have spoken to or had email from:
"I have for a long time been concerned by the current lack of biodiversity in the rock pools and intertidal flats compared to the prolific range of organisms and marine vegetation of years past."
CA
"This is a link to the Sydney Aquatic Reserves -
http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/NationalParks/parkTypes.aspx?type=aquaticreserve&order=info
You will see that Bronte to Coogee is included. Unless there is a blanket ban the areas not included like Little Bay, Bare Island end up taking up the slack.
If you put in a proposal [ for some sort of marine reserve ] I think it should cover the whole [ Litle Bay - La Perouse ] Precinct otherwise the shell gatherers will simply come further south.
Personally I don't think any spearfishing should be allowed around swimming areas. One minute you're peacefully snorkeling with your children showing them the marine delights and next there's a lethal weapon being used in close proximity. You can't carry a nail file onto a plane but it's OK to use spears!!
Then there is the issue of the rockpools being stripped, sometimes the 'collectors' use paint stripper implements to 'clean up' the rocks. It would be one thing to declare the occasional cultural day and police it but all we have now is total free for all.
A neighbour recently emailed to say she'd found urchin shells discarded outside her house."
LN
'After Australia Day, the floor of the rock pool was thick with sea urchin spines, left by the gatherers who stripped the urchins of their spines in the pool, then smashed the urchins open and took the flesh.
My boys won't snorkel in the bay anymore; they say "Dad, there's no point, there's nothing to see."'
M
"We fully agree with your concern about the destruction of the marine environment in Little Bay - we've been snorkelling there for 3 years and have seen it collapse in this time."
CL & GL
If you have an opinion or suggestion on this topic, please post a comment.
* every summer, groups of people are intensively harvesting the sea urchins from the rocks in the intertidal zone; it is believed that the almost total loss of the sea urchin population that is now occurring each summer is contributing to the disappearance of other marine life
* sea urchin gatherers are carelessly leaving the shells and spines of these creatures on the sand and in the water where swimmers and sunbathers can tread on them; sea urchin spine injuries are painful and the spines difficult to remove, sometimes requiring medical attention
* spearfishermen, many of them equipped with spearguns, many of them also inexperienced, are fishing in the shallow waters of the inner bay amongst swimmers and snorkellers; it is only a matter of time before there is an accident and a swimmer is injured, possibly seriously
* the spearfishermen are taking many fish and it is now rare to see a fish of any size in the bay.
Some comments from people we have spoken to or had email from:
"I have for a long time been concerned by the current lack of biodiversity in the rock pools and intertidal flats compared to the prolific range of organisms and marine vegetation of years past."
CA
"This is a link to the Sydney Aquatic Reserves -
http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/NationalParks/parkTypes.aspx?type=aquaticreserve&order=info
You will see that Bronte to Coogee is included. Unless there is a blanket ban the areas not included like Little Bay, Bare Island end up taking up the slack.
If you put in a proposal [ for some sort of marine reserve ] I think it should cover the whole [ Litle Bay - La Perouse ] Precinct otherwise the shell gatherers will simply come further south.
Personally I don't think any spearfishing should be allowed around swimming areas. One minute you're peacefully snorkeling with your children showing them the marine delights and next there's a lethal weapon being used in close proximity. You can't carry a nail file onto a plane but it's OK to use spears!!
Then there is the issue of the rockpools being stripped, sometimes the 'collectors' use paint stripper implements to 'clean up' the rocks. It would be one thing to declare the occasional cultural day and police it but all we have now is total free for all.
A neighbour recently emailed to say she'd found urchin shells discarded outside her house."
LN
'After Australia Day, the floor of the rock pool was thick with sea urchin spines, left by the gatherers who stripped the urchins of their spines in the pool, then smashed the urchins open and took the flesh.
My boys won't snorkel in the bay anymore; they say "Dad, there's no point, there's nothing to see."'
M
"We fully agree with your concern about the destruction of the marine environment in Little Bay - we've been snorkelling there for 3 years and have seen it collapse in this time."
CL & GL
If you have an opinion or suggestion on this topic, please post a comment.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Landcare for 2010
The Little Bay Landcare group has been going for more than 5 years now, and we finished 2010 with more weeding by Mark, our Site supervisor and Don yesterday.
We are preserving areas of Coastal Heath and Eastern Suburbs Banksia scrub, preserving native habitat for birds and lizards and preventing the loss of local native flora. We have been working on areas between the 12 and 16th greens on the Coast Golf course, and on the northern portion of Little Bay beach. This area, above the path, is relatively weed free, so constant work on the perimeter is important to avoid futher losses of native species in this area. This year we were rewarded by a display of flannel flowers and a few orchids, although the rabbits seem to have eaten quite a few of the orchids.
We have been working on the largest remnant patch between the 11th and 17th greens over the past 12 months. This area has a lot of blackberry, lantana, bitou and turkey rhubarb. A large patch of this bush has been cleared in the middle, as someone has established a camp. This cleared area provides an opportunity for new weeds to establish, so it requires some attention. We've found a few blue tongue lizards in this patch.
Our next meeting will be the 4th Saturday, 22nd of January. We meet at 8am-12 outside 121 Bilga Cres. We provide tools and morning tea. We welcome anyone who's willing to volunteer. Mark provides instructions on weeding and safety instructions.
