Help a guardian of the Yarrowee River

I feel like I owe my neighbour and friend Neil Huybregts a lot.

He has raised the alarm again and again about pollution in the Yarrowee River – also known as Yaramlok. Last year he helped force responsible authorities to act over an issue that largely seemed to be slipping under the radar.

This is the river that my kids play by, that I go running alongside and that our dog without fail will jump into every time he goes for a walk, so I have good reason to be grateful for Neil’s public-spirited intervention. He says he did not act alone, that dozens of others also alerted the EPA – but I don’t think anyone put their head above the parapet quite as much as he did.

Earlier this year, Neil once again flagged concerns about pollution in a post on the Friends of Yarrowee River's Facebook page. Shortly afterwards, he received a letter from a developer’s lawyers threatening a defamation suit, which he has spent thousands in legal fees to deal with: $3500 to be exact.

Given the stance Neil has taken to protect the environment and do something that has benefited many of us, it struck me as deeply unfair he is out of pocket. So I said I would try to help cover his costs, or at least get as near to it as possible, with this GoFundMe.

I am putting my money where my mouth is, and I hope a few others will too. Funds raised here will go directly to cover the legal fees. Any excess will go to the Friends of the Yarrowee River.

If every member of the Friends’ Facebook group contributed, it would take just over $5 each to pay for Neil’s costs – a small price to pay for what he has done.