Wednesday, 20 November 2019

The Brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) poses a significant threat to the nursery industry, and tighter biosecurity measures must be taken to keep this pest out of Australia.

This exotic pest has high establishment potential in Australia, and could cause major damage to agricultural crops, nursery stock and ornamental plants, so keeping this pest out is a top priority.

Biosecurity agencies and departments are on high alert with peak BMSB season happening from 1 September 2019 through to 31 May 2020.

Past incidents of BMSB arriving at the Australian border have occurred during spring and summer, when climatic conditions and host availability in temperature regions are suitable to the pests feeding and development.

In response to the increased threat during these months, the Department of Agriculture has strengthened seasonal measures to manage the risk of BMSB arriving in Australia. The Department is working with the Consultative Committee on Emergency Plant Pests (CCEPP), of which NGIA is a party, to provide a platform where information can be shared, and emergency pest incursions managed.

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Monday, 4 November 2019

The 202020 Vision has evolved, as the next phase of this urban greening initiative takes root under a new title – Greener Spaces Better Places.

Working to build on the momentum, networks, and ambassador program grown through 202020 Vision, the mission of this next phase is to make Australia’s urban areas the greenest in the world.

This national program works to engage growers and encourage greater collaboration with councils, developers and landscapers to increase green life in Australian cities and towns.

In October, the Greenlife Industry Australia (GIA) team headed to the Sydney launch event, held at the Dove & Olive in Surry Hills. More

The nine-month ‘Global review of incentive schemes for the retention and successful establishment of trees on private urban land’(NY18002) project is approaching its conclusion, with the final report set to be delivered in December this year.

This levy funded project aims to clarify which mechanisms may be suitable, and effective, for Australian local councils to consider in terms of establishing and retaining more trees on private land.

Commencing in May 2019, the project team from the University of Melbourne and RMIT University has completed an intensive literature review and led two international roundtable discussions at the ‘Nature of Climate Summit’ conference in Paris, France and the ‘European Forum on Urban Forests’ held in Cologne, Germany.

Attendees at these roundtables shared their experiences and key initiatives from cities across the globe, presenting strong case studies for evaluating incentives.

Over the past few months, the project team has continued purposefully collecting data on these various case studies, as well as interviewing dozens of individuals with experience on these types of mechanisms. The objective was to critically investigate what progressive things cities are doing to better retain and establish trees.

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