Weed eradication wins environmental award

The work of Council staff in eradicating the invasive aquatic weed, Amazon Frogbit, from the Georges River has won Division C and Overall Winner in the Invasive Species Management Award category in the Local Government NSW Excellence in the Environment Awards.

Since it was first discovered in May last year, Council staff have been working to control the Amazon Frogbit infestation from the Georges River.

It was the first time the aquatic weed had been found in open waters in NSW and had the potential to cause significant damage to local biodiversity.

Council worked in partnership with Georges Riverkeeper, Liverpool City Council and the NSW Department of Primary Industries through funding from the NSW Weed Action Program to map the extent of the weed’s spread and then set about eradicating it from the river.

“Early detection of invasive species in our natural ecosystems is important and our team did a brilliant job in ensuring this weed was quickly brought under control and eventually eradicated,” Mayor George Brticevic said.

“The Georges River is one of our great environmental assets and it is important that its biodiversity is protected,” Cr Brticevic said.

“People should be diligent when purchasing plants online or through market vendors as some plants are illegal to grow and can be incredibly harmful when released into our local environment,” he said.

“This is also a reminder that people should be careful when disposing of any plants and make sure they put them in the correct bins.”

The Koalatown campaign was also recognised with a Highly Commended award in the Communication, Education and Empowerment category.

Koalatown encourages residents to take ownership of the protection of local koalas and people can now visit the Koalatown room at the Campbelltown Visitor Information Centre to find out a vast array of information.