In response to our changing climate and the expansion of Penrith City, Penrith City Council is investing in substantial green infrastructure to ensure Penrith and its greater community can live comfortably and actively engage in all that our City has to offer.

The Greening the Great West Walk program is an exciting project that will have long-lasting positive benefits in our City. We identified in our Cooling the City Strategy the need to increase cooling across the City, and Greening the Great West Walk complements our existing greening programs, with a focus on increasing the canopy cover along a popular recreational area.

In response to recent heat studies, Council is actively working to protect our City from rising temperatures and one of the ways we’re achieving this is by planting trees to help reduce average temperatures over time. Taking action to cool the City is essential in Penrith, especially given the increasing heat across Western Sydney during summer. It also helps reduce the urban heat island effect.

This project is part of the Greening the Great West Walk Program that is proudly funded by the NSW Government.

The Great West Walk is a 65-kilometre urban trail that stretches from Parramatta Park to the base of the Blue Mountains on the lands of the Darug nation.

In 2021, we partnered with the Department of Planning and Environment (DPE), Blacktown and Parramatta councils, Greening Australia and Landcare NSW to plant more than 26,000 trees along the walk. This was followed by further planting by DPE in 2022, with an additional 2,000 trees planted along the walk.

In 2023, Penrith Council will be increasing the number of trees along the Walk with two planting projects. We're creating a bush trail in Cranebrook that will see buss-tucker plant and trees installed along the walk alongside mulberry trees at Bunyarri and Ironbark reserves.

You can find out more about the Greenig the Great West Walk program at DPE’s website. Click here to visit the webpage.

We’re excited to be creating a bush food trail in Cranebrook. We're working alongside Nepean Community & Neighbourhood Services and local Aboriginal organisation, Muru Mittigar, to enhance the existing planting along the section of the walk adjacent to Ariel Crescent in Cranebrook.

This trail will be planted with bush-tucker plants and trees. The planting will provide shade and cooling for users of the walk whilst providing an insight into the knowledge of Aboriginal peoples in how they read Country to thrive in Cranebrook for over 50,000 years.

The proposed works may also include the addition of seating and educational signage to enhance the experience of the walk.

Design planning for the project, including species selection and placement, is underway, and we expect work to begin in late 2023.

Please note some parts of the bush tucker planting is expected to include extension of native bushland and grasses which will be dedicated no mow zones. These zones will include native grasses, shrubs and groundcovers, and will be identified by sandstone boulders placed at the edge. These spaces will be set back from the roadway, and the rest of the reserve will be mown as usual.

If you have any comments regarding the proposal we invite you to reach out via the General Enquiries form.

We value your input to make the Great West Walk even better.

We have put together a plan that showcases the location of the Bush Food Trail along the Great West Walk in great detail, including the plants that we'll be planting and the rest area that will be developed to encourage residents and visitors to enjoy the food trail.

Click on the arrows to have a look at what we have in store.

In this bed, we are planting:

• Native Raspberry (Rubus parvifolius)
• Vanilla Lily (Arthropodium milleflorum)
• Winter Apple (Eremophila debilis)
• Apple Berry (Billardiera scandens)
• Chocolate Lily (Dichopogan strictus)
• Midgen Berry (Austromyrtus tenuifolia)
• Native Leak (Bulbine bulbosa)
• Native Parsnip (Trachymene incise)
• Yam Daisy (Microseris lanceolata)
• Bunya Pine (Araucaria bidwillii)

In this area, we are planting:

• Bush Cherry (Syzygium australe)
• Lemon Myrtle (Backhousis citriodora)
• Sandpaper Fig (Ficus coronata)
• Kangaroo Grass (Themeda triandra)

In this area, we are planting:

• Bush Cherry (Syzygium australe)
• Sandpaper Fig (Ficus coronata)
• Kangaroo Grass (Themeda triandra)
• Blue Trumpet (Brunoniella australis)
• Mat Rush (Lomandra longifolia)
• Native Raspberry (Rubus parvifolius)
• Vanilla Lily (Arthropodium milleflorum)
• Winter Apple (Eremophila debilis)

In this area, we are planting:

• Kangaroo Grass (Themeda triandra)
• Blue Trumpet (Brunoniella australis)
• Mat Rush (Lomandra longifolia)
• Native Raspberry (Rubus parvifolius)
• Vanilla Lily (Arthropodium milleflorum)
• Winter Apple (Eremophila debilis)
• Apple Berry (Billardiera scandens)
• Chocolate Lily (Dichopogan strictus)
• Midgen Berry (Austromyrtus tenuifolia)

We’re planting mulberry trees along the Great West Walk for people to enjoy and to provide cooling and shade. We’ll also be planting other native plants along the walk for cooling, shade, and habitat for local animals.

This additional planting will enhance the environment of the Great West Walk while also providing a pleasant and enjoyable experience for walkers.

After receiving community feedback in late 2022, we will be planting the mulberry trees along the Walk rather than in one concentrated grove to create a more diverse and interesting landscape for walkers to enjoy. Planting the trees along the Walk will disperse any impact the trees may have

Planting commences in May 2023. During this time, we encourage you to continue enjoying this beautiful walk and which showcases the natural beauty, history, and culture of the Western Sydney Region and Penrith.