Arnups Road, VIC

Located in Victoria’s South Gippsland on the lands of the Boon Wurrung people, Arnups Road has been revegetated to protect water quality while also taking climate action. The landholder was motivated to make a positive impact on the environment while still being able to run a productive farm. 

The revegetation will help improve water quality within the Battery Creek Catchment, provide potential habitat for wildlife species and help create windbreaks for the livestock on the property demonstrating how climate action and sustainable agricultural practices can coexist.

In 2021, Greenfleet revegetated 5.7 hectares of Arnups Road with 7,200 seedlings made up of a diverse range of native species to supplement the property’s high biodiversity values. Situated near Fish Creek, this project extends Greenfleet’s work in the region in conjunction with our work at properties such as Falls Road and Battery Creek.

Protecting & Improving Water Quality 

The Fish Creek riparian corridor runs down to Battery Creek and has a confluence at the Fish Creek township. Arnups Road is located on the upstream part of the catchment and revegetating the landscape around headwaters like this is vital in protecting the water quality within such regions.

Greenfleet’s revegetation at Arnups Road has been designed around the water course to stabilise steep slopes and prevent lands slips throughout the property. Species such as Scented Paperbark (Melaleuca squarrossa), Swamp Paperbark (Melaleuca ericafolia) and other swamp species like Woolly Teatree (Leptospermum lanigerium) were planted to help improve filtration and slow down water as it moves throughout the landscape.

Over time as the trees become more established, the forest planted will bolster the water quality within the Battery Creek Catchment.

Choosing The Right Species 

In all projects, Greenfleet’s Revegetation Team choose a variety of species that will help create a biodiverse and resilient forest. Some species were chosen specifically for Arnups Road  to provide habitat to wildlife or help enhance the existing ecosystems.

There are two Ecological Vegetation Classes (EVCs) being revegetated at Arnups Road, Wet Forest (EVC 30) and Damp Forest (EVC 29) and the species selected as a part of this project aim to build the resilience of each. The property scales from low lying areas to the top of a small ridge line, which means some of the species planted prefer wetter conditions while some grow better in dryer areas.

One species included is the Southern Blue Gum (Eucalyptus Globulus), which is endemic to south-eastern Australia. Its inclusion in this project will help provide habitat to the Swift Parrot - a unique bird that is classified as Endangered at a Federal and Victorian state level making the restoration of its habitat critical.  

Another important species planted is the Strzelecki Gum (Eucalyptus Strzelecki), which is classified as Vulnerable and is an important habitat tree for koalas. It can be found scattered throughout the landscape in this region and its inclusion in projects such as this can help increase its prevalence. While koalas are not currently present at Arnups Road, the inclusion of this species will create potential for them to return as the forest becomes established. 

Long-term Climate Action

Over its lifetime the forest at Arnups Road will capture over 10,000 tonnes of CO2-e. This is the equivalent average carbon emissions of nearly 500 people in Australia, each year. To ensure the forest can grow to sequester this carbon and continue making a positive impact on our environment, it is protected for 100 years and will grow to the end of this century and beyond.