Fire to play a part in restoration of Oyster Creek Gully
Works at the Oyster Creek Gully site have been going well with coverage of both woody and herbaceous weeds continuing to decline across the site. After the grant funded project has finished, Sutherland Shire Council is committed to maintaining the site’s condition, partly with the help of the four Bushcare groups that regularly meet at the site (pictured here is one of the groups of dedicated volunteers).
Sutherland Shire Council’s natural areas team is also hoping to conduct an ecological burn as a way to promote regeneration. A fire will hopefully create favourable conditions to allow natives such as Dillwynias and Bossiaeas that have been supressed by weeds to germinate and grow throughout the site. An ecological burn is already scheduled for further up the creek's catchment in the near future so it will be interesting to see how the area responds.
This project is funded through the NSW Environmental Trust Restoration and Rehabilitation grants program.
Kevin Seymour from Sutherland Shire Council talks to Robert Dixon from Georges Riverkeeper about why introducing fire regimes in Oyster Creek Gully (Jannali/Kirrawee) will assist in controlling woody weeds and help native plants to propagate in the area.
