If you are interested in our local ecosystem, then the Barwon Estuary Project is the perfect group to join.
The group is a community-based program where members learn from each other about the beauty, biodiversity and fragility of the estuary.
Barwon Estuary Project has been operating for 15 years and has around 230 members and participants. It is open to communities that live near the estuary and people who are interested in the area.
The group has so far run 11 workshops (bird photography, art and creative writing) all focussed on creatively interpreting the estuary and led by local experts.
The project has also developed, published and distributed the Barwon Estuary Project Nature Watching Diary; run seasonal guided walks of the estuary with local experts; established a Facebook page and website (barwonestuaryproject.wordpress.com); developed a school program with and for Barwon Heads Primary School, to be delivered in July and August this year; begun the development of a community publication: Journal of the Barwon Estuary; and applied for further funding for other related projects.
The estuary has among the most diverse saltmarsh and estuary vegetation in south-eastern Australia, with major occurrences of both wet and dry saltmarsh. It represents the largest remaining patch of native vegetation on the Bellarine Peninsula, including the westernmost population of the white mangrove. The project focuses on the areas of Lake Connewarre, Reedy Lake and the section of the Barwon River located between Lake Connewarre and the Barwon Heads/Ocean Grove bridge.
For more details, see www.barwonestuaryproject.wordpress.com
