2019 Virgin Coastcare Award in Victoria

Victorian Wader Study Group (VWSG) landed the Virgin Coastcare Award at the 2019 Victorian State and Territory

Landcare Awards which were held at Government House in Melbourne on Friday August 30th.

This prestigious award recognises a community group or network demonstrating excellence in activities that have contributed to the significant improvement of local coastal and/or marine environments, including estuaries, coastal and marine wetlands and salt marsh ecosystems.

For decades, the Victorian Wader Study Group’s volunteers have collected vital data that contributes to conserving migratory waders internationally. They’ve used the very demanding cannon-netting technique to capture the migrant and resident waders for more than 20 years, consistently meeting their annual field work targets.

The group’s research has revealed a severe decline in migratory bird populations travelling to South Korea due to habitat loss. This information helps to build a case for protecting wader habitat here and internationally.

‘The recognition is wonderful and the group is very grateful to be recognised for our efforts,’ said Roger Standen, chair of the Victorian Wader Study Group.’

‘This is an entirely voluntary group which has been going for 40 years. We do an enormous amount of work to correlate numbers and information on these migratory species and that takes long haul dedication and serious commitment and it’s fantastic to celebrate everyone’s passionate efforts.’

Andrew Sellick, Sustainability and Corporate Responsibility Manager for Virgin Australia, commended the volunteer group on their outstanding accomplishments.

‘Virgin Australia is proud to celebrate the inspiring work of community groups across Australia protecting and preserving our precious and vulnerable marine environments,’ said Mr Sellick.

‘A hugely deserved winner, Victorian Wader Study Group has significantly contributed to the protection of Australian and international shorebird species. Through their tireless work, they have helped build a case for protecting shorebird habitat on Australian coastlines, and beyond and we’re incredibly proud to help shine a light on their important efforts.’