Agriculture Victoria’s Beef and Sheep Networks invite you to attend a webinar on the challenges of storing, measuring, and monitoring soil carbon on livestock farms.
Key speaker Emeritus Professor of Soil Science at the University of Melbourne, Robert White, will join us to share his knowledge on soil carbon for landowners and the science around soil sequestration.
Professor White has extensive experience in soil science both at a national and international level having worked in the CSIRO, universities, and private industry.
Topics include:

• what is the potential to store carbon on my land and how can this be estimated?
• what changes in management might I have to make to increase and/or maintain soil carbon
• what are the possible benefits from increasing soil carbon in terms of the productivity of my business?
• what are the possible co-benefits and potential challenges for maintaining soil carbon?

Agriculture Victoria climate specialist Graeme Anderson will chair the Q&A session and showcase information resources.
Date: Thursday 6 October, 7-8 pm
Location: Online via Zoom
Registration: Register for this free webinar online here
More information: Please contact Jane Court (Agriculture Victoria)
Mobile: 0436 606 742
Email jane.court@agriculture.vic.gov.au

Join trainer Lucinda Flynn at Leongatha Community House, for this one-day course aimed at learning how to be more energy efficient.
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COURSE OUTLINE

• Develop a thorough understanding of the key aspects of home energy efficiency & comfort.
• Learn about fundamental residential appliances and upgrade options, including solar generation & storage.
• Understand key building shell upgrade opportunities, catering to all budgets and including DIY & temporary options.
• Develop skills in communicating energy efficiency advice to a diverse range of community members, in a way that is positive, respectful and promotes active engagement and change.

 
Sunday 21st August, 9am - 5pm, Leongatha Community House
Lunch and refreshments included
Cost: $25 per person
RSVP: Madison Redpath (03) 5662 3962

Come along to one (or more!) of our upcoming planting days! Planting are typically 10am-2pm and lunch is provided. BYO water bottle, sturdy boots and wet weather gear. Please note that property addresses have not been published. If you would like to attend a planting day, please RSVP to the group's email address for the exact location.

Introduction to soils and understanding your soil tests - workshop opportunity.

The Bass Coast Landcare Network, alongside our Farmers Digging Deeper project partners are running an introductory program for landholders who are at an early stage in their learning about soils and soil testing. The program includes soil testing on your farm plus two workshops designed to help you better understand your soils and interpret your soil test results. 

​On Sunday, the 31st of July (national tree day), Bass Coast Landcare Network and 3 Creeks Landcare Group are hosting a community planting day in conjunction with a bushwalk. The day will involve planting 3000 plants funded by Westernport Water as part of their support for local community groups along an estimated 5.5km stretch of Bridge Creek, contributing to one of the Bass Coast Shire’s most valuable waterways. Starting at 160 Hawkins Road, Woolamai we will plant 1500 plants. We will then walk downstream planting as we go before reaching the property at 3965 Bass Highway, Kilcunda, where we will be planting a further 500 plants before crossing the highway and making our way to 115 Mouth of the Powlett Rd.

The recording of our recently hosted Circular Economy webinar is now available for your viewing.  

We are all very sad to hear of the passing of Michael Bolding, who has done so much for our landscape. Michael was instrumental in the development of the Archies Creek Reafforestation Group (ACRG) in the late 1980's and early 1990’s. He and his family transformed their bare property into a natural bushland setting over numerous years. By undertaking these works around his home property, Michael set a great example to others in the Archies Creek valley as to the best ways of improving their surrounding environment. The initial activities of this group were prior to the development of a co-ordinated Landcare program in the Bass Coast region, so Michael could be considered to be an environmental thinker ahead of his time. As Landcare works grew in the region, the ACRG were then able to consolidate their activities with the help of the Powlett Project Landcare program.
In combination with a number of other community members, Michael helped drive the development of the Archies Creek wildlife corridor.  The concept was simple – fence out and revegetate the length of Archies Creek. The practicalities were a bit more challenging; the engagement of all landholders along the length of the Archies Creek to fence out and plant their part of the creek. To engage the community, the ACRG helped co-ordinate many community planting activities on numerous properties along the Archies Creek. As a result of a consolidated corridor of vegetation along the creek, the environmental benefits have been immense, including habitat creation, water quality improvement, enhancement of visual amenity in the Archies Creek valley and a sense of pride within the local community as to what they had achieved collectively.
Michael continued in his quest to contribute to the environmental enhancement of the broader community by setting up an indigenous plant nursery sometime around 2005. His immense understanding of the local indigenous vegetation and how the plants grew, meant he was in a good position to develop a nursery which would eventually provide tens of thousands of plants each year for revegetation works.  ​

ATTENTION Bass Coast farmers in the Port Phillip and Westernport Catchment.  Our 2022 Regenerative Agriculture Training program for farmers will be held during August and September 2022.      

The Bass Coast Landcare Network is excited to announce a new project focusing on the Giant Gippsland Earthworm,  Megascolides australis.  

Fantastic news.  Bass Coast Landcare Network and its key partners are pleased to announce that the long awaited Climate Adaptation Plan (CAP) is live and can be accessed at the following web address.

https://growingsoutherngippsland.org.au/DevelopingMyPlan

​The CAP can be accessed via the Growing Southern Gippsland website which provides farmers with access to climate resources and local examples of climate adaptation and mitigation. It is designed to encourage self-guided information gathering and research.