Author Archives: fobif

FOBIF has submitted an objection to the planning  permit application for a new supermarket in Duke Street Castlemaine. Our submission is essentially a repeat of our objection to a previous version of this permit application. We said at the time … Continue reading →

‘Environmental infrastructure’ is one of those phrases that makes the eyes glaze over, but actually, all it means is: things that help you enjoy good places. That is, bush tracks, ways of enjoying parks and gardens, and so on. As … Continue reading →

The September issue of Wombat Forestcare newsletter is now out, and can be found here As usual, it’s a great read, containing articles about owls, the continuing uncertain status of the Wombat Forest, bird calls, fungi, and a very sobering … Continue reading →

Community members are being invited to participate in a Zoom workshop session, facilitated by Djandak (Dja Dja Wurrung Enterprises), to discuss values, threats, priorities, and opportunities associated with Kalimna Park- as part of the Walking Together- Balak Kalik Manya Project. … Continue reading →

The next two FOBIF walks (16 August and 20 September) are cancelled due to reintroduction of government restrictions on the number of people allowed to walk together. Hopefully we will be able to resume our walks on 18 October which … Continue reading →

FOBIF’s recommended lockdown reading for this week is a short article on a Golf Course! The article by Megan Backhouse can be found here. It’s to do with management of native vegetation on the Royal Melbourne course: ‘The club’s Black … Continue reading →

Late last month Forest Fire Management crews groomed a significant area of Parks Victoria managed land on the south eastern edge of Maldon township. Grooming (that is, slashing to ground level) is common fuel reduction technique close to urban areas, … Continue reading →

Maybe as important as all of the above is this: workers should be fully briefed. The golfer’s artless comment that ‘there aren’t any plants’ in a recently burned patch exactly replicates the comment made by one of the workers to … Continue reading →

Prevailing wisdom in the political class envisages big population increases in Victoria in the next few decades. Whether these increases are a good idea, or will prove to be illusions after COVID 19 is not clear, but in any case … Continue reading →

Readers of the daily press will have noted the damning report on Australia’s biodiversity protection laws, which concluded, among other things: “The EPBC Act is ineffective. It is not fit for current or future environmental challenges, such as climate change.” … Continue reading →