Signs on the road

NEW signs indicating roadsides of high conservation significance are being installed on roads around Cardinia Shire.
The signs signify the road as a ‘highly significant roadside vegetation and wildlife corridor’.
In the future, adjacent landowners will receive information from the council about the importance of their roadside.
Council’s Natural Resource Planner Rob Jones said roadside vegetation can be extremely significant to the environment and provide important wildlife corridor linkages across the landscape.
“Roadside vegetation can also contain rare flora and fauna that is important to conserve,” Mr Jones said.
Far from representing ‘scrap’ land, he said roadside vegetation has a highly significant role in the landscape.
“Sometimes the roadside is the only vegetation that exists in the landscape as everything else has been cleared, with the roadside representing the only reference point to the types of indigenous plants that previously existed in the local area.
“It’s important to know the indigenous plants of an area – these are the plants we should be planting as they have the highest chance of survival – often these plants have thrived in the area for thousands of years,” Mr Jones said.
All of the council’s rural roadsides have been assessed for their flora and fauna values and their value as a wildlife corridor to the area.
The council will begin installing the signs in September on roadsides which scored extremely high.
For more information about land management activities in your area contact Council’s Sustainable Environment Unit on 1300 787 624.