Lane Cove National Park’s natural wonders return

Sydney residents come from far and wide to enjoy the natural wonders Lane Cove National Park has to offer, but weeds have threatened to destroy the native plants that make the park so special.

Now those weeds are on the receding path thanks to the Friends of Lane Cove National Park, who have been working tirelessly to ensure the future of the park's native plants.

Friends President, Margaret Reidy, said the devastating fires of 1994 gave residents the impetus to begin major environmental work.

“Lane Cove National Park is a paradise for people to come into, and it's also the home of a wide range of wildlife including birds and lizards - so we feel it's well worth preserving,” Margaret said.

“Part of our work is the From Ridge to River project, which aims to restore the health of Hanging Swamp, Carters Creek and Fern Valley Creek, which all lead into Lane Cove River.

Funding

Over the years, the Australian Government has provided the Friends of Lane Cove National Park with more than $124,000 to help the From Ridge to River project achieve its goals and additional contributions have come from the State Government.

Activities

The funding has mostly been spent on hiring contractors to remove the worst weed infestations, and since 2000 a group of up to 10 volunteers – who had already been working in the area since 1994 – have met weekly to complement the contractors' work.

“We do it all by hand, and we’re gradually pushing back the privet forest to enable native plants to grow,” Margaret said.

“We put it down as a 10-year project. it's a slow process and each spring we have to go back over areas already cleared to pull out seasonal weeds. But we have a very dedicated group of people, and each year we notice there are more natives than weeds.”

Achievements

Margaret said the volunteers’ work had over the years made a big difference to the creek lines.

“The areas we’ve been working on have changed so much. Now natural regeneration is happening all the time and the good bush has moved in,” she said.

“Fern Valley Creek is now self-sufficient, and all we need to do is periodically remove seasonal weeds.

“And now habitat has been restored, we regularly see Water Dragons, frogs, goannas, waterbirds and ducks.”

More information

1. Margaret Reidy, Friends of Lane Cove National Park President: (02) 9419 4441 or mreidy10@bigpond.net.au
2. Judy Christie, Sydney Metropolitan Catchment Management Authority: (02) 9895 7753 or judy.christie@cma.nsw.gov.au
3. Friends of Lane Cove National Park 

Australian Government NRM Team
GPO Box 787
Canberra ACT 2601 Australia
1800 552 008 (toll-free)

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Caring for our Country is an Australian Government initiative jointly administered by the Australian Government departments of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts