Category: FONB

FONB

Vale Gerard Castles

It is with great sadness that we record the death of our friend and FONB committee member Gerard Castles who passed away unexpectedly last Monday 31 March. Gerard was doing what he loved,  bushwalking in the Walls of Jerusalem National Park.

Gerard was our Vice-President from 2017 to 2024, and a great contributor to the work of FONB.

He and his family – his wife Shayne and children Conor and Sarah – were ’shackies’ in Killora, and neighbours of Richard Flanagan.  Like Richard, Gerard  was angered by the degradation of their lifestyle in Killora by the Tassal salmon leases opposite, and by the degradation of the Channel as a whole by the salmon industry.  He founded the Killora Community Association to speak out against the industry, and was its chief spokesperson.  That led to him becoming involved in the Tasmanian Alliance for Marine Protection (TAMP) and Neighbours of Fish Farming (NOFF), and recently in supporting Peter George, former President of TAMP and NOFF, in running as an independent candidate for the Federal seat of Franklin in the forthcoming Federal election.  He helped organise many protests, including the Salmon Out protest at Coningham in 2023 and the recent Verona Sands rally last month, and frequently spoke at such events.

Another focus of his activism in recent years was the campaign against a helicopter tourism proposal for Lake Malbena in the Central Highlands. 

Gerard was never content to just complain; he would act.  And he would bring to this his professional skills as a communicator, facilitator and strategic thinker.  In recent weeks he was contributing to discussions on the island about how to address over tourism on Bruny, which had been a concern of his and within FONB for some time.

Alex Matysek, committee member and former President of FONB, captured the moment in a short tribute this week – ‘Our community has lost a giant mind, a beautiful person and a warrior environmentalist.  His death while trekking in his heart country is so poignant, but we will all remember him for his passion and conviction for our environmental causes and his enthusiastic commitment to lead our Bruny communities.  He lived life to the full with his family, friends, causes and work.’

We send our condolences to Shayne, Conor and Sarah.

Bruny Island Ferry, FONB

SeaLink Bruny Island proposed winter timetable 2025

In late March SeaLink released a winter 2025 timetable (effective from 5th May).

We asked our members, and the wider Bruny community for feedback so that we could explore these changes and the impact on our community. Thank you to everyoe who contacted us – very consistent concerns. We have distilled these into a letter which has been sent to SeaLink and key decision makers.

The Bruny Island Ferry Reference Group (BIFG) also met earlier this week and we are hopeful that a workable outcome will be reached. Thanks to our community members who volunteer their time on the BIFRG.

Watch this space 🙂

… Since we posted this we have had the following Response from SeaLink, the Communique from the Bruny Island Ferry Reference Group , news of the Sale of Bruny Island Ferry and a revised winter timetable.

FONB will continue to monitor the situation and work with BICA in the best interests of residents and ratepayers.

Environment, FONB, Planning

Kingborough Draft Planning Scheme

Friends of North Bruny submitted this representation and supporting information to to Kingborough Council in replation to the Draft Planning Scheme

L to Ricght Bob Graham (BIEN), Teisha Archer and Tammy Price (BICA) Jan Richards and Simon Allston (FONB)

We also met with representatives from Bruny Island Community Association (BICA) and Bruny Island Environment Network (BIEN) (photo above) and developed a joint representation from the three organisations.

FONB, North Bruny Land and Coastcare

2024 FONB AGM

The 2024 Friends of North Bruny AGM will be held on Saturday 19 October at the Dennes Point Community Centre (the Hall!) commencing at 10 am. The AGM will be followed by a General Meeting where there wil be an opportunity to discuss a number of current and emerging topics including the Draft Kingborough Council Planning Scheme. The General Meeting will end at 11.15 am. The Agenda and Annual Report are available to download.

At 11.45 am the North Bruny Land and Coastcare Group will present on ‘Towards a Weedless North Bruny’ with speakers Scott Corben (Kingborough Council) and Jim Mulchay (Mulchay Planning and Property Services). Jim has prepared a Weed Mapping Document for Dennes Point and Barnes Bay as a starting point in discussions.

We hope to see you there.

FONB

Save the Date! 2024 AGM

Pop Saturday 19th October in your diary for the Friends of North Bruny Annual General Meeting which will be held at Lennon Memorial Hall, Dennes Point.

The AGM will commence at 10.30 am and will be followed by a Presentation- further details coming soon.

We will finish at 1 pm.

Look forward to seeing you there.

FONB

Dennes Point History Walk and Trivia Quiz

When? Sunday June 9th

  • 2.00 p.m. walk and talk
  • 3.30 p.m. Trivia Quiz

Where? Lennon Memorial Hall, Dennes Point

Details:

A one hour walk and talk by local historian, Suzanne Smythe, followed by a trivia session to test what may have been learned.

Meet at Lennon Memorial Hall, Dennes Point at 2.00 p.m.

Suzanne will lead, indicating some of the points of interest and what used to be.

At 3.00 p.m. we will return to the Hall for some tricky trivia and a few juicy stories.

Tables of around 6 to 8 would work best.

Make up a North Bruny-themed name for the team on the table and consider appointing a spokesperson.

