By Esther Lauaki
Protesters turned out on horseback, in four-wheel drives and on foot to rally against Wombat State Forest becoming a national park.
About 700 bush users and environmental group members brought Gisborne’s town centre to a halt last Saturday (November 10) to stand against a move by Victorian Environment Assessment Council (VEAC) they fear will restrict public access to the park.
The VEAC has been ordered by the state government to investigate the future use and classifications of Wombat, Wellsford, Mount Cole and Pyrenees Ranges state forests.
A VEAC draft report’s recommendations include changing the status of Wombat State Forest by establishing the Wombat-Lerderderg National Park. The report is open for public comment until December 10.
Community members from the Wombat State Forest region including horse riders, prospectors, campers and “greenies” called on all state election candidates to declare their positions on the national park proposal, according to organisers.
Rally organiser Tim Anderson, who has campaigned on Wombat State Forest issues since 1989, said “locking up” the forest would put an end to locals collecting firewood, dispersed camping, horse riding, dog walking and a range of other activities.
“The Victorian Environmental Assessment Council’s proposal to make the Wombat Forest into a national park is the wrong direction for the Wombat Forest on environmental and social grounds,” Mr Anderson said. “The draft report is simplistic, rejects both science and our local communities and would be the worst outcome for the future of the Wombat Forest.
“The local community fought and overcame unsustainable logging in the 1990s that has left the Wombat Forest in a highly degraded condition that must be rectified if the forest is to be resilient. It is incredible just how passionate and connected the people of central Victoria are to the Wombat Forest. It really is the People’s Forest.”
But the Victorian National Parks Association supports the change in status, saying it would give the park the “protections, management and funding” it deserves.
Director Matt Ruphel told
Star Weekly recreational users would not be locked out.
“State forests are generally put aside for extractive use and there’s no regulation or management of state forests other than for logging operations or large scale mining,” he said. “Changing to a national park excludes those very damaging activities.”
“For everything else regarding recreational activities, camping, trail bike riding and four-wheel driving, the rules are exactly the same for state forests and national parks.”
The VEAC draft report has already received about 640 submissions.
