Blue Mountains Timeline Society Campaigns for Funding Jim Smith will be speaking at our Blue Mountains Conservation Society is seeking October general meeting about his Blue $12 million Commonwealth Funding for acquisition Mountains Timeline Project. The of Inholdings and $400,000 per year for pest species meeting will be held at the Conservation management within the Greater Blue Mountains Hut, Wentworth Falls, on Friday 26 World Heritage Area. October at 7.30pm. Visitors are The Society is asking Federal Candidates to in the minds of the public and welcome. commit this funding to conserve the natural integrity Jim has been working to produce a hopefully to stimulate dis- of the World Heritage Area by allocating it to a Trust cussion and prolong debate first draft of a seasonal nature calendar Fund, such as the Miles Dunphy Fund and dedicate it for the Upper Blue Mountains. Much of on environmental issues. The specifically for this use. This will ensure that when answers will be published in it will be based on the research project he Inholdings come on the market, money is available to a full page advertisement. carried out at Jamison Creek, Wentworth purchase them for the National Parks. Cost of the Falls, between 1979 and 1993. Assisted We are taking up the concerns expressed by the advertisements will be by TAFE students, Jim banded many IUCN advisers to the World Heritage Committee. $2,100, which we need to thousands of birds and captured and Our shared concern is that the World Heritage Area is raise by public and members released many hundreds of small not a consolidated area and has inholdings of State donations. If you wish to mammals. Forests and private land within the National Parks. support this important The findings from this project will be The World Heritage Area has 7 National Parks work please send a cheque, combined with information gathered by and Jenolan Caves Karst Reserve and covers 1 payable to Blue Mountains other local observers and naturalists to million hectares. 122 privately owned Inholdings Conservation Society, to produce a month by month list of the have been identified in the Greater Blue Mountains our Treasurer Bart Beech, most obvious environmental and nature World Heritage Area covering an area of 15,258 PO Box 29, Wentworth events in the upper Blue Mountains. hectares. Falls 2782, or come to a These seasonal calendars are now Privately owned inholdings are parcels of land meeting and make a being produced all over Australia. The completely surrounded by Reserves or National Park. donation. Timelines Australia Project is Private inholdings pose a threat because they are not coordinated by the Gould League in Missing Minute Book managed for nature conservation. They are used for Does anyone know the Victoria. Jim’s brother Michael farming, quarries and orchards, so natural vegetation published a book “Bush Mates” which whereabouts of the Minutes and habitat is commonly changed. Sometimes illegal Book of the Society dating contains the seasonal calendar for Nelson activities such as hunting and cultivation of prohibited from May l963 to March Bay. It was described in the Timelines crops occur. Pollution, erosion, introduction of pest l964? It was during this newsletter as “probably the best regional species, control burns for human safety rather than period that the opening of the nature guide ever written”. Jim believes conservation are some of the problems arising. old Hut was held, hence its that an equally high quality guide to the Private Inholdings result in significant work and importance to our records. seasons of the Blue Mountains is needed costs for NPWS who become involved in road There is a gap in recordings and will be an important tool for maintenance through the National Parks, management for this date, otherwise all the environmental education in the area. Jim of fencing, fire protection and provision of legal records are complete for the will also discuss how the role of the access to owners etc. 40 years. Please ring the naturalist, or close observer of nature, Only 12,274 hectares of the 15,258 identified have office if you can help has changed within the modern been costed for acquisition. Some inholdings have conservation movement. been excluded from the costing and recommended Photographs Wanted There is still time if you wish to add acquisition, such as those which have current Do any members have your observations to the calendar. Please residential occupation and/or capital improvements so photos or slides which could send details of weather events, mass are expensive. Others excluded are those with be enlarged and used for a flowering events, stages in the behaviour substantial land changes with low conservation value. display: (for example) or life cycle of local animals, that