Council up-cycles fallen trees

(Supplied)

Rather than letting it go to waste, Macedon Ranges council staff have found a recycled use for the excess tree debris that was generated during the heavy storm damage of June 2021.

Council has used the felled timber to fashion into stakes that can now be used in council’s public works projects.

These stakes form vital fencing and support in areas such as botanical gardens, parks and tree planting programs.

Macedon Ranges council assets and operations director Shane Walden said council would be saving $4100 in stake costs for every 1000 units they create.

“This saving means Council can redirect funds into other areas of recovery and restoration. As well as helping us rebuild the natural environment, by creating stakes from storm waste, there is a financial benefit for the community,” he said.

In June, extreme wind and rain combined to cause major damage across the state, but most significantly in the Macedon Ranges, Hepburn shire, the Dandenong Ranges and the Latrobe Valley.

The Star Weekly reported in November that Victorian state emergency service pinpointed this storm as the single biggest emergency response in the service’s history.

A total of more than 10,000 requests for assistance we lodged across the country in two day period of the storms.

Oliver Lees