Fire recovery
On News Year’s Eve 2019 fire swept through the Eurobodalla Shire with devastating effects.
Our Botanic Garden suffered major damage to infrastructure, the plant collection and sadly much wildlife was lost.
Since that day we have worked hard to rebuild the many bridges, walkways, work depots, picnic areas, garden structures, toilets and BBQ shelters that were all lost in the fire.
As bushland over the 42-hectare site recovers we continue to redesign and replant throughout the many garden beds. Replacing hundreds of trees throughout the site and thousands of plants, signs, and labels.
The fire has given us the opportunity to rebuild better than before and to help us future proof our infrastructure. By replacing timber framed bridges with steel, selecting less flammable landscape materials, and creating greater asset protection zones our site will cope better next time. The buildings that did survive including our Visitor Centre and Herbarium provide a valuable lesson in building design and material selection for fire prone areas.
By December 2021 we expect to have rebuilt all of the infrastructure that was lost and by the end of 2024 our living plant collection should be close to what it was just before that 2019 New Year's Eve.
