Overview of MC meeting held at GDLC on May 25.
This was a busy meeting, with many issues dealt with.
Contract Services
Contract services work is moving along well with MRCCC and the Victory Trails project Preparations for the new shed commence next week, and it is anticipated to go up quickly after that. The OHS policy is being re-worked by an external contractor, to ensure it is compliant with local government requirements. Certain tendering requirements also mean we need to show we are moving towards implementing an ISO14001 type Environmental Management System , and a recent audit conducted by the organisation is the first step towards this process. The yellow Landcruiser is coming to the end of its’ working life and Carl has been authorised to obtain a suitable replacement.
Nursery
The seed saving and propagation workshops were well attended . Various ongoing issues for the nursery include the difficulty with gauging and producing the correct amount of stock- where provision of plants for both retail sales, and Contract services is required . It may be necessary to source some plants externally if various contracts come to fruition. The MC and Shane are looking at various options to get the nursery to where it needs to be – these include improvements to the nursery irrigation system , improved retail space, POS software to manage sales and stock, more effective organisation of the volunteers so that the tasks that need doing are attended to, and some changes to the phone arrangements so that customers can contact the nursery directly. The MC considers there is great opportunity for the nursery to become ‘the place’ to go for native plants in Gympie.
Bio-Control
Yvonne recently presented at the biocontrol forum, and her presentation was very well received. Ernie noted that Gympie Landcare is one of the few in Australia to be undertaking sale of bio-controls on this scale . Given the requirements of the organisation, Yvonne and Shane have been authorised to purchase a modestly priced ute for the joint use of bio-control and nursery sections.
Administration
It was apparent (just from the size of Lavina’s report) that the administrative workload is currently very heavy. Over the past 18 months, many new policies and procedures have been implemented where none existed before and each of these changes have required a great deal of implementation work. That work is ongoing, but it is apparent that additional support is required , at the least until new systems are ‘bedded down’.
Finance
Barry reported on the healthy financial state of the organisation. Budgets for this year need revising however, and the Finance Committee will do that , with the input of the section managers, in the next few weeks.
Landcare Festival
This event is coming up in September. MC authorised expenditure in order to organise, advertise and run the event. Currently 30 vendors booked . MC discussed the potential for this event to become a significant annual event in the region, noting the Logan LEAF festival which similarly attracts large numbers each year.