If you would like to pre-order a café pizza to be ready for our return to the Hall please place your order at the café before we head off on the walk. Teams are also encouraged to arrange some finger food and refreshments for their table to sustain them through the trivia ordeal.

There will be 2 rounds of questions and some more historical insights shared by Suzanne… and there will be prizes!

If you can’t make the walk and wish to take part in the trivia quiz, just arrange to join a table; the quiz should be starting around 3.15pm

Bookings: please email   walter.truesdale@gmail.com or text 041361744;

you should expect a response to confirm your booking.

$10 per person; (cash preferred on the day but card payment will be possible). Proceeds to be donated to assist in the replacement of the front door of the Community Hall.

Suzanne Smythe’s books on local history will be available for sale.

This is a joint venture by Bruny Island History Room and Friends of North Bruny

Bushfire, Environment, FONB

Are you bushfire ready?

There’s good reason to be worried about the possibility of bushfire this summer.  Winter has been much drier than usual, and the summer also promises to be hot and dry.

Members of the Tasmanian Fire Service (TFS) are coming to North Bruny on Sunday, 12 November, to participate in a community meeting about bushfire preparedness. The meeting will also involve representatives from Tasmania Police and Kingborough Council Emergency Management.

The North Bruny meeting will be held at the Dennes Point Community Hall, between 9.30 and 11.30 am and will involve:

  • Fire behaviour specialists discussing how bushfires behave, and the on-ground operations we might expect
  • Police discussing evacuation capacity and planning
  • Information from Kingborough Council Emergency Management staff

and importantly:

  • information addressing the specific needs of residents, shackies and tourism business owners
  • a Q & A panel discussing and sharing local experience and observations
  • observations on the use of TFS’s Bushfire Readiness Challenge Program

You may also wish to see a copy of the TFS Community Bushfire Protection Plan for Bruny Island, which will be discussed at the meeting.  This can be viewed here.

I encourage you to come to the meeting, as part of becoming properly prepared for the fire season, and as part of planning how you and your household and our wider community can best stay safe in the event of wildfire in our vicinity.

I hope to see you at the meeting.

Best wishes,

Simon Allston
FONB Chair

FONB

2023 AGM & Presentation

Friends of North Bruny (FONB) AGM

Saturday 7 October 2023, 11.00-1.00

Dennes Point Hall

Annual General Meeting 11.00 am – 11.30am

Followed by Guest Speaker

Dr Nick Gales

“From Whales to Ice; challenges in ocean governance”

11.30am – 1.00pm

FONB members and new members welcome to attend the AGM

All Committee Positions open for election

All are welcome to attend the public talk at 11.30am

Dr Nick Gales

Nick Gales is a global leader in marine and polar environmental science, policy, and management. Among his many career highlights, Nick has led Australia’s Antarctic Program and been Australia’s Chief Antarctic Scientist and Chief Science Advisor to Australia’s Department of Environment. He has also served as President of the international Society of Marine Mammalogy.

Nick is currently Australia’s Commissioner to the International Whaling Commission and Vice-Chair of the International Whaling Commission.  

Come and hear a distinguished resident of North Bruny speak on environmental issues of global significance which are facing our oceans.

FONB, Tasmania Reads

Reading Tasmanian for Tasmania Reads!

Let’s all read, this Tasmania Reads Week


Between 5 – 11 March, libraries, schools, business, and communities across the state will be celebrating Tasmania Reads week and you can too. Friends of North Bruny (FONB) are supporting a get together at Dennes Point on Tuesday 7 March where we will talk about our favourite Tasmanian Read. We hope this will be the impetus for a regular book group here in North Bruny and we’d love it if you could come along (and maybe bring a friend).

Here’s the details:

When: Tuesday 7 March 2023
Time: 11am – 1 pm
Where: Dennes Point – location will depend on final numbers, and we’ll keep you posted.
Cost: Free
Booking: Not essential but preferred – it will help us in finalising the venue and making sure there are enough cups! https://www.eventbrite.com/e/reading-tasmanian-for-tasmania-reads-tickets-558497479997

What to Read?

Now for the fun bit, what to read? We’re leaving that up to you, it just needs to have a Tasmanian flavour – it could be a read by a Tasmanian writer; it could be set in Tasmania; it could be about Tasmania – the broader the range the more interesting the discussion. Fiction/nonfiction/poetry/essays/magazines are all excellent choices, and you can ‘read’ hardcopy, eBooks or audio books. There are some great suggestions in the Tasmania reads online magazine. Download it here

Where do I find the books?

You might already have something in your own collection. If not, why not check out what’s available at:
Libraries Tasmania. Our nearest branch is at Kingston but if you are a member, you can borrow or return from any branch and membership is free. You can join online which will also allow you to borrow straight away from the eLibrary.

Bruny Island Community Library at Alonnah has a great range of Tasmanian titles. They are open on Thursday and Saturday from 1-4 pm, and also on Wednesday mornings. The Community Library is also planning an event for Tasmania Reads in April – we’ll keep you posted!

Get Involved

Share what you’re reading on social media using the hashtags #TasmaniaReads and #BrunyIslandReads

Create your own logo using the resources on the Australia Reads page.

Read for Pleasure/Read with Friends/Read for Learning