NEWS DESK
Shire supplies free plants to residents
Ash warning THOUSANDS of the hardy and fastgrowing desert ash tree is spreading to gardens across the Mornington Peninsula. The trees are great self-seeders and people who don’t pay much attention to their gardens are left wondering where that three metre high tree came from as the seed will have blown in from a tree up the road. The trees can reach reach 12 metres in height and, if unchecked, can be a nuisance and costly to remove. Desert ash thrive in bushland and reserve and can choke out competition from native trees and shrubs. The closely related claret ash is not regarded as being a problem.
MORNINGTON Peninsula residents can pick up two indigenous or native plants from the shire’s nursery at The Briars from 4 to 18 April. To obtain the plants residents need to show proof of their peninsula address. The plants are available 9am to 3.30pm Wednesday to Friday and Saturdays at The Briars, 450 Nepean Highway, Mount Martha. The nursery will be closed over the Easter long weekend. Details: mornpen.vic.gov.au/ nursery or call 5974 8417.
SHOWING some of the plants available free to Mornington Peninsula residents are, from left, Cr Rosie Clark with The Briars team members Kate Skvor, Rachel Devlin and Tanzin Ramsay.
Verdict yet to be noted on country ‘noise’ THE jury is still out on the precautions taken to make sure nearby residents were not disturbed by noise from a country music festival held last Sunday at The Briars, Mount Martha. Following complaints about overamplification of electronic music at an event on 16 February, Mornington Peninsula Shire said it would make sure noise levels were kept under EPA levels (“Feedback a part of noise review” The News 26/2/20). Briars manager Rebecca Levy said
Enjoy g Mornin Tea
the country music festival was “quite a different event [and] therefore we are not anticipating the same level of noise issues”. In a letter to Mount Martha resident Ken Anderson, Ms Levy supplied a phone number to call if noise was a problem and said the organisers would monitor and adjust noise levels if needed. “Noise monitors have been installed at three locations on our boundaries, enabling us to keep noise levels at our
boundaries below EPA requirements,” Ms Levy said. “Therefore, any noise beyond our boundaries will be significantly quieter than is required.” However, Mr Anderson said country music “still requires amplification and can’t be considered any different to rock music played on records”. “I don’t think any events of this kind are sympathetic to a nature reserve and the general purpose of The Briars.”
Mr Anderson’s opinion differs from that of Paul Wittwer, of Mornington, who last week told The News that he enjoyed seeing The Briars used for the 16 February concert (“Event applauded” Letters 3/3/20). “[The Briars] really was quite a stunning setting to enjoy the music. While I wouldn’t like to see events like this every weekend, I feel it is a positive addition to the range of events hosted at The Briars over the year,” Mr Wittwer said. Keith Platt
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Southern Peninsula News 11 March 2020