AN innovative project which aims to provide new manufacturing jobs in the Latrobe Valley has taken a step forward after securing an industrial site in Morwell.
The Swan Road site will serve as the home of the Eureka’s Future solar hot water system project, a worker-owned factory which aims to create manufacturing jobs in the region.
Earth Worker Cooperative secretary Dan Musil, whose group is responsible for Eureka’s Future, said he had purchased the machinery necessary to establish the factory using money raised from donations.
“It was community members investing that allowed us to buy all this equipment,” Mr Musil said.
“People across Australia want to make sure this project succeeds.”
A major aim of the co-operative is to ensure alternative manufacturing jobs exist in the region as the Latrobe Valley transitions away from coal-fuelled power generation.
“We know the power stations are going to close – it’s a question of when, not if,” he said.
The group has been in talks with State Government bodies and would like to see the solar hot water systems installed in public housing.
He said the group needed a major contract to finish setting up the factory and begin production.
In the meantime the co-operative aims to raise funds through a community walk and small-scale steel work.
The group has also recently partnered with a hemp manufacturing company to locate machinery to process hemp at the site.
Mr Musil described the partnership as “one of the many solutions we need in the Valley”.
Australian Hemp Manufacturing Company founder Darren Christie said he had decided to partner with the Earth Worker Cooperative in a bid to offer an alternative crop to Gippsland farmers.
“I’ve got three farms ready to go now,” Mr Christie said.
“It’s about trying to start up new industry.”
The machinery at the site works by breaking hemp plants down to their fibre which can then be used to make products, such as building materials.
Mr Christie is in the process of helping the farmers to secure the licensing necessary to grow hemp.
SUPPORTERS of the Earth Worker Cooperative will walk from Pakenham to the Latrobe Valley later this month to raise funds and awareness to assist the region’s transition to a low-carbon economy.
The walk begins on 19 September in Pakenham and features a series of seven daily walks, arriving in Morwell on Sunday, 25 September.
Almost $3000 has already been raised and funds will be used to support the Eureka’s Future solar hot water project.
The project aims to provide alternative manufacturing jobs in the Latrobe Valley to help assist the region’s transition away from brown coal-fired power generation.
Earth Worker Cooperative secretary Dan Musil said people could still register for the event and could choose to take part in the entire walk or join in for a single stage if they preferred.
He said one objective was to “build the public conversation about what the future of the Valley will be”.
Along the way walkers will meet with local groups to build solidarity along the way. There will also be games, music and time to socialise in the evening.
Anyone seeking more information or interested in donating or signing for the walk can visit www.walkwiththevalley.org
