How good’s the outdoors!

Year 8 and 9 students from the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School (VCASS) got their hands dirty last month for a tree planting day organised by Transurban and Landcare Australia.

As part of its artistic upgrade of the Power St Loop at the junction of Power and Sturt streets, Transurban has generously donated to VCASS and the Southbank community a small patch of land on Miles St, which is now available to locals to enjoy.

Transurban teamed up with Landcare to construct a seating area at the site for the local community to enjoy and revegetate the site with indigenous species.

The organisations invited VCASS to a volunteer planting day on Monday, October 24, which included a planting demonstration and activities, a free lunch and a presentation on its Power St Loop project.

Joined by their principal Colin Simpson, year 8 and 9 students from the VCASS student representative council enjoyed a morning of gardening and learning about their natural environment.

Mr Simpson thanked Transurban for its generous donation to the school and the community and students really enjoyed the opportunity to engage in learning outside of the classroom.

Many locals will have noticed the stunning public art sculpture Habitat Filter, which is quickly taking shape at the Power St Loop along Sturt St.

The project is part of a public competition launched by Transurban in 2015, which looked for ways to transform the vacant site next to the Domain Tunnel.

The winning design incorporates eight sculptures made of recycled material, with some including solar panels and bird boxes.  The project is expected to be completed early next year.