Eastern Region Catchment Management Program

The Eastern Region Catchment Management Program (ERCMP) is an award-winning partnership program between the City of Kalamunda, the Shire of Mundaring, the City of Swan and the Eastern Metropolitan Regional Council (EMRC). The program aims to achieve a co-ordinated strategic approach to the restoration of land, bushland and creek lines. This has been achieved through a range of natural resource management activities and practices within the Councils, broader community and regional Natural Resource Management Groups.

The outcomes of the ERCMP are closely aligned with the objectives of the Perth Region NRM through the Swan Region Strategy for Natural Resource Management (NRM) and the Swan River Trust through the Healthy Rivers Action Plan.

The program encompasses three team members with an Environmental Projects Officer based at the City of Kalamunda on a part-time basis.

In the City of Kalamunda, the ERCMP team undertake the following activities:

Represents the City at Natural Resource Management forums
Implements the sampling and analysis plans for surface water quality across the City of Kalamunda which were developed in close collaboration with the Perth Region NRM and Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
Implements a catchment planning program
Provides advice to community members wanting to undertake conservation activities on private properties
Runs a series of free workshops (Bush Skills for the Hills) in collaboration with the Environmental Services, which provide both information and practical hands-on sessions regarding landcare, bushcare and wetland care for the hills environment
Assists individuals in applying for grant funding
Releases a bi-monthly newsletter the Greenpage)

These activities support a very active community that has significant positive impact in managing the City of Kalamunda’s natural resources and further to this the team take on further NRM projects as the opportunities arise. The team, for example, obtains grant funding to implement a number of landcare initiatives throughout the City.