Cockburn Wetlands Centre’s city funding will expire in 2028 to encourage it to find other revenue streams

A long-standing environmental centre’s request for a five-year funding extension has been rejected to reduce its reliance on ratepayer money.

The Bibra Lake Wetlands Centre has received funding from the City of Cockburn since it was built in 1993, which is uses to protect the wetlands and for community education.

The centre’s latest three-year funding agreement with the city is due to end in September, and it has asked for a new five-year deal that would see it funded until 2031. The term would align with the centre’s recent lease extension.

The non-profit organisation received $114,731 in operational sponsorship funding from the city last year, and requested $120,008 for the 2026-27 financial year due to CPI increases. It also plans to expand its services.

City officers instead recommended a reduced three-year funding renewal that did not consider CPI-based increases. Officers suggested funding be $110,000 next year, $105,000 in 2028 and $100,000 in 2029, with no additional city grant applications allowed outside of this agreement.

Instead, councillor Philip Eva proposed an alternate motion that allows the Wetlands Centre to apply for extra city grants and funding programs, and maintains its $114,731 funding allocation. This passed 7-2, including an amendment to cap the funding agreement at two years instead of three.

“The Wetlands Centre Cockburn is a valued environmental, educational, and community asset that delivers significant benefits to the city and its residents,” Cr Eva said.

“Maintaining the current level of funding with the annual CPI indexation will provide the centre with greater financial certainty while preserving the value of the city’s investment over time.

“Also allowing the centre to seek separate grants and sponsorship for projects beyond the funding agreement will encourage innovation, diversity, income streams, and strengthen its long-term financial sustainability.”

Deputy mayor Phoebe Corke suggested the two-year amendment because it was an “adequate” amount of time for the centre to prepare for funding reductions.

“We cannot continue to increase the funding we give them year after year after year without any end in sight. And there has also to be a bit of an incentive to find alternative revenue streams that will not be put into place if we continue to fund them at this level,” she said.

Cr Chontelle Stone argued the Wetlands Centre was supposed to reduce its reliance on city funds, and it was unfair to allocate so much money to it over other local organisations.

“It’s not that I disagree with what the Wetland Centre is doing. They are doing a fantastic job. But we rebuilt them a brand new facility, a new nursery, to help increase their additional income and reduce their reliance on council funding. That was back in 2022,” she said.

“They’ve got significant funding sitting in term deposits that’s earning them $12,000 a year in interest.