UPDATE 29/06/2018: LEG has completed its fundraising efforts for Hoskins Uniting Church. Lithgow Environment Group, would like to thank all of those who have donated to this project so far. Without your donations, the project wouldn't have achieved what we've reached. The total target has not yet been achieved. The Hoskins Uniting Church will continue on fundraising until they reach the target of $14,571. If you would like to donate to the Hoskins Uniting Church Roof-Top Solar Project, you may do so to the church directly by emailing: lithgowuc@gmail.com. 

LEG Energy Hub's first charitable fund raising project has now launched! Our first campaign will raise money to provide Lithgow's Hoskin's Uniting Church with a roof-top solar system, providing them with free and clean energy they can use to conduct their activities. The Uniting Church has programs that serve young families, elderly and those with a disability, amongst others. Hoskins Memorial Uniting Church Activity Building is the hub of all their social programs. It allows them to provide an area for a diverse range of groups and organistions to have a place to meet. Rising energy costs have reduced their opportunities and they want to do more for their community. Many of the vulnerable they serve use their centre as a save haven. It is their hope that they could better provide a cool space in summer, as well as a warm one in our long, cold winters. By raising those funds and reducing our energy costs, we can continue and expand to meet our community needs.

We need your help with reaching our target. Can you help us get there?

​Lithgow is a Transition Town. The decline of coal fired power generation and coal mining is happening and our economy here in Lithgow is exposed to this decline more than other, less coal dependant places. Despite calls for more of the same we have little influence in this decline. Not even our board rooms in Bangkok, Seoul or Hong Kong have much influence on what is happening but their decisions will be guided by the biggest profit option – and that will not be coal anymore.
 
The transition to something new will not happen tomorrow but it will happen. Transitions come with upheaval and we better prepare for it. Lithgow has a great tradition of surviving transitions: 630 jobs were lost when Hoskins’ steel furnaces shut down, 12,000 (!) people were once employed at the Small Arms Factory…Lithgow didn’t survive these transitions by calling for more of the same but by getting on with something new.
 
That’s why Lithgow Environment has embarked on a campaign we call the Lithgow Renewable Energy Hub. We are setting up an office in the admin building of Hoskins Uniting Church initially open on Thursdays and Fridays to implement our 7 point plan. Here it is:

1. Raise funds for solar installation on roofs of charity organisation buildings
2. Liaise with businesses willing to install solar
3. Lobby Energy Australia for a Pumped Hydro scheme between the lakes
4. Liaise with Dept. of Housing for solar installations
5. Lobby Lithgow City Council for a rates based approach of solar installations
6. Connect with Uni Students
7. Promote the Reskilling of  the workforce

Nothing is as permanent as change – let’s prepare for it, fair and sustainable.

LEG Energy Hub information:
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Location: Hoskins, Uniting Church, Cnr Bridge & Mort Street Lithgow.
Office days and times: Thursday and Friday weekly, 8.30-3.30.
Phone: 0419921092
Email: mailto:info@environment.org

Join us to raise awareness for the Gardens of Stone reserve proposal. Put this date in your diary. Bring your friends and family to this important event. Discover another spectacular pagoda-studded location! Participate and enjoy -
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• Welcome to Country - respect People and Country
• Music and song - celebrate and defend Country
• A really Big Banner Event - Protect Gardens of Stone
• People Pagoda Landscape - be part of a photographic spectacle 

Your presence will support a 39,000 hectare Gardens of Stone reserve proposal that seeks to facilitate a transition for the Lithgow region. This is your chance to be part of a simple but effective demonstration to highlight the importance of this reserve proposal.

Register for the event/learn more here

Visit and learn about the magnificent Gardens of Stone region on the western side of the Blue Mountains and easily accessible from Sydney or the Central West. The Gardens of Stone Visitors Map shows trails, views and other main attractions.

Only two hours drive from Sydney, the Gardens of Stone offer many family adventures from picknicking and sightseeing to day walks, camping, nature study, exploring industrial ruins, bird-watching, bicycling, photography, drawing and painting. The Visitors Map is full of suggested walks and trips.

There are lots of opportunities for multi-day walks, rock climbing, abseiling and canyoning. Accommodation is readily available in Lithgow and other nearby towns.

The Visitors Map is in full colour, 60 by 85 cm in size, and covers the entire Gardens of Stone region at a 1:100,000 scale, making it ideal for planning your next trip to the area.

Well illustrated with colour photos, the reverse side has lots of information on the plants, animals, pagoda rock formations, cliffs as well as the cultural and historic places in the region.

This map has been prepared by the Gardens of Stone Alliance (Blue Mountains Conservation Society, Colong Foundation for Wilderness and Lithgow Environment Group) to promote the conservation of the Gardens of Stone Stage 2 Reserve Proposal and to showcase the many low-impact recreational opportunities in the area.

There are touring routes for motor vehicles and bicycles which readily link to other routes in the Greater Blue Mountains and World Heritage Area.

Buy a map here.

The 2017 Regional Environment Conference, jointly hosted with the Lithgow Environment Group, will be held at the Lithgow Uniting Church on Saturday and Sunday, June 3 and 4. The conference will include a full day program on the Saturday, a conference dinner on the Saturday night and two optional field trips and a lunch on the Sunday. 

The program for the conference can be viewed here. It will be updated as more speakers are announced. Please feel free to share widely with your networks. 

Saturday will be a program of panel discussions and workshops at the Uniting Church. Saturday night will be a dinner at the Old Exchange Hotel in Lithgow, and Sunday will be a field trip to the Wolgan Valley, including lunch provided by Newnes Hotel.

The aims of the regional conference are to:

• Provide an opportunity for networking between NCC members, executive, staff, representatives and local conservationists;
• Provide an opportunity for information sharing, skills development and collaborative planning on key policy and campaign issues; and
• Strengthen working relationships between existing NCC members and to provide an opportunity for potential members to learn more about our work.
• Registration

You can register online here. The registration fee includes access to the program and field trip, and lunch Saturday.

Please organise your own accommodation for the conference. Some suggestions nearby include:

Workies Motel – 400 metres from venue

Zig Zag Motel – 2 kilometers from venue

Bowen Inn Motel – 3 kilometers from venue

There are also numerous pubs in Lithgow with accommodation: Commercial Hotel, Lansdowne Hotel, Lithgow Hotel all in main street and about 300-700 metres from venue.

Further Information

For more information please contact Network Organiser Jacqui Mumford, (02) 9516 1488, outreach@nature.org.au. ​