We hold all sorts of events from protests and forest blockades to parties, concerts and film nights.
We're most well known for our citizen science forest survey camps, held every three months in the forests of far East Gippsland.
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2020 Easter Bushfire Assessment Camp 13 rsvps
Friday, April 10, 2020 at 10:00 AM through April 13, 2020
TBC in Goongerah, Australia
The area around Goongerah and Martin’s Creek has been devastated by fire. It is black and it will be tough for people to be in - the campground is burnt, as is the surrounding forest. We are asking for folks with skills, resources, and determination to join us for a targeted bushfire assessment mission. We really appreciate that people want to help and we would love to have you over the Easter weekend, but you need to be aware of the situation in Goongerah at the moment. The plan is to meet up at a central location (TBC) on the Friday to then go out and do targeted activities until the Monday, where we will all meet up to report back.The situation with road closures, fire and floods is ever changing.Be prepared to change your plans at short notice.You will need to be prepared and self-sufficient - Goongerah residents are still coping with this natural disaster and are in the early stages of their recovery. There will be no tour guiding or talks on this camp.If you have skills and determination please come. This won’t be a kid-friendly environment, so please consider not coming with young children. Please don't bring dogs because of stresses to wildlife.The activities will be very targeted and include:Nest box project - we need climbers to put nest boxes up in trees for hollow-dependent speciesPhotographing, videoing and scouting of burnt and unburnt areaMapping unburnt areas and surveying for threatened plants and animalsAssessing and documenting fire severityWe'll be planning and making further announcements about the planned activities and what skills and resources will be needed.Locations to be confirmed and dependent on safety and access of roads into Goongerah and surrounding forests. The bushfires have severely impacted the landscape and community.GECO will supply some survey equipment but if you have powerful torches, binoculars, compass, GPS, cameras, chain saws, climb gear, camera's etc please bring them.Due to the significant severity of fire damage, having a 4WD, a chainsaw, and willingness to assist with "scouting" burnt areas will be very helpful and we encourage carpooling with people who have 4WD's. Due to accessibility a lot of forest area has still not been scouted, fire intensity impacts are unknown and GECO cannot confirm the condition of some roads.We will have some communal cooking supplies but please plan to be self-sufficient. Goongerah is a remote environment, no shops, no phone reception, no fuel. Be prepared.We will be assessing the risks from the fires and post-pone in the event that it isn’t safe to be in the area. We will keep people updated on specific activities and program closer to the dates.Please contact us on 0418 912 625 or via email geco@geco.org.au if you are planning on coming, and what specific skills and resources you would like to contribute. Thanks!We'll be visiting the forests on the lands of the Bidewell, GunnaiKurnai and Monero people. We acknowledge their ongoing custodianship of these forests and pay respect to their elders past and present.