Greens Alderman Helen Burnet wants a growing community movement to be facilitated where possible by the Hobart City Council.
At tonight’s meeting Ald Burnet will be calling for Council to identify suitable areas in each suburb and the inner city for the establishment of community gardens and orchards. She also wants to identify ways the Council can work with local residents, community organisations and businesses in order to determine the best model according to needs for each area.
Ald Burnet has been visiting local initiatives already up and running at New Town and Dynnyrne (photos attached).
Local gardening guru David Stephens has been involved in community gardening projects for many years. Currently he is setting one up on vacant land at a childcare centre at Swanston St.
Mr Stephens sees a trend in people wanting to take up gardening their own fruit and vegetables. He expects that these plots will be taken up very quickly by locals in New Town. He would like to see Hobart City Council to identify the areas to help with local productivity.
Alderman Burnet believes that this will tie in well with the new Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI) initiatives which targets physical activity with local food access as a priority. The aim is to “address access and affordability barriers to healthy food in local municipalities through better food distribution networks and encouragement of local food production”.
“The Greens are leading the way on Council towards greater local productivity and community building. There is a re-kindled move towards self-sufficiency. There are many individuals and communities within Hobart who would like to build greater capacity and may not know where to start. This motion provides that connection with locals and gardens.
It is a win for our environment and might taste that bit better knowing that it is plucked straight from your garden. Even sharing produce with neighbours has an excellent outcome too”, she concluded.
Helen Burnet
