Environmental Sustainability Practices at Bulleen Art & Garden

PRESS RELEASE March 18th, 2002

Bulleen Art and Garden has been judged one of the winners of the inaugural Savewater Awards.

Bulleen Art and Garden was announced as one of the winners of the inaugural Savewater awards sponsored by Department of Natural Resources and Environment in a gala ceremony at Melbourne's Park Hyatt on March 15, 2002. Bulleen Art and Garden was successful within the Retail/Service Providers (Small-Medium and Large) Manufacturing category which included over seventy business entrants.

The Savewater awards were established to acknowledge organisations that have demonstrated outstanding innovation and achievement in water conservation and wastewater management. All Victorian businesses, schools and government departments and agencies were eligible to enter. Bulleen Art & Garden has a long term program of promoting environmental issues within a retail setting. Staff members including Paul Gibson Roy (Environmental Research Officer), Peter Howey (Manager), Simon Fitzgerald (Irrigation) and Bruce Plain (Proprietor) have been instrumental in ensuring water conservation is a prime focus of nursery operations.

The nursery was recognised for its overall commitment to water conservation at both operational and customer education levels. Judges were impressed with aspects such as: * the use of hot-water weed control within the nursery to eliminate the need for chemical controls (and resulting in no harmful run-off into the Yarra river), * the installation of a silt run-off trap to reduce river contamination, * a dedicated water conservation section within the shop where water conservation products such as grey-water systems, rain-water systems, low water use irrigation systems are available to customers. * Finally Bulleen Art and Garden set into policy and staff workplace agreements a range of environmental guidelines and objectives.

Bulleen Art & Garden set up a water conservation display at the Nursery Industry Association stand at the Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show in April. It is encouraging that a Retail Garden Nursery has won an award such as this against a diverse range of businesses. Bulleen Art and Garden has shown that the staff and management are committed to operating in a sustainable fashion and enabling customers, via product and information, to apply water conservation and environmental sustainability principles at home.

If you would like more information, please contact Paul Gibson-Roy, Peter Howey or Bruce Plain on (03)9850 5155, or email meredith@baag.com.au