How Government Funding Affects Local Parks

Deep within the urban landscape of suburbia, an oasis is nestled in the intersection of two main roads. Karkarook park is a man-made park in Melbourne’s South-East. The park features lush, native plants, plenty of birds, and a lake – stocked with trout, perch and cod, courtesy of the Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA).

Friends of Karkarook Park (FoKP) is a long-standing pillar in the parks history, with some being members since the creation of the Karkarook Park in the late 90’s). FoKP maintains and monitors the park’s flora and fauna, collecting data, planting seedlings and hosting events.

Karkarook park is owned by Parks Victoria, rather than the Kingston City Council.

Recently, funding for Parks Victoria, which is responsible for over 4 million hectares of land across the state, has been reduced, according to the figures from the 2024/25 Victorian State Government budget overview.

The graph above highlights selected areas of the Victorian Government’s environmental budget for 2024/25, including biosecurity, waste management, recycling, and $17M for state and national parks. These highlights represent only a small fraction of Parks Victoria’s total operational funding, making it harder for Parks Victoria and volunteer groups like Friends of Karkarook Park to support conservation efforts.

Reports in late 2024 state that the government cut approximately $95M in funding. Leadership changes has only added instability to the already understaffed Parks Victoria. Despite emphasising the importance of urban green spaces in the budget announcement, funding and support opportunities continue to be reduced.

The decision to cut funding for an organisation that cares for the environment has been heavily criticised by conservation organisations. Industry spokespeople are concerned that staff redundancies will limit ability to maintain care and conservation programs for landscapes.

FoKP has also been affected. Budget cuts have increased their reliance on donations instead of support from Parks Victoria.

Rhiannon Myhre, an ecologist, has been an active member of the group since 2021. She participates in various aspects of FoKP, including bird surveys and park cleanup.
Myhre also attended volunteer hosted committee meetings, where discussions of events take place. Parks Victoria staff occasionally attend as well.

“I think Parks Victoria need to have a bigger presence, so they need to attend more Karkarook Park meetings, … just so they can get a better understanding of how much work we actually put in,” said Myhre.

The relationship between FoKP and Parks Victoria is strained. Volunteers feel unrecognised, due to the size of the park.

“They [Parks Victoria] think that bigger areas are worth more attention and Karkarook Park is kind of forgotten,” Myhre said.