After a massive three years, extending out to four years following the 2019/20 bushfires and successive floods along the Bellinger River, our Upper Bellinger River Terrestrial and Aquatic Habitat Connections project, Funded by the NSW Environmental Trust’s Restoration and Rehabilitation Program – has finally come to an end!

We’re so proud of what we have achieved with this project – working together with our dedicated landholders, we successfully planted over 1,200 endemic trees, and worked to restore over 4km of the Bellinger River – including areas of Lowland Rainforest on Floodplain Endangered Ecological Community. 

Three years of rehabilitation of Critically Endangered Lowland Rainforest on Floodplain Endangered Ecological community – from being smothered in invasive vines to having native seedlings spilling out of the edges and creating an expanded rainforest community.

This work is critical to the recovery of the Bellinger River Snapping Turtle, and we couldn’t have done it without the support of our amazing landholders and volunteers, who diligently work to maintain the results of the project. 

Juvenile Bellinger River Snapping Turtle Chris Ormond/Department of Planning and Environment

This is certainly not the last of our Bellinger River Rehabilitation project – which has now expanded to restoring 25km of the Bellinger River from Brinerville to lower Darkwood! Exciting times ahead, and we thank the efforts of all of our volunteers and partners for everything you’ve done to help make this project a success.