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From crisis to catalyst: Embracing opportunities within environmental challenge

Tracks
Track 2
Wednesday, November 5, 2025
12:40 PM - 1:00 PM

Speaker

Bel Foster
Principal Landscape Architect
Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority

From crisis to catalyst: Embracing opportunities within environmental challenge

BGANZ 2025 Abstract

Like many metropolitan land managers, the Botanic Garden and Parks Authority has been grappling with the impacts and implications of Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer (PSHB) within iconic and beloved heritage landscapes. Since mid-2023, the Ngooninup (Mt Eliza Scarp Stability) project team has been working hard in partnership with DPIRD to manage PSHB infestations on the Mt Eliza Escarpment, including the removal of the mature, non-native figs that were iconic to the area. The project is fast moving and complex with multiple stakeholders, Aboriginal and State Heritage listings, scarp stability issues, access constraints... the list goes on. Despite these challenges and the significant landscape changes seen by the infested tree removals, there have been some great achievements during this period - not the least the mammoth team effort that saw nearly 40,000 endemic species grown on and planted across the site. This presentation will cover the project response, evidence of PSHB management success, ongoing adaptive management decisions and how we're building resilient landscapes in partnership with Traditional Owners for our urban environments to thrive into the future.

Biography

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