The Afton Street Conservation Reserve is located along the middle reaches of the Maribyrnong river

Maribyrnong river

The Maribyrnong River rises about 50 km north of Melbourne, Victoria , near Mount Macedon. It flows generally southward and combines with the Yarra River to flow into Port Phillip....

 in West Essendon, Melbourne

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

. It is within the City of Moonee Valley

City of Moonee Valley

The City of Moonee Valley is a Local Government Area located within the metropolitan area of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It comprises the north-western suburbs between 3 and 13 kilometres from the Melbourne city centre...

and is 17 hectares (42 Acres).

History

The Conservation park was purchased by the city council in October 2003 for a price of $900,000 (AUD). The site was formally part of the Department of Defence ammunitions site.

Planning

A master landscape plan was issued for the site and won a number of design awards. The plan emphasises conservation and recreational use of the park.

Flora and fauna

• Two areas of Western Basalt Plains Grassland
• 25 regionally significant species of indigenous plants
• potential habitat and occurrence of the nationally significant Striped Legless Lizard
• areas of valuable native fauna habitat including five ‘birds of prey’ using open grassland areas, small passerine birds including thornbills and silvereyes using the shrub layer and waterbirds using the riparian fringe