STAFF WRITERS
ALMOST $50,000 in revenue from debris generated during the February 2024 storms emergency response and managed by Forest Fire Management Victoria (FFMVic) has been reinvested into Mirboo North.
Following the February storms that damaged property, private and public land in Mirboo North and surrounding areas, FFMVic and other emergency services removed fallen and hazardous trees, opened roads and supported the restoration of critical infrastructure.
Significant volumes of wood debris collected from private and public land during this emergency response was initially collected and stored at a temporary location, where FFMVic processed more than 150 cubic metres of high-value sawlog and 800 cubic metres of commercial firewood through existing arrangements.
Mulch was donated to various community projects, and residents have collected more than 3000m3 of free mulch. More free mulch will be available from Mirboo North transfer station later this spring.
Meanwhile, about 140 tonnes of timber – including radiata pine and non-commercial firewood – has been donated for use by the community through a Timber Reclamation Project. About 135 tonnes of logs – including radiata and cypress pine – has been donated to John Crocker of Wild Wood timber in Yarram for community projects relating to an Indigenous youth program.
Seventy root balls have been donated to East Gippsland Catchment Management Authority for fish habitat.
Commercial sale of sawlog and firewood generated $46,877 in revenue, which has been donated to the Mirboo North and District Community Foundation’s Community Recovery Fund.
A long-standing community-managed organisation, the Mirboo North & District Community Foundation channels donations into strengthening the local community through investing in local initiatives and not-for-profit organisations, building capacity and facilitating community-led responses to local challenges.
The Mirboo North & District Community Foundation Executive Officer, Ruth Rogan said the funding would allow the organisation to support local community led recovery programs, including the Mirboo North Timber Reclamation Project, the Healing in our Environment Program and the Stormbirds Program.
The Mirboo North Timber Reclamation Project is a local group that was formed after the storm. The group wanted to ensure that the wind fallen trees are used by and for the community and are working towards processing the wood for community construction projects, like a local community garden, and firewood for local use.
Ms Rogan explained that the Healing in our Environment Program has been developed from a program run in the Yarra Ranges after the June 2021 storms.
“We’ll have speakers, gardeners, guided bushwalks and planting days to help our community recover and heal itself through healing the local environment,” she said.
Teachers at Mirboo North Primary School and Mirboo North Secondary College are being trained to roll out a disaster recovery education program called Stormbirds to students in Grade 3 to Year 9 during Term 1 next year. The program supports children and young people to develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes to understand and manage experiences of change and loss following events like February’s storm.
There are also plans to run more chainsaw training programs to empower residents by teaching them to safely use chainsaws.
“While trees falling is a regular thing here, there was a strong sense in the community post storm that these skills were necessary to respond to future storms or natural disasters. It’s very powerful, especially for women, to feel confident with a chainsaw and know that they’re able to help themselves and others in the community after a storm event,” Ms Rogan said.
Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Sam Quigley said it was rewarding to see the value generated from storm debris invested back into the community that was hit so hard in February.
“This is a really strong and resilient community that have rallied together to support one another and it’s wonderful to see some of the value we’ve been able to generate from the storm-damaged trees and debris go towards the community members’ recovery,” he said.
Mr Quigley said while the early response had targeted both public and private land in and around Mirboo North, planning had commenced to assess the bushfire risk on the storm-affected public land and whether there will be a need to undertake works to reduce any increased bushfire risk to the community.
“Only storm debris that is assessed as posing a fire or other safety risk to the community or firefighters will be removed from the public land. We are carefully planning this work to make sure we manage any cultural and environmental values unaffected by the storm damage or has been identified in our assessment following the storm,” he said.
DEECA has engaged biodiversity consultants to undertake assessments, including field surveys in affected public land blocks to identify threatened species and communities.
This will inform future recovery works and ensure any bushfire risk reduction works minimise further impact on biodiversity.
“The community will be engaged with and notified before any works start later this year,” Mr Quigley said.
“If you are seeing people removing debris from the Mirboo North State Forest at the moment, that is being done illegally and we urge you to report it to the Conservation Regulator.”
Authorised Officers patrol state forests to help protect biodiversity and keep people safe. Failure to follow the rules may result in penalties, such as on-the-spot fines or court prosecutions.
For more information or to report suspicious activity, call 136 186.