We are preserving areas of Coastal Heath and Eastern Suburbs Banksia scrub, preserving native habitat for birds and lizards and preventing the loss of local native flora. We have been working on areas between the 12 and 16th greens on the Coast Golf course, and on the northern portion of Little Bay beach. This area, above the path, is relatively weed free, so constant work on the perimeter is important to avoid futher losses of native species in this area. This year we were rewarded by a display of flannel flowers and a few orchids, although the rabbits seem to have eaten quite a few of the orchids.
We have been working on the largest remnant patch between the 11th and 17th greens over the past 12 months. This area has a lot of blackberry, lantana, bitou and turkey rhubarb. A large patch of this bush has been cleared in the middle, as someone has established a camp. This cleared area provides an opportunity for new weeds to establish, so it requires some attention. We've found a few blue tongue lizards in this patch.
Our next meeting will be the 4th Saturday, 22nd of January. We meet at 8am-12 outside 121 Bilga Cres. We provide tools and morning tea. We welcome anyone who's willing to volunteer. Mark provides instructions on weeding and safety instructions.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Little Bay Landcare
The Little Bay Landcare Group meets every fourth Saturday of the month (except December) at 8am outside 121 Bilga Crescent. From there we walk into the Coast Golf Course and do weeding on the periphery of the golf course at the northern end of Little Bay Beach until 12 noon.
The aim is to preserve the native bushland and remove weeds and other introduced plant species. We have a qualified supervisor from the National Heritage Trust and gloves, tools and collection bags are supplied.
This is a great morning if you like gardening, the outdoors and want to learn more about the native plants of the New South Wales coastline.
The aim is to preserve the native bushland and remove weeds and other introduced plant species. We have a qualified supervisor from the National Heritage Trust and gloves, tools and collection bags are supplied.
This is a great morning if you like gardening, the outdoors and want to learn more about the native plants of the New South Wales coastline.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Second Stage Cleanup Complete
Landcom have now completed the second stage cleanup of the beach. This cleanup was very thorough, using special equipment with finer sieves, and extending over eight days.
The result is very impressive with a lot more bricks, brick fragments, rusty metal, glass and earthenware removed. The General Manager of Randwick City Council, Mr. Ray Brownlee has now inspected the beach following the cleanup. All those in the inspection party agreed that the cleanup had achieved as much as was reasonably possible.
Expect transfer of management of the beach (dedication) from Landcom to Randwick Council within the next three months.
The beach is now vastly cleaner than it was. However beach users should exercise caution in the immediate area where the creek is flowing across the beach, especially after rain, as the creek's channel through the sand may expose additional small, sharp pieces of metal. Council cleaning staff and volunteers will inspect the creek area frequently in order to remove any metal they find.
Thank you Landcom for committing the considerable resources required to restore this badly polluted section of beach to its natural state.
The result is very impressive with a lot more bricks, brick fragments, rusty metal, glass and earthenware removed. The General Manager of Randwick City Council, Mr. Ray Brownlee has now inspected the beach following the cleanup. All those in the inspection party agreed that the cleanup had achieved as much as was reasonably possible.
Expect transfer of management of the beach (dedication) from Landcom to Randwick Council within the next three months.
The beach is now vastly cleaner than it was. However beach users should exercise caution in the immediate area where the creek is flowing across the beach, especially after rain, as the creek's channel through the sand may expose additional small, sharp pieces of metal. Council cleaning staff and volunteers will inspect the creek area frequently in order to remove any metal they find.
Thank you Landcom for committing the considerable resources required to restore this badly polluted section of beach to its natural state.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Site Inspection / Thanks to All Involved
The General Manager of Randwick Council, Mr. Ray Bownlee has now inspected the beach following the cleanup. He has agreed that the results are impressive and very pleasing, but acknowledges that further work is required using machinery with a finer sieve to remove small brick pieces, glass and most importantly, small, sharp-pointed pieces of metal. Further work will be subject to negotiation between Randwick Council and Landcom.
At this point it is appropriate to acknowledge the following people by whom I was most positively supported throughout and who I list in chronological order of my involvement with them:
* Lynda Newnham, Charles Abela and Bob Brooks (La Perouse Precinct Committee)
* Alderman Robert Belleli (Liberal Alderman, Randwick City Council, South Ward)
* Ray Brownlee (General Manager, Randwick City Council)
* David Allison (Greens candidate, Randwick City Council, South Ward)
* Bob Burgess (resident at Prince Henry)
* doubtless a number of other people who sent emails etc.
We should also recognise that Landcom have acted in good faith and agreed to fund and perform the work, so thanks are due to Mr Sean O'Toole (General Manager, Landcom) and his staff and contractors who have done such a professional job.
A clean beach for next summer and every summer thereafter - this is great news!
Peter Fagan
At this point it is appropriate to acknowledge the following people by whom I was most positively supported throughout and who I list in chronological order of my involvement with them:
* Lynda Newnham, Charles Abela and Bob Brooks (La Perouse Precinct Committee)
* Alderman Robert Belleli (Liberal Alderman, Randwick City Council, South Ward)
* Ray Brownlee (General Manager, Randwick City Council)
* David Allison (Greens candidate, Randwick City Council, South Ward)
* Bob Burgess (resident at Prince Henry)
* doubtless a number of other people who sent emails etc.
We should also recognise that Landcom have acted in good faith and agreed to fund and perform the work, so thanks are due to Mr Sean O'Toole (General Manager, Landcom) and his staff and contractors who have done such a professional job.
A clean beach for next summer and every summer thereafter - this is great news!
Peter Fagan
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