A community group has called on the ACT government to incorporate an additional section of land to Mount Ainslie Nature Reserve to preserve "one of Australia's most threatened ecosystems" and important Aboriginal history.
Currently 637 hectares in size, the reserve overlooks a large area of wooded country filled with mature eucalyptus trees overlooking the city of Canberra. The hollow-bearing trees are vital refuge and breeding sites for native animals.
Chair of the North Canberra Community Council Peter Boreham and a group of other residents from the area have organised a formal petition requesting the ACT government incorporate the Ainslie volcanics grassy woodlands site into the reserve, with the goal of protecting it from developments.
The site spans the corner of Quick Street and Limestone Avenue up to the Mount Ainslie Nature Reserve and contains remnant natural temperate grasslands, which are recognised as endangered in the ACT.
"This is a big job, but we want better protection for this area. We want to incorporate it into the reserve to help protect it from future development because of its ecological and heritage values," Mr Boreham said.
Volunteer work currently ensures the area is preserved and looked after against threats from invasive species like weeds, as well as making sure it isn't littered by the community.
The Natural Temperate Grassland Endangered Ecological Community Action Plan states an objective to conserve all remaining areas of natural temperate grassland in the ACT and protect threatened species that rely on the habitat.
They include the grassland earless dragon, striped legless lizard, pink-tailed worm lizard, the perunga grasshopper and the golden sun moths, many of which are considered critically endangered in the ACT.
"We need to preserve the remaining grassy woodlands as they are vital in supporting local endangered species, and this area is also of cultural significance to First Nations people and the subject of a heritage nomination," Mr Boreham said.
The reserve is a significant Aboriginal women's cultural place and a landmark for groups passing through to head south into the mountains.
It protects more than 30 known Aboriginal heritage sites on the ACT Heritage Register including surface stone artefact scatters and culturally significant trees. The ACT Parks website for the reserve estimates it's likely to contain more unrecorded heritage sites too.
A petition for the inclusion of the volcanics site into the reserve, sponsored by ACT Greens MLA Jo Clay, states "the area has been nominated for the ACT Heritage Register for Aboriginal heritage values associated with the outcrops, and the place name 'Nadya Ngambri' reserve has been nominated".
"Including this [site] within the reserve will not only give it protection but also raise its profile, encouraging further support from the community and government to help maintain it and ensure this ecosystem remains for generations to come and the history of the area is preserved," Mr Boreham said.
"We are also looking to conduct more activities to raise the profile of this action and help convince the Assembly members that this is the right thing to do for the community and the environment."
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