Tourists and wildlife benefit from additional tree planting at Werribee Open Range Zoo

Locals, tourists, and wildlife are benefitting from the Victorian Government having planted more than 14,000 trees at Werribee Open Range Zoo. 

The tree planting aligns with the State Government’s ‘More Trees for a Cooler, Greener West’ initiative – a program that is planting 500,000 trees in Melbourne’s west.

The new trees will complement the $88 million expansion of Werribee Open Range Zoo which includes a purpose-built elephant habitat to house an Asian elephant herd.

Zoos Victoria Chief Executive Dr Jenny Gray shared “Zoos Victoria is grateful for the investment in green spaces to not only support the animals and visitors at Werribee Open Range Zoo, but also to provide habitat for wildlife that chooses to visit or live within the grounds.”

In 2018, Melbourne's west had just 5.5% canopy cover in urban areas compared to 17.4% in the inner south-east and 25.9% in the east.

In response to this shortage of trees in the west, more than 320,000 trees have been planted across the west through this program.

The More Trees for a Cooler, Greener West initiative includes the planting of trees outside schools, along trails, in parks, and on residential streets across six local council areas – Hobsons Bay, Maribyrnong, Brimbank, Melton, Moonee Valley and Wyndham.

The new trees will also be irrigated as part of the Werribee Recycled Water Expansion scheme, which will provide the Zoo with a reliable supply of Class A recycled water and replaces the Zoo’s need for water extractions from the Werribee River.

For details about the project, visit environment.vic.gov.au/more-trees.