8th April 2014

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Tuesday 8 April 2014

MPNEWS (1300 676 397) or email: team@mpnews.com.au www.mpnews.com.au Saving waste: Koby Binyon, Elin Erwin, Casey Davies and Coco Armstrong are among Beleura Hill Preschool children taking part in a pilot sustainability program. They are with teacher Alyce Hiam. Picture: Yanni

Preschoolers in tune with environment

State bans ward funds By Mike Hast THE state government has banned councillor discretionary funds, or ward funds, following a review by the Local Government Inspectorate. Victoria’s municipal watchdog investigated the use of ward funds by 32 of the state’s 79 councils, including Mornington Peninsula Shire. The shire’s 11 councillors each have $10,000 a year for projects in their wards and the money must be

approved by a majority of their colleagues at an open council meeting, although amounts of less than $1000 can be approved by shire officers with no oversight by councillors. Unspent funds can be carried over to the next year. Ward funds started in the 2011-12 financial year after shire councillors approved a policy with restrictive guidelines. Money must be given to not-forprofit community groups that are in-

corporated, community based and managed, and have an “open membership to peninsula residents”. The funds are for small but beneficial projects, events or activities “that have not been specifically budgeted for” and benefit the community. The government’s decision is a blow for funding flexibility with the council often taking many months to approve funding for community projects. The inspectorate report found some Victorian councillors risked breaching

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local government laws and exposing councils and councillors to unnecessary risks. Then Minister for Local Government Jeanette Powell late last year said “council expenditure should be properly authorised by decisions of the full council or special council committees, or by officers exercising clearly documented delegations in accordance with council policies”. Continued Page 12

TEACHERS at Beleura Hill Preschool in Mornington were surprised by the response from children when a new sustainable way of sorting rubbish was introduced. Many of the four-year-olds already knew about separating waste for recycling to reduce the amount of rubbish going to landfill. “They definitely understand and knew a lot more than we thought or gave them credit for,” teacher Katarina Hills said. Coloured bins for different types of waste were introduced at the preschool earlier this year, with the children being taught about the advantages of minimising waste and other sustainable practices, such as using solar power. “Next term we’re going to start using a bin for food scraps to make compost for our vegetable garden,” Ms Hills said. There are two four-year-old sessions and one three-year-old held each week for the 74 children at the preschool in Amelia Ave. It is one of six in Victoria trailing the sustainability program under the direction of the state governmentfunded ResourceSmart AuSSI Vic. Co-coordinator Kirsty Costa said the program – already underway in many primary and secondary schools – was designed to “embed” sustainability into preschool age children. The five modules helped “make the small steps required to get huge results for your school”. Ms Costa, the Victorian Environmental and Sustainability Educator of the Year, who works with 25 schools on the peninsula and in Frankston, said Beleura Hill had “definitely made a good start. It’s fantastic to see”. Keith Platt

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