The Healthy Hectares Project continues to make significant contributions to sustainable land management across North East Victoria, now in its fifth year of supporting hobby farmers, tree changers and small-scale landholders.
2024-2025 Achievements
This year we delivered 7 events with 21 landholders participating from 12 properties. Since the program began in 2021, we’ve reached 394 landholders through 131 workshops and webinars, with 45 events delivered and 83 participants completing the full six-workshop series.
Meeting Growing Demand
With significant land use changes underway in North East Victoria—including subdivision of larger properties and an influx of ‘tree changers’ to regional areas—Healthy Hectares targets this important and expanding demographic. The program is currently supported by the Australian Government through the Climate-Smart Agriculture Program under the Natural Heritage Trust, the project equips landholders with tools, knowledge and local connections to manage properties sustainably.
The program centres on the Healthy Hectares North East booklet and is delivered through a six-part workshop series covering:
- Whole farm planning
- Biodiversity conservation
- Pest plant and animal control
- Soil health
- Pasture improvement
- Water and riparian zone management
Delivery is led by local Landcare Facilitators and supported by regional experts from Agriculture Victoria, Trust for Nature, Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action, and Soil Land Food, ensuring content remains current and locally relevant.
Partnerships Against Pests
Running alongside Healthy Hectares, our Growing Capacity Against Invasives on Small Blocks program delivered six successful workshops funded through the Victorian Government’s Partnerships Against Pests initiative. The series focused on Feral Pig Control and Integrated Fox Management with Sam Armstrong from Agriculture Victoria, and Integrated Rabbit Control with Neil Devanny from the Victorian Rabbit Action Network and Corbin Geyer from Hume Pest Services. Weeds were also covered with workshops delivered on herbaceous weeds with Andrew Griffiths from Wodonga Council, woody weeds with Owen Davies from the North East CMA and blackberry identification and control with Dr Robin Adair from the Victorian Blackberry Taskforce.
Across these workshops, attendees learned about vertebrate pest species biology, behaviour and impact, along with best-practice humane control methods including fumigation, baiting and trapping. Our weed workshops covered identification, impact and control methods and all workshops highlighted the importance of ongoing and collaborative control to achieve best results. Four fact sheets were developed to support ongoing learning. The key takeaway emphasized the importance of consistent, coordinated landscape-scale approaches tailored to each situation.
“The Healthy Hectares Project continues to strengthen the capacity of rural communities to protect and enhance North East Victoria’s unique landscapes and biodiversity, ensuring these values are preserved for future generations.” said Gervise Gaunt, Healthy Hectares Project Officer.