Aquarius Park Landcare Group

Aquarius Park Landcare is a volunteer-led environmental restoration project working to regenerate and care for the land surrounding a section of Nimbin’s Rainbow Walk.

Working under the umbrella of Nimbin Community Centre Inc., the group is helping transform previously degraded and weed-affected land into a thriving subtropical landscape where native plants and wildlife can flourish and where locals and visitors can reconnect with nature. The work includes bush regeneration, weed control, planting locally endemic species, habitat restoration, mulching, monitoring wildlife and maintaining a volunteer-run nursery that raises plants from locally collected seed.  

And the difference is already remarkable.

During 2025–26, 532 native plants were established with an estimated 98% survival rate, around one hectare underwent weed control and volunteers contributed more than 600 hours across on-ground restoration, nursery work, administration and community engagement. Thirty-seven volunteers participated alongside approximately 20 local school students, with 21 regular members forming the heart of the group.

The project is about more than restoring vegetation. Volunteers are creating wildlife habitat, strengthening a nature corridor through the village, growing plants from local seed stock, involving young people in hands-on environmental education and helping the community understand the extraordinary biodiversity that exists right here in Nimbin. Nesting boxes, educational signage and a bird identification sign featuring 24 local species have already been introduced, while future work will include further habitat restoration, tree identification signage and exploration of ways to improve environmental water flows through the park.

The before-and-after photos from the past year tell the story beautifully — young plantings are becoming established landscapes, previously open and degraded areas are filling with native vegetation, and sections of the park are changing dramatically through the combined work of volunteers and experienced regeneration contractors.