Boral will be continuing its critical bushfire recovery efforts alongside Conservation Volunteers Australia (CVA) as their National Bushfire Recovery Partner.
With an estimated 1.25 billion animals killed during the 2019-20 bushfires, and 18.5 million hectares of land burnt, CVA’s Bushfire Recovery Project is focused not only on restoration of affected communities, but also preparing for and mitigating future bushfire impacts.
Through this major partnership, Boral will be funding a diverse range of projects to help restore habitats and support wildlife impacted by the fires.
Zlatko Todorcevski, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director of Boral, said: “As a proud Australian business, Boral is committed to supporting its neighbours and the broader community, especially during difficult times.”
“The past 12 to 18 months have been among the most challenging we have faced as a nation, starting with the bushfires in late 2019 that left behind so much destruction and heartache.
“The pandemic emergency and the subsequent restrictions meant that much of the important bushfire restoration work undertaken by CVA and Boral had to be postponed.
“We are pleased to be restarting these important projects and building on our long-term partnership with CVA, to become their National Bushfire Recovery Partner.
The community-based projects are taking place across various states and locations over the next three months, starting with:
Dundarrabin, NSW
A property near Dorrigo, located in mid-north coast NSW in Dundarrabin, was severely affected by the fires. With nearly 30 threatened or vulnerable species of plants and animals, the property has been surveyed by ecologists and university researchers as a surviving remnant of Gondwanan Rainforest.
The project has already been successfully delivered, with Boral and CVA engaging 23 local volunteers to support landowners in restoring habitat for threatened species. As a result of their efforts, 29 threatened species have benefited from habitat restoration, two hectares of weed control was completed, and 1,000 trees were planted across three days, exceeding the project goal of 800.
Kangaroo Island
Kangaroo Island was engulfed in fires that burnt almost half of the 440-hectare island. An estimated 90 percent of the Kangaroo Island Dunnart habitat was burnt, 75 percent of the Glossy Black-Cockatoo population lived in the bushfire zone, and estimates are that only 5,000-10,000 of the 50,000 Koala population survived.
CVA’s activities, supported by Boral, will engage and activate local community in weed control activities to protect these endangered species. They will also offer opportunities for people from SA and other states to travel to Kangaroo Island to engage in volunteer activities.
The CEO of Conservation Volunteers Australia, Phil Harrison, said: “The 2019-20 bushfire season is still raw in the hearts and minds of millions of Australians and there is still a lot of work that needs to be done to support the recovery of our communities and the habitats of our native species.”
“We are grateful to have Boral as our National Bushfire Recovery Partner. With their funding and support we are able to continue our recovery efforts and support the healing and restoration of our communities.”
For more information visit www.conservationvolunteers.com.au