you Included in the $12 million is $750,000 for initial •Opening of old Hut in 1963 look forward to or notice each year. management costs at the time of acquisition. •Land purchased by the When do they occur? Observations can Currently, introduced species management budget Society at Kanangra-Boyd be posted to Jim Smith at 65 Fletcher for the World Heritage Area is underfunded and and donated to NPWS. Street, Wentworth Falls 2782. another $400,000 is needed to bring the •Members bushwalking Federal Election Fund recommended budget up to $610,000 per year. •Members propagating Throughout its 40 years, the Society This funding request is surely a saving and plants in the nursery investment in protecting the biodiversity of our World Please phone Meredith has been active in election campaigns (4782.4823) ASAP so they and written letters to candidates asking Heritage area and our beautiful Blue Mountains. can be ready for the Birthday their views. “Meet the Candidates” Dinner of 13 October. nights were held in the old Hut. a much bigger role in community debate During the last Council elections, we during the election campaign. Calico Bags asked questions of the candidates on To continue this important tradition The Society’s calico bags are selling environmental issues and published the we are preparing a questionnaire for well and helping to reduce the 14 million answers in an advertisement in the Blue candidates in the electorates of Lindsay plastic bags going to landfill in Australia Mountains Gazette. The questionnaire and Macquarie in the forthcoming each day. was successful in putting environmental Federal election. The questions which The bags are available at monthly issues before the candidates and the will be put to the candidates will be meetings for $5 and at the Conservation public, and environmental issues played published first, to create advance interest Hut Cafe during the day. Hut News , No. 171, October 2001 — Page 1. “Hut News ”, the newsletter of Blue Mountains Conservation Society Inc. Our Home and not the whole tank P.O. Box 29, Wentworth Falls, 2782 of water, which is how Phone 4757 1872 Fax 4757 1753 & the Environment normal boosters work. Email: [email protected] Energy Use We have chosen gas Web page: www.pnc.com.au/~bmcs While we want to live in a comfortable as it produces less President: Robin Mosman 4757.1354 home (though I'm sure Jessica would be green house gases (fax) happiest if we were generating power from a than electricity. 4757.4503 push-bike) we have tried to influence Residents in the First Vice President: Bob Seaborne 4751.6100 drastically the three biggest consumers of Blue Mountains and (e-mail) [email protected] energy within the house. These are heating some other areas in Second Vice President: Jim Wallace 4784.3305 NSW are presently Correspondence Secretary: Frances Love and cooling of the home, heating hot water and 4757.2585 (e-mail) [email protected] refrigeration. being offered rebates Meetings Secretary: Heather Hull 4739.1493 Heating and Cooling the Home: Passive of up to $900 on the cost of a new solar hot (e-mail) [email protected] solar design (mentioned in a previous article) water system. This offer is being made to try Membership Secretary: Elizabeth van Reyswoud was the first stage in reducing our energy bills. and reduce greenhouse gases, Australia being Phone/Fax 4759.2508 Our design will keep our house cool in one of the world's worst polluters. For details (e-mail) [email protected] summer, and warm on sunny winter days. contact Energy Australia on 131 364. Treasurer: Bart Beech 4739.9947 The Fridge: Fridges can consume the (e-mail) [email protected] Extra energy however will still have to be used Publicity: Margaret Sleath 4759.3350 to keep our house warm on overcast winter most amount of energy in the home. It is best (e-mail) [email protected] days and in the evenings in winter. For extra to use the smallest fridge possible, which has Land Use: Lyndal Sullivan 4782.1635 warmth we will use a Sunlight Heater the best energy rating (uses the least kilowatt (e-mail) [email protected] (produced locally by Paul Curtis 4757 3096). It hours) for that particular size. We would like to Walks Convener: Bill Graham 4759.1692 is an active solar heater, meaning it mainly not have a fridge at all, since there really aren't (e-mail) [email protected] uses the sun with a little outside energy any very energy efficient fridges available yet. Plant Nursery Manager: David Coleby (electricity). Having tried wherever possible to find Phone/Fax 4784.1395 alternatives in this house we will try a 'cool Education: Meredith Brownhill 4782.4823 The principle is that, heat gained behind (e-mail) [email protected] black panels on the roof, is fanned through a cupboard' as the main food cooling system.