Our Natural Environment and Biodiversity

Five key actions that you can take to help protect our natural environment include:

• Get out there - people who spend time in nature are more likely to act for nature. Enjoy the Peninsula’s national parks, bushland reserves and coastal areas.  Visit my neighbourhood or our parks and reserves directory to discover reserves near you.

• Get involved - volunteer for nature. With a network of over 60 Friends Groups and 12 Landcare groups volunteering across the Peninsula, there are plenty of opportunities to get involved. For more information, visit our environment - get involved page.

• Be a champion for nature - inspire family and friends with your great nature experiences. Record and share photos of your local nature finds on iNaturalist, a great, free citizen science app. Find our more on our iNaturalist page.

• Be a responsible pet owner - we love our cats and dogs, but they can have a big impact on our wildlife. By being a responsible pet owner, you can reduce the direct threat to local wildlife. Visit the responsible pet ownership to find out more.

• Enjoy nature in your own backyard - backyards across the Peninsula are a great place to experience biodiversity, providing important habitat for local wildlife like Short-beaked Echidnas, Blue-tongued Lizards, Tawny Frogmouths and Koalas. Join our Gardens for Wildlife program to learn how to create your own wildlife garden. If you live on a rural property and have remnant native vegetation, the Shire offers a Conservation Land Rate to encourage best practice conservation land management.