Tony Parkes’ story starts in 1986 with his family purchasing an eight-hectare block that was part of a 42-hectare degraded ex-dairy farm at Binna Burra, north eastern NSW. Tony was living in Sydney at the time and was planning early retirement from a long career in corporate finance. The purchase of the property was the tangible expression of a sea change dream. The dream turned to reality three years later when he moved into a new house on the property, which was once covered by lush rainforest of the Big Scrub.
The farm was once part of the Big Scrub, the largest area of lowland subtropical rainforest in Australia. Most of the Big Scrub has been cleared, leaving 60 significant remnants with incredibly rich and endangered biodiversity. Thus, began an incredible journey that over the ensuing twenty-one years has involved the planting of more than 35,000 trees on his property and the rehabilitation of three small remnant patch of Big Scrub. With the assistance of various grants Tony was able to restore rainforest on 15 hectares or 35 percent of the property, including two kilometres of riparian zone.
Today, the restored rainforest is protected by a conservation agreement with the NSW Minister for the Environment.
Interesting in entering into a conservation agreement with the BCT? Visit https://www.bct.nsw.gov.au/types-of-agreements
Image: Tony Parkes
Source: Big Scrub Landcare