Great Ocean Road Coast Committee Blog
News and stories from our iconic coast
The Great Ocean Road Coast Committee is calling on the community to help put an end to the damage caused by illegal party sites in threatened Moonah woodlands along the coastal clifftops at Jan Juc.
Illegal access and campfires were again discovered in the sensitive vegetation, causing significant environmental damage in the protected area and placing lives at risk. Read more
National Volunteer Week (NVW) is on again and is an annual celebration to acknowledge the generous contribution more than 6 million Australian volunteers make to communities across the nation.
Jan Juc Coast Action have a long history of restoring and revegetating the clifftop area and have been instrumental in the improved habitat health along the stunning stretch of coastline. Read more
Authorities are calling for beach visitors to exercise caution after recent cliff collapses at Jan Juc and Aireys Inlet, with undercutting and rainfall making the areas more unstable.
Great Ocean Road Coast Committee Coastal Reserves Manager Caleb Hurrell said this time of year was known for cliff movement due to the fluctuation in soil conditions.
Pedestrians and beach users are encouraged to take care near cliffs along the Surf Coast following heavy rain in winter and spring.
Great Ocean Road Coast Committee, Parks Victoria and Surf Coast Shire Council said the start of summer was a good opportunity to remind community members and visitors about cliff instability.
A group of Year 11 students from MacKillop College, Werribee visited the Surf Coast for their Outdoor and Environmental studies camp last week.
The group spent two days on the coast looking at the variety of uses including recreation, commercial, and conservation activities as part of their VCE studies. Read more
Jan Juc Coast Action (JJCA) faced an unusual task during their last working bee for 2015 – finding and removing the tenacious South African orchid Disa bractreata.
The highly invasive orchid species first appeared in Victoria in the mid-1990s after being introduced in Western Australia in 1946. Read more
Illegal behaviour on coastal reserves such as lighting fires, littering and destroying vegetation is impacting the environment and sparking safety concerns, with the Jan Juc clifftops a particular problem zone. Read more
Jan Juc Coast Action (JJCA) were announced joint winners of the Victorian Coastal Awards for Excellence Natural Environment category in the annual ceremony held on October 15.
The Awards, held by the Victorian Coastal Council, celebrate the outstanding work of individuals and groups in enhancing and protecting Victoria’s coastal and marine environments.
Eight awards were presented to groups and individuals who have made outstanding environmental contributions to the Victorian Coast.
Award winners in each category were:
Minister for the Environment, Climate Change and Water Lisa Neville said this year’s finalists and award winners have been exemplary.
“I’m proud of how we take real responsibility for the welfare of our coast, which not only improves the health of the environment, but also the livability of our communities.
“It is important we understand the threats to our coastal and marine environments, and the ways in which communities can take action to help limit their impacts,” she said.
Over the past 21 years, JJCA has rehabilitated four kilometers of coastal foreshore and continues to improve this area through monthly working bees conducting activities including the removal of pest species, fencing and revegetation.
In recent years, the group’s focus has shifted from revegetation and access control to targeted threatened species and raising environmental awareness through engaging with the community.
Recently JJCA launched their online searchable plant database the Surf Coast Nature Search, that aims to help support an increase in environmental awareness among locals and holiday makers.
The Great Ocean Road Coast Committee (GORCC) works closely with environmental volunteer groups that work on the GORCC managed land and was thrilled to see JJCA receive the award.
GORCC Community Liaison Manager Jane Lovejoy said the award was well deserved and a testament to the hard work volunteers donate each year to protect the coast.
“Volunteer groups continue to be the backbone of GORCC’s conservation efforts with 11 groups working directly on our managed land.
“It is fantastic to see local environmental volunteer groups receive recognition for their consistent contributions to enhancing our precious coastal environment,” she said.
Coastal conservation is everyone’s responsibility. How do you help keep our coast beautiful?
The Surfrider Foundation, and Plastic Bay Free Torquay recently worked together to conduct a Jan Juc litter blitz, uncovering some interesting items of rubbish along the way.
Volunteers from and members from the local community helped collect 25 large bags of litter – litter that would otherwise be left to impact our oceans.
Items collected included old carpet, a broken fishing rod, a body-board, a tent and lots of plastic and glass tumblers.
The Surfrider Foundation has been holding regular beach clean ups along the Surf Coast since 1996 to reduce the presence of litter on beaches and promote community participation.
Hot refreshments were provided by Mark Clatworthy from Ocean Gind who donated the day’s profits to the Surfrider Foundation.
The Surfrider Foundation Surf Coast partners with Plastic Bag Free Torquay and the Take 3 initiative, working in collaboration to reduce plastic pollution along the Surf Coast.
How can I help?
Refuse disposable plastic, Reduce, Re-Use, Recycle and Respond by picking up rubbish.
Interested in volunteering and making a difference? Visit our website here for more information on local coastal volunteer groups.
Have you found any strange items of rubbish on the beach? Let us know in the comments below!
An innovative, searchable plant database is in production thanks to grant funding, donations and the work of Jan Juc Coast Action volunteers.
The online tool, which will allow people to identify indigenous species and environmental weeds growing in the Jan Juc area, will provide in-depth information about local flora.
Jan Juc Coast Action is working with a range of partners on the project, including the Great Ocean Road Coast Committee (GORCC) and Boojum, a local online design business.
The project was recently awarded a GORCC Coastal Grant of $2500 and has also received support through a State Government Coastcare Grant.
Jan Juc Coast Action volunteer Graeme Stockton said the database will help to protect local flora and fauna by allowing coastal property owners to identify environmental weeds in their gardens and offering them indigenous alternatives.
“Environmental weeds are harmful plants that quickly spread to nearby habitats causing severe damage to the fragile coastal environment.
“We only have a thin strip of natural coastal habitat left and residential gardens are located very close to these fragile environments,” he said.
Jan Juc Coast Action hopes the database will be expanded beyond Jan Juc in the future to cover indigenous plants and weeds right along the GORCC managed coast.
“It would be ideal to see this tool expanded to become a comprehensive database of not only flora along GORCC-managed land but fauna as well,” said Mr. Stockton.
Boojum Lead Designer Roland Maxwell who has been working with the volunteers to create the website, has donated hundreds of hours to the project.
“The database will be searchable in a range of ways including flower colour, size, leaf shape and more,” he said.
The platform has been designed to be as flexible and user friendly as possible.
The website is flexible enough to support future growth to the database and potential extensions of the project such as applications for mobile,” said Mr Maxwell.
GORCC is supporting the project through both grant funding and in-kind assistance.
GORCC Community Liaison Manager Jane Lovejoy said the website is set to become an indispensable tool that can be used by volunteers, community members and educators alike.
“This tool will be a fabulous education resource for school groups that we engage through our education programs.
“Additionally, those who love the coast and enjoy walking along the Jan Juc Cliffs and admiring indigenous species will be able to accurately determine what plant they’re looking at,” she said.
More information on coastal volunteering and the GORCC Coastal Grants program is available at www.gorcc.com.au.
This article was published in the Surf Coast Times Green the Coast column
Great Ocean Road Coast Committee Blog 