Beverly and Elizabeth’s Story
Nambucca, NSW
“We had to stop talking and actually start doing something. In order to make an impact, we knew we needed a baseline of what was happening chemically within the river”.
“OzGREEN recommended that we do a field day and water testing. We got up to the far reaches of some of the tributaries to take samples... It was fabulous. Although some results were more horrifying than I thought.”
After months of group meetings and long discussions about the complex issues affecting the Nambucca River, Beverly Gibbs and Elizabeth Newman decided they needed to take a more directive approach.
It was at this point that the Save Nambucca River Project (SNRP) decided to approach OzGREEN. Having heard about River Watch and the power of citizen science, they were hoping to find some support.
Since first connecting, OzGREEN has continued to support and collaborate with SNRP, building the foundations for a longer-term partnership targeting community action for the river’s health. “OzGREEN has provided such great mentoring and modelling”, Beverly reflects. “We’ve learnt how to collect, store and test water accurately, and how to interpret the data”.
For Beverly, finding ways of bridging the gaps between governing bodies and getting larger local involvement has also been important. “After the field day we had a lot of support from the community… people coming up and offering to do water testing in the future”. Under the auspice of OzGREEN, SNRP have also begun applying for grants and fundraising for their own water testing program.
As longstanding residents of Nambucca, Beverly and Elizabeth now see education at the local level as central to achieving SNRP’s longer-term goals. For Elizabeth, who grew up on the river and learned to swim at Bellwood Park “before it was a patch of mud”, engaging younger people is particularly important.