Environmental heroes honoured at 2011 QLD Landcare Awards

8 September 2011: A selection of the state’s most impressive environmental achievements were recognised at the 2011 Queensland Landcare Awards.

The biennial awards ceremony, held yesterday at Government House in Paddington, celebrated individual and community volunteer projects that have made significant contributions to the environment in local communities around Queensland.

Her Excellency Ms Penelope Wensley, AC, Patron of Queensland Water and Land Carers, announced the winners and congratulated them for their outstanding efforts which have created positive outcomes for environmental sustainability.

Chairwoman of Queensland Water and Land Carers Esma Armstrong OAM, praised all winners and finalists commenting on the challenges presented in 2011 by floods and cyclone. Mrs Armstrong acknowledged the importance of the occasion by paying tribute “…..to the outstanding contributions Queensland Landcarers make to our community life under what can only be described as difficult circumstances – and in particular to those volunteers who collectively donate many thousands of hours of their time to protecting our natural heritage.”

All the winners of the State categories will go through as nominees for their respective categories at the 2012 National Landcare Awards to be held in Sydney next year.

Winners of the 2011 Queensland Landcare Awards are:

Australian Government Coastcare Award:BeachCare
Australian Government Individual Landcarer Award: Glenn Baker
Toshiba Community Group Award: Toowoomba Landcare Group
Local Government Landcare Partnerships Award:Sunshine Coast Council
Australian Government Innovation in Sustainable Farm Practices Award: Running Creek Feed Test Station
Westpac Education Award: Mount Whitestone Primary School
Australian Government Facilitator-Coordinator Award: Susie Chapman
Australian Government Natural Resource Management Region Award: South-East Queensland Catchments
Urban Landcare Award: Gold Coast Catchment Association
Leighton Holdings Indigenous Award: Bunya Mountains Elders Council

For further information regarding the awards, volunteering and landcare in Queensland please visit: http://www.qwalc.org.au/

About Landcare

The Landcare movement is made up of approximately 4,000 Landcare and 2,000 Coastcare volunteer groups that work on environmental projects in their local communities. The groups that fall under the Landcare umbrella are varied in nature and don’t necessarily include Landcare in their names, including Productive farming groups, ‘Friends of’, Bushcare, Coastcare, Rivercare, and Dunecare. Landcare also include farmers embracing sustainable farm management and any community group that partakes in volunteer environmental activities.

Click here to find out how you can become a Landcare volunteer

Click here for full details on all 2011 State and Territory Landcare Award finalists