Our Mission
Friends of Meelup Regional Park Inc. (FOM) was established in 2018 to support the ongoing voluntary work being done in the Park.
“TO FACILITATE THE CONSERVATION AND PROMOTION OF MEELUP REGIONAL PARK WHILST ENCOURAGING COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION AND EDUCATION THAT ENSURES THE LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY OF THE PARK’S UNIQUE PLANTS, ANIMALS AND LANDSCAPE.”
Objects
a) To contribute towards protecting the natural environmental and biodiversity values within the Meelup Regional Park.
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(b) To promote, enhance and extend public understanding of conservation and consequent constraints on usage of Meelup Regional Park.
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(c) To provide for and support recreational activities compatible with the natural environment and biodiversity values of Meelup Regional Park and its unique status.
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(d) To discourage amenity development or activities that are deleterious to the aim of protecting, improving and promoting the conservation values of the Meelup Regional Park.
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(e) To liaise via the City or any Management Body appointed by the City relating to conservation research, fundraising or other matters aimed at promoting knowledge about the Park.
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(f) To provide and maintain an appropriate body corporate through which:
(i) Community members can be activity encouraged and engaged;
(ii) Relations and cooperation with government agencies, other organisations and private sector partners can be established;
(iii) Education, research and community awareness of the Park’s high conservation values is actively promoted;
(iv) Resources, including grant programs and funding sources, can be sourced and accessed to promote and achieve objectives.
(v) To establish and maintain a public fund for the specific purpose of supporting and furthering the environmental objects of the Association.
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(g) To conduct and engage in activities of all kinds relevant to sub-clauses (a) - (f).
FRIENDS OF MEELUP IN PERSPECTIVE
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Meelup Regional Park (MRP) currently has three limbs/branches:
1.The Management Committee --Working Group and the City initiates all activities including research in the Park.
2.The Volunteers do some of the physical work of maintaining trails, revegetation, care and preservation of the Park.
3. The Friends of Meelup encourage research and raise funds to enhance the wellbeing of the park and organise educational and social activities.
FOM helps provide a pathway for funds to be donated to assist with the health and upkeep of the Park
Conservation Initiatives
Research and Education
VISITOR IMPACT STUDY
Commenced 2021 - Our equipment collects data on the number of vehicles, bikes and pedestrians using the park, with infrared counters and metal detecting counters at strategic locations on our trails.
Chester Burton and Rod Deakin volunteer to coordinate this project.
Photos are taken at various locations to assess visitor impact on the landscape or infrastructure.
Frank Eckler and Kerry Grist volunteer to co-ordinate this project.
Areas between Eagle Bay and Old Dunsborough have been photographed to see visually what erosion, plant, and infrastructure damage is occurring throughout the year. Photographic evidence-based data is taken twice a year – December and June.
At a later date this information, can provide us with the Park's social and economic dollar value which in turn contributes to the community. It will also enable us to encourage/consult/lobby for the needed resources to deal with public demand.
SOIL HEALTH
Co-ordinated by Dr Jennifer Bryce since 2021
Fire intensity vs time-since fire effects on soil fungal and plant community diversity and post-fire recovery in south-west Western Australia.
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Dr Jennifer Bryce said "Following the wildfire at Curtis Bay/Castle rock in January 2022 I had an idea to have a look at microorganisms in the soil with my microscope and see the difference from where the wildfire had been/not. From there it grew to an 8 site project, monitoring 4 times per year, looking at water infiltration times and soil microscopy.
In marri/jarrah woodland and coastal heath area comparing burnt/unburnt/cooler prescribed burn/fire retardant use/not. The Friends of Meelup and the City of Busselton funded me to do PCR testing in November looking at 2 main areas in the burnt and unburnt areas, to get a deeper understanding of what is happening with the microorganisms.
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Dr Sofie De Meyer from MALDIID Pty Ltd (Perth) did the sequence analysis. She then connected me to Dr Christina Birnbaum, University of Southern Queensland and her masters student Genevieve Jurd, who have now picked up the project and will be doing further analysis."
To assist with specialist PCR testing $7000 was funded by FOM to ensure the project proceeded. The City of Busselton also contributed.
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Traffic Calming
Two traffic calming devises have been purchased and are now positioned - one near Point Picquet and the other between Castle Rock Road and Meelup Beach entrance.
We hope they will slow down vehicles travelling along Eagle Bay-Meelup Road.
We are aiming to assist with the protection of pedestrians using the road.