Students from Sherbrooke Community school help re-vitalise Gembrook’s Kurth Kiln park. 52958
By Russell Bennett
A BELOVED Gembrook state park was at risk of irreparable damage when Friends of Kurth Kiln applied for crucial Parks Victoria funding.
The group received $2350 to protect Kurth Kiln’s trees and re-vegetate overused picnic areas.
The 10,000 visitors Kurth Kiln hosts each year have gradually worn down the cultural heritage listed picnic and camping ground.
“So we proposed to fence-off and revegetate affected areas with local indigenous trees and shrubs to retain the natural bush environment surrounding the kiln site,” Friends of Kurth Kiln member Alfred Klink said.
Mr Klink’s wife, Ursula, added: “People go in with their cars, horse floats and motorbikes. We try to confine the picnic areas to protect the bush.”
Kurth Kiln got its name from the kiln developed by Professor E.E. Kurth of the University of Tasmania in World War II.
The kiln was built to make charcoal which could be used to produce a combustible gas to run vehicles on, as petrol was so hard to come by.
The kiln and its surrounding buildings – former workers’ cottages – have formed the basis of the bushland park for decades since.
Just over $1000 of the funding received by Friends of Kurth Kiln was used to purchase 800 plants for the revegetation.
They were planted on 2 September with help from Sherbrooke Community School students who became involved in the project through a link with one of Friends of Kurth Kiln’s members.
“The kids did really well. It was a fantastic group” Mrs Klink said.
“Normally when kids help with plantings they do some work, have a sausage sizzle, go on an afternoon walk and then head back to their school.
“This group of kids didn’t want to go for a walk. They just wanted to keep planting after lunch.”
The Friends of Kurth Kiln group is desperately seeking new members willing to help keep the park in pristine condition for years to come. For further information, call 5967 4201.
