The Mullum Mullum Festival is a community event, supported by Maroondah, Manningham and Whitehorse Councils, which celebrates the ecological and cultural value of the Mullum Mullum Creek Valley and surrounding remnant bushland areas. The uniqueness of the Mullum Mullum Valley has been recognised since the 1920s and we are fortunate to have such unique flora and fauna so close to Maroondah and the eastern suburbs.

The festival, now in its 11th year, was officially launched this afternoon at Yarran Dheran by Rachael Lamont the Chief Ranger of Parks Victoria. The Welcome to Country was conducted by Annette Xiberras a Wurundjeri Elder, who spoke about the cultural heritage of the Mullum Mullum Valley and the serenity that is enjoyed through this unique bushland. Since the Mullum Mullum Valley will soon be managed by Parks Victoria, it was timely to have Rachael speak about the organisation’s vision for the bushland.

The festival includes a number of walks around the valley as well as discussions on topics such as weeds, indigenous heritage and the fauna and flora native to the area. While sections have suffered significant damage due to the construction of EastLink, we are fortunate that some areas have been receiving the necessary level of care to try and minimise the impact of this construction.

It is unfortunate that Melbourne’s valleys have generally been viewed as sites for freeways although we are fortunate that the Mullum remains mostly intact rather than befalling the same fate as the Gardiner or Koonung Valleys. Once lost, the uniqueness of such ecosystems can never be recreated.

This afternoon I participated in the Extinction in the Suburbs walk, which was hosted by Dr Sarah Bekessy. Sarah discussed the impact of unchecked urban expansion on biodiversity and ecosystems and highlighted the need for a planning approach that includes natural environment in its assessment. Such measures are long overdue in Victoria where a number of threatened species reside in designated growth areas.

The Mullum Mullum Festival continues on Saturday the 3rd and Sunday the 4th of May. For further details please visit home.vicnet.net.au/~mulfest.