The Central West Lachlan Landcare initiative, Plan Bee is all about getting communities and native bees buzzing in the central west.

Farmers and Landcare staff have identified a reduction in bee numbers in recent years, particularly at key agricultural times including canola flowering. 

This has raised concerns amongst the community about the role bees play as a key species for ecological stability as well as their role in sustaining agricultural food production via pollination of crops.

“One in every three mouthfuls of food is a result of pollination,” CWLL project officer Christie Elemam said. 

“Bees ensure flowering plants, keep our environment looking pretty and play an important part in the environment locally.

“If crops don’t pollinate then they won’t grow – farmers can put in all the work they want but without bees to pollinate their crops, it’s useless.

“Bees are the forgotten worker in our environment.”

Mrs Elemam said Plan Bee aims to educate people about native bees.

“This project provides an opportunity for farmers, communities and school groups to learn more about native stingless bees and to take practical on-ground action to improve the level of bees within our farming communities so as to secure the future of food production in the central west,” she said.

The project encourages people to set up their own hives to increase the number of bees in the area.

“People throughout the central west can have native, stingless bees – they are very low maintenance and provide no honey value but they are crucial for pollination and being stingless we can take them into schools,” Mrs Elemam said.

CWLL have partnered with Little River Landcare group, Macquarie 2100 and Coonamble and District Landcare, to engage with communities right across the central west.

CWLL have launched their project as part of a new global crowdfunding initiative.

Landcare NSW and Pozible, a crowdfunding platform, have teamed up to present a new crowdfunding category for Landcare and the Environment on the global site www.Pozible.com/landcare.

CWLL Plan Bee project is one of just 25 projects from Australia and across the globe chosen for the Landcare and Environment Collection.

“It’s the first time an environmental collection has been launched by crowdfunding,” Mrs Elemam said.

Crowdfunding is a relatively new internet phenomenon where project representatives pitch a project onto the Pozible website, market their campaign through their networks and social media, receive pledges for funding from the ‘crowd’ and then, if they meet their funding target, the donations are transferred to the project proponent to go ahead.

CWLL aim to raise $27,500 for the Plan Bee project via Pozible, which will go towards the cost of rolling it out across the central west such as establishing eight hives and running 10 community information sessions.

“It’s all about building hives to build a community,” Mrs Elemam said.

“It’s a sustainable project, so once the hives are up and running and at maximum capacity we’ll be splitting the hives and spreading them out.”

Mrs Elemam said they hope the community can get on board and recognise the value of bees in the community by making a pledge.

“Everyone can play a role in helping sustainable agriculture,” she said.

To pledge your support for the Plan Bee project, head to www.pozible.com/planbee