FOREWORD

Herring Island is an important environmental and recreational asset in Melbourne's inner suburbs, and forms an important focus for the linear parkland proposed for the lower reaches of the Yarra River.

The Island contains indigenous vegetation, and provides important habitat for native fauna, particularly birds. Such areas are rare in the inner suburbs, and are a valuable ecological resource. Herring Island is also an important recreational resource which provides opportunities for nature study, passive recreation and adventure play.

Herring Island is little known to the people of Melbourne despite its prominent position in the Yarra River. For years the Island has been used as a depository for silt dredged from the Yarra River and has experienced periods of neglect. This has left us with a legacy of land degradation, particularly soil salting, tree dieback and weed invasion.

One of the most exciting aspects of this Management Plan is the opportunity for community involvement in the Island's rehabilitation. Several groups, including the Friends of Herring Island and local schools, have already become involved in revegetating the Island. Existing problems such as salinity, dieback and weed invasion on Herring Island provide city-dwellers with first-hand experience of the type of land protection problems affecting thousands of hectares of rural Victoria, and of the measures required to restore the land and encourage native flora and fauna.

The Committee of Management and the Department of Conservation and Environment would like to encourage as many members of the community as possible to participate in the rehabilitation and enjoyment of this unique reserve.



A T GRIFFIN
Acting Director General