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In line with government regulations and good old common sense all Society meetings and gatherings (except virtual meetings of course) have been suspended.

To remove one small concern, the Society is extending all memberships by three months.

That is, no memberships will be due for renewal for the time being. For further information, please contact our Membership Secretary, Ross Coster, on membership@bluemountains.org.au

The Society's Annual General Meeting was held online, our nursery has closed, and all our bushwalking activities and the Plant Study Group walks have been curtailed for the time being.

The April and May Management Committee meetings were held online.

We are aware that the next few months will be challenging and the Society will endeavour to keep members' spirits up by ensuring that we continue to be active (even if in cyberspace) and advocate for nature!

To that end, we have produced two of our finest submissions for the EPBC Act Review and NSW Independent Bushfire Inquiry.

For further information about COVID‑19, please refer to the NSW and Australian Government websites -

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As part of its Improving Access to National Parks Program (IANPP), the National Parks & Wildlife Service (NPWS) will be upgrading Grand Cliff Top Walk between Wentworth Falls and Katoomba, and upgrading the Gordon Falls Lookout to provide accessible access and include a new lookout platform and an elevated boardwalk.

The Community Information Letter and Concept Diagrams, received on 23 April, describes the upgrades.

The project was due to commence construction in June 2020 but has now been delayed so concerns expressed by local residents can be considered.

The Society is strongly in favour of the concept of the Grand Cliff Top Walk. Existing sections of the Walk however, and its side tracks (such as to Lyrebird Dell), are in a poor condition and we've asked for this to be included in the upgrade.

The information provided on the Gordon Falls Lookout Accessibility Upgrade appears to show the removal of mature trees and shrubs, and the boardwalk being built on a slope on the edge of the escarpment.

Our comments and concerns are contained in our letter to NPWS

Although not in the Society's charter, we're concerned about the impact to the local community by increased traffic (especially tourist buses) and visitors - as it will affect the tranquility of the surrounding area.

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The NSW Government has commissioned an Independent Inquiry into the 2019-20 bushfire season to provide input to NSW ahead of the next bushfire season.

The Society has made a submission to the inquiry.

Our submission includes twenty recommendations that range from

• the obvious (action on climate change, funding for NPWS, and increased resources for fire-fighting);
• to considerations on methods of hazard reduction and fire-fighting;
• to much needed research and surveys into biodiversity and threatened species and communities.

Contributors to the submission included Peter & Judy Smith, Ian Brown, Ian Baird, Margaret Baker and Madi Maclean.

Submissions close on Friday 22 May 2020.

Here's how to make a submission to the bushfire inquiry

Feel free to get ideas for your submission from ours, and include references to it. Personal submissions matter - just include your view on issues that concern you.

Here's the draft The Nature Conservation Council's submission. In addition they have prepared a submission writing guideline.

In these COVID-19 days, our Bushfires webpage (see below), may help you remember the sheer scale of the bushfires.

It is important to tell this Inquiry your concerns and experiences.

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Our Bushfires webpage contains a detailed analysis of the bushfires and their impact on the Greater Blue Mountains - including maps, an assessment of areas burnt and the loss of wildlife. This analysis was prepared by Peter Smith.

Initial information on recovery and What You Can Do is there, plus some articles on Firefighting written by Ian Brown.

We have also gathered credible articles and provide links to these.

All the bushfire information that was on the home page, is now on this webpage.

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Our Destination Pagoda movie was shown to a full house at Mount Vic Flicks on 2 July.

We are now reviewing options for the next screening.

To support the Destination Pagoda vision for a Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area, write a letter to the Hon. Paul Toole, Member for Bathurst and Minister for Regional Transport and Roads, seeking his support for our detailed reserve establishment plan called Destination Pagoda. Mr. Toole’s electorate includes the Gardens of Stone unprotected area.

Here's how to send a letter.

It's very important that Mr. Toole hears from supporters on this proposal. The proposal is at a critical time.

Destination Pagoda proposes a world class tourism and conservation reserve on Lithgow’s doorstep. A new reserve, called the Gardens of Stone State Conservation Area, will complete Myles Dunphy’s visionary 1932 Blue Mountains National Park scheme.

A key design element of Destination Pagoda is the creation of low-key visitor opportunities close to Lithgow beside upgraded existing road access linked to the town. The gentle plateau terrain with its distinctive pagoda rocks contain many sites for a variety of family-suitable, low-key visitor facilities that combine to give Lithgow’s Gardens of Stone great potential to attract visitors interested in experiencing nature.

The beauty of the Destination Pagoda scheme is that new visitor facilities can be established beside pagoda landscapes of great scenic beauty around Lithgow that are need of restoration and rehabilitation, while more remote, pristine landscapes are protected.

The forests next to Lithgow are amongst the most diverse in NSW and contain 84 threatened plant and animal species, including the Blue Mountains Water Skink and Giant Dragonfly, as well as 16 rare and threatened communities. They deserve effective conservation management by the NPWS.

Visit our Gardens of Stone webpages.

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