RESERVE MANAGEMENT

The Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Management Committee

Working on behalf of, and alongside, The Corangamite Shire Council and The National Trust.

To contact the Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Management Committee – click here.

You can read the updated Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Management Plan 2019-2023 by clicking this link.

You can read The Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Management Committee Plan 2013-2018 by clicking this link.

You can read initial Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Landscape Master Plan and Management Plan revised 1998 by clicking this link.

In 1991, the Town of Camperdown Council established an Advisory Committee to advise Council on management issues relating to the Mt Leura Reserve and to develop a plan to guide development of the site’s environmental, recreational, geological and cultural values.

The Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Landscape Master Plan, Management Plan and Implementation Plan was finalised in 1994 and recommended the establishment of a Special Committee of Council to manage and develop the Mt Leura Reserve, in conjunction with the adjoining Mt Sugarloaf Reserve. From this recommendation, the Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Development Committee (the ‘Development Committee’) and charged with the role of implementing the Management Plan. A revision of the Master Plan, Management Plan and Implementation Plan was undertaken in 2013.

Committee membership consists of six community members and one delegated Council representative, with each community position renewed at the end of a three-year term. A part- time Project Coordinator position is currently funded by Council and through grants secured by the Development Committee. The Project Coordinator undertakes on-ground works within the reserves as directed by Council and the Development Committee.

You can read The Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Management Committee Plan 2013-2018 by clicking this link.

Here’s a general outline of objectives:

Objective One: Enhance the Visitor Experience
Objective Two: Protect and Enhance Environmental and Landscape Values
Objective Three: Develop Promotional and Educational Opportunities
Objective Four: Support Long Term Viability of the Reserves
Objective Five: Mitigate Risk to Users and Surrounding Residents

Restoration of the Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Reserves

The key objective of the 1994 Management Plan was to ‘enhance the scenic, educational and scientific interest of the reserves through revegetation with indigenous flora’.

The plan included a landscape master plan which provided prescriptive actions to restore indigenous vegetation to the reserves over 50-80 years. The plan utilised historical records, existing specimens of indigenous vegetation and vegetation surveys within the surrounding district to determine the structure and composition of vegetation originally found on the reserves.

The plan outlined a list of indigenous species known or thought to have occurred on the mounts prior to settlement, and provided management guidelines for their reintroduction to the reserves. The indigenous vegetation once thought to cover the reserves prior to European settlement is an open-canopy grassy woodland known as ‘Scoria Cone Woodland’. This vegetation community, or ‘Ecological Vegetation Class’ (EVC), is generally composed of an open canopy of Manna Gum and Drooping Sheoak trees and an understorey dominated by native grasses and herb species.

The Development Committee has sought to achieve the original plan’s vision by undertaking an extensive revegetation campaign. To date, over 500 pine and cypress trees have been removed, with more than 35,000 indigenous trees and 60,000 indigenous grasses planted across the reserves.

Community Involvement

A strong level of community ownership and support has been instrumental in the success of the project, with assistance having been provided by a broad range of organisations, groups and individuals over the years.

The Friends of Mt Leura Inc. have contributed a substantial number of volunteer hours to support the revegetation program and contributes to general maintenance of the reserves. The group also works to promote the project across the wider community. Staff and students of Camperdown College have also had a high level of involvement since the project’s inception.

A community nursery, constructed on college grounds in 1994, has been utilised by the school and by volunteers to propagate the vast majority of indigenous plants planted across the reserves. This partnership has served to build environmental awareness and appreciation among the young people of Camperdown whilst also fostering a sense of wider community ownership over the project.