Bellingen Shire Council’s Invasive Weeds Team is helping to educate the community about priority weed species in the Shire, working with landholders to identify priority weeds on private land, and conducting control works on Council land.
Over the coming months, invasive plants like Cockspur Coral Tree, Seeded Banana and Long Leaf Willow Primrose are setting seeds and spreading throughout the Shire, posing threats to native vegetation, local waterways and biodiversity. New signs can be seen in Urunga, Fernmount, Thora and Darkwood, as Bellingen Shire Council works to increase community awareness around these priority speciesand manage their presence in the area.
Mayor, Steve Allan acknowledged the work of the team as they support weed management and, where possible, weed eradication across the Shire, and encourages the community to get involved.
“Council is committed to protecting and preserving the extraordinary biodiversity in the Bellingen Shire,” said Mayor Allan.
“We are encouraging landholders, community groups and community members to learn about priority weed species and report them to Council.
“We need the support of the wider community in both reporting and control efforts if we are going to stop the spread of these priority weed species.”
Council General Manager, Mark Griffioen said a weed is considered a priority species for control in the Bellingen Shire when it poses a high risk to agriculture, the environment, or community assets and meets specific management criteria under the NSW Biosecurity Act.
“Common ‘widespread’ weeds are not listed as priority species as they are already prevalent in the landscape and very unlikely to be eradicated. This makes targeted control less effective in terms of risk reduction and resource use,” he said.
A list of priority weeds that Council is currently focusing on can be found in this brochure. Residents can report the presence of any priority weeds directly to Council, who also offers an online identification support service on their website.
