by Gabriella Vukman
On Sunday 8 September, a convoy of 70 cars wound its way down the c511, journeying from Warburton to Cumberland Junction and then through Marysville before arriving at Woods Point.
Rallying against the proposal of a Great Forest National Park (GFNP), this two-hour-long convoy drive was just the first step to a full day of action against the GFNP.
Composed of 100 citizens from the Yarra Ranges, Valley and Knox communities, the convoy of 70 cars travelled together from Warburton to the site of a larger rally against the GFNP of approximately 1000 people in Woods Point.
Organiser of the car convoy from Warburton to Woods Point Daryll Morgan said, “The problem is that with national parks come all these regulations. You can’t take your dog, you can’t collect firewood, you can’t make a fire.”
“We have plenty of national parks in the state but the Government wants to turn all the state forest into national parks and this is what we are trying to stop because at the moment we have a good balance. If our state parks turn into national parks, where can we go camping with our dog and family,” Daryll said.
“Plus the bike riders, prospectors and horse riders among other people who aren’t allowed in national parks are up in arms about it as well. We’re trying to get all the groups together and voice our concerns so that the Government listens.”
With the main concerns for the GFNP centred around accessibility and the continued and free facilitation of hobby activities, many members of the community fear they will no longer have a special place for them in the wilderness.
Daryll said, “The hunters and the prospectors are all worried that if the state forest gets deemed a national park, they won’t be able to partake in their hobbies on the weekends. In their spare time they like going to the bush to do these things and it’s not going to be there for them if it is all a national park.”
“Everyone sits back and does nothing, the Government is going to push through quietly, it’s just going to happen. If you don’t stand up and fight, you’ll lose something. That’s why I’m standing up and fighting. Because I don’t want to lose the weekends I go away with the family and the dog with the four wheel drives. We don’t want to have to book into a campsite and not be able to take the dog,” Daryll said.
“You stop in places on the way to get fuel and supplies at the supermarkets and the general stores and they’re going to lose all that trade if people can’t go out there.”
A lack of consultation is also a major fear for the community.
Daryll said, “They recon they have consulted with local businesses and people in the area but they haven’t.”
“It’s all lies. They haven’t spoken to anyone. We’ve had people go around and speak to the different businesses and not one of them has heard from representatives or the minister for environment or anyone,” Daryll said.
“Half of them didn’t even know about it until it was raised in a Facebook group and then they hooked into it and thought ‘hang on a minute, this is going to affect our livelihoods.’”
With multiple Facebook pages, including the ‘Victorians Against the Great Forest National Park’ Facebook group which accumulated over 16,000 people in three months.
Daryll said, “I don’t believe the state Government understands that all these people are blue-collared Australian workers. They’re not the rich elite socialists or the greens or anything else. These are all Labor voters.”
“I think the Government will find out after looking at the ballot after the next voting that these are the people they have actually upset,” Daryll said.
“This is something you’d expect the liberal government to be doing, not Labor. It’s affecting their heartland. These are the people that have voted for them. I’ve voted for Labor all my life but if they push this through, they won’t be getting my vote at the next election.”
At the Woods Point rally, citizens created a human sign that was filmed from above by drones. Guest speakers and chants were also a part of the rally.
Daryll said, “The street was packed with four wheel drives and there were motorbikes everywhere.”
“We did the human sign and had a barbecue and a few drinks at the Commercial Hotel,” Daryll said.
“It was a great day and everyone was happy. It was a peaceful rally.”
With so much involvement in last week’s rallies, Daryll and the community are planning further action.
Daryll said, “Maybe we’ll set up a rally in Spring street. We don’t want to upset people who are going about their daily lives. We don’t want all that negative press. We just want to be careful we don’t put people off side.”
“Hopefully enough people talk about it and they’ll see how many people they are affecting and it might do some good,” Daryll said.
The proposal for the Great Forest National Park has been on the cards since the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires with its main focus on protecting and conserving the area’s remaining forest and wildlife.
Founding member of the GFNP proposal and Toolangi resident Sarah Rees said, “we haven’t had a new national park for Melbourne and our region since 1988. The Yarra Ranges National Park was declared under a Liberal government and most of it you can’t access.”
“What we’re proposing is a new park with recreational infrastructure, good investment, and a regeneration and restoration plan for its species and the forests themselves,” Sarah said.
“Much of that planning will include a lot of jobs and it will boost the economies of surrounding areas. “
Now with the closure of Victoria’s native timber industries, the GFNP proposal has encompassed a new focus on creating jobs and building the economies of towns that relied on the timber industry.
Sarah said, “towns such as Powelltown and Toolangi are areas that have lost considerable jobs over time especially with the closure of the timber industry. Investing in those areas with some new key infrastructure provides more jobs.”
Currently, the GFNP proposal promises to create approximately 750 jobs.
According to Sarah, the proposal aims to create more recreational areas and opportunities for everyone, including those coming from the city.
Sarah said, “State forests are not dedicated recreational areas. They can be closed down overnight. What we’re advocating for is areas for hunting, camping. Right now the best places for camping are beside the road or in a very overdue picnic ground.”
“We are advocating for more campsites that actually cater to families. We need to service the growing population of Melbourne. Since the last national park, we have put on a population the size of Adelaide,” Sarah said.
“We want to create opportunities for everyone.”
With investment funding intended to cover the costs of the national park, Sarah confirmed that the GFNP proposal does not advocate for entry fees nor does it advocate for the park to be run by Parks Victoria.
“There is no way that we want this to be a fee based national park,” Sarah said.
“Maybe it’s not run by parks Victoria. Maybe it’s run by a new kind entity. We want the Government to get creative.”
The GFNP proposal carries with it a new technology investment which involves drones and heat sensing technology to provide an earlier response to fire danger.
Sarah said, “The state Government has invested in its forest fire management and has put a lot of those ex timber workers in those roles.”
“In this proposal we have a fully funded fire program that will actually make towns safer. State forests don’t have rangers and are not managed.”
