A community at work

Local Waterworks resident and long-term forest campaigner Geoff Law returned recently from an overseas working journey, visiting forests in other parts of the world.

For an interesting insight his essay The Tale of Two Forests makes a good read. Geoff is an able raconteur and writer.

(The essay is courtesy of the blog site of Miranda Gibson who climbed a rope to a platform on the top of the tree in the heart of the Southern Forests on December 14 and has vowed to stay until the forest is protected. Community members are urged to support her brave efforts.)

Local Harvest is a new national initiative aiming to help people find local sources of food and grow their own. This is a new project from the Ethical Consumer Group and they need help from local people to make it a success. Interested? Read more…

I lived in Waterworks road from 1971 to 1988 and after that retained an interest in the valley through my father and the family home.

As I was a keen horse rider I regularly rode through the Waterworks valley into the area of Tolmans Hill and up to Ridgeway. I knew the people, the tracks and the beauty of unspoilt bush.

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New parking sign in Collins Street, Hobart.

World oil depletion is on the verge of radically changing our travel modes and habits. We need to get used to it.

It’s occurred to some of us that most households own a vehicle that suits their biggest need, whereas most travel by car is one-person-per-vehicle. Nearly all of our actual needs are for a very small, efficient vehicle.

With this in mind, a proposal is afoot for several households to collectively own a practical street car (named Desire!) that can be available for shared use, thus enabling those households to do without a car altogether – using an electric bike, for instance, or a tiny efficient vehicle – but still have access to a practical vehicle for bushwalking, building materials etc when needed.

If interested in the idea, just send us an email or comment below. (See here too.)

Waterworks Community produced this popular bumper sticker for Tasmania-wide distribution in 2009 and since then 2,000 of them have been distributed.

We’ve just had 2,000 more printed. We provide them at cost (35 cents each) and have no problem with them being sold in outlets for whatever price (normally $2).

So… if you know any ethical enterprise who would like to obtain some please let us know. The message seems to be very timely.

Actual size is 230mm x 70mm.

Snakes are now out of hibernation and Janine Brookes has brought it to our attention that Reptile Rescue will come and deal with a snake if you find one in a place that may pose a risk.

There’s no need to kill them and it’s important to note that Tiger snakes are a protected species.

Reptile Rescue’s phone number is 0407 565 181. They ask for a $30 donation, helps cover costs for their volunteers.

For information about looking after other native species, injured or orphaned, go to this link.

Shifting Gears – Making Transition Happen!

– a weekend workshop for those interested in growing sustainable communities.

This website is now nearly 4 years old and the community group a bit more than that. Over that short history we can be proud of a significant number of achievements: we spearheaded solar bulk purchases, have run energy saving education campaigns, run two wildly successful harvest fairs, undertook a major behaviour change educational project, we’ve campaigned for traffic calming, have run a walking bus all that time and, for our efforts, have won two environmental awards.

Where to from here? Continue reading →

Hello and welcome. Below are some resources developed for our Climate Connect program – which looked at household behavioural change.

To undertake the Household Behaviour Survey please click HERE.

To view responses from above survey (in graph form) click HERE. (These are compiled from 428 household entries statewide.)

To read ‘big picture’ story and do self-test please click HERE.

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While I was away in March and April this year my eastern rosella called ‘fighting rainbow’ disappeared. He had been living with us for about 3 years and was very much part of our family.

He came to us via Wildcare and had been a domesticated bird. Over time we released him and he stayed around our home, finding safety and a wonderful free lifestyle. He was a constant companion, and every morning and evening would call and sing and chat to me.

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Chilean guava, from all accounts, seems to be another great fruit to grow in our climatic conditions here in Tassie.

Seems that plants native to Chile and Peru do quite well here, see previous article on Pepinos.

Chilean Guavas have an advantage in that birds don’t go for them. Not sure about our native wildlife but in North America it seems they aren’t savoured by wild animals.

In Autumn the small berries ripen, filling the garden with a sweet strawberry aroma. The entire fruit is edible, including the tiny seeds. They have a nice balance of tangy and sweet. Can be made into muffins or jam… or just eat them fresh.

We’ve planted one out as a trial, in the top end of the valley. Fairly slow growing bush that can grow to 3 metres high but can be trimmed to stay below 2 metres.

Happy gardening, Shiny Bristow

The ever popular Sustainable Living Expo is on again in November.

This year the show will feature a novel set of Q&A style discussions to explore opportunities and challenges for creating sustainable lifestyles and livelihoods in our Island State.

• What will Tasmania look like in 25 years?
• Our economy, community, and land use?
• How will we move around?
• How will we power our cities?
• What will we eat?

What question would you like to see put to the line up of prominant Tasmanians as they explore these questions and more? You can submit your question HERE.

Two major subdivisions have now been submitted for 111 / 125 Waterworks Rd and at 25A Waterworks Rd, comprising altogether over 30 new house blocks on the southern side of the valley. Both have now been advertised.

Anybody who has concerns about these multi-block developments should take note and put in comments to the planning process within the 14 day period allowed.

If problems arise later there is no comeback if concerned people have not submitted their concerns about any aspect of the development. For your convenience here are some documents that have been prepared by the developers for the first development.

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Pepino, a native of Peru, has similar taste to pawpaw, but with a bit more zest. The ones we ate from Carlos’s garden (South Hobart) were really delicious. It’s a great fruit to grow in Tasmanian gardens.

Advantages of growing it:

• It’s shrub size – (only 1 metre high) so fairly easy to protect from possums etc.

• It is as nice as pawpaw to eat, helps avoid buying tropical fruits.

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