GeoCatch’s FireWise demonstration garden project, which has been shortlisted in the City of Busselton’s You Choose funding program, empowers the community to create safe FireWise landscapes across the region.
The project includes the installation of a FireWise garden at a local fire station, using best practice fire-proofing and fire retardant techniques, and a community workshop to support residents create their own FireWise garden at their property.
GeoCatch project officer, Lisa Massey, says there are ways that residents in fire prone areas can protect themselves.
“Fire is a part of life here in the Geographe Bay Catchment,” Lisa said.
“Fire resilience and adaptation is critical as the drying climate increases the risk of bushfires.
“You can better protect your home by choosing fire retardant plants and mulches, separating fuel loads and including deliberate breaks in landscaping to resist ember attack and fire creep,” she said.
Department of Fire and Emergency Services Capes Area Officer Andy Thompson believes the project is an important one for the region.
“Anything residents can do to slow down the path of bushfires and prevent damage to lives and properties supports all of our emergency services efforts in this region.” he said.
The FireWise garden is an initiative of the Bay OK gardens program and will feature four popular Australian garden themes. FireWise plants will be selected for the garden and locally produced recycled construction and demolition waste will be used as mulch and path mediums. The garden will include signage so community members can learn how to apply key FireWise principles in their own garden or property.
If you’d like to learn more about these principles and increase your property’s resilience to bushfires, you can vote for the FireWise Demo Garden and workshop project in the City of Busselton’s You Choose program. Voting closes Thursday, 17 February.
This project is delivered by GeoCatch through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program, in partnership with South West Catchments Council. It is also part of Royalties for Region’s Healthy Estuaries WA and Revitalising Geographe Waterways programs. These State Government initiatives aim to support the long-term health of our south-west estuaries.
