By BELINDA PARKES
FINGAL Head conservationist Ian Rabbitts has had his years of dedication to the Tweed’s coastline recognised with a Medal of the Order of Australia announced in Queen’s Birthday Honours list on Monday.
A founding member of the first Dune Care group in Australia, Mr Rabbitts has been actively involved in restoring the vegetation along the Tweed’s dunes for 28 years.
His environmental concerns have led to him being part of negotiations with the Department of Lands, successfully resulting in the reclassification of a forest area in 1996.
He also helped to get a Conservation Order In Perpetuity for part of the North Coast region and got a native vegetation act declared on private land enabling thousands of rainforest trees to be re-established.
Mr Rabbitts has been a volunteer with the Fingal Head Coastcare nursery and the Fingal Head Bitou group for many years.
An active community member, he has also been a member of the Fingal Head Community Association since 2001, an executive member of Fingal Head Coastcare group since 1986 and for the past 12 years has represented the Fingal Head Coastcare group as a member of Tweed Shire Council’s coastal committee.
In the late 1980s, he was a volunteer with the Ocean Blue campaign.
