About

The Purpose of the Ballarat Environment Network

“To act as an umbrella organisation for all groups and organisations in the Ballarat region* with an interest in environmental and conservation issues.”

BEN supports these groups through promotion of their activities and achievements.  BEN seeks to achieve greater communication, collaboration and coordination between the groups.

*  The Ballarat Region for the purposes of the activities of BEN is a broad area of central and southern Victoria that stretches from Ararat in the west to Bacchus Marsh in the east and from Avoca and Daylesford in the north to Geelong, Colac in the south.  This area includes the municipalities of Ballarat City and Ararat Rural City and Hepburn, Pyrenees, Corangamite, Golden Plains, Colac-Otway and Moorabool Shires and parts of the areas covered by the North Central, Corangamite, Glenelg Hopkins and Port Phillip Catchment Management Authorities  (See accompanying map).

Functions of the Ballarat Environment Network to Achieve its Purpose

Coordination: To provide a coordinated, authoritative voice and community focus on environmental and conservation issues.
Awareness: To raise public awareness and promote wider understanding of environmental and conservation issues in the Region
Action: To promote improvements in the local environment
Extension: To broaden interest in environmental issues in the community

Specific initiative – the BEN Biodiversity Reserves: To manage the network of BEN Biodiversity Reserves within the Ballarat Region for the purposes of:
Protecting the Region’s unique and threatened biodiversity assets.
Utilising the Reserves as a resource for the promotion of biodiversity.
Involving local communities in the protection and management of local biodiversity assets.
Providing the platform for the development of the Ballarat Region Biodiversity Web and associated, underpinning community participation and awareness programs.
Developing biodiversity action planning processes that are concerned with biodiversity protection in the Region.

Click HERE to download a membership form.

Ballarat Environment Network Committee 2009-10