Celebration of national park creation

AFTER many years of campaigning, last Sunday’s celebration of the recently legislated Wombat-Lederderg National Park was a heartfelt and emotional event for many who attended.

Held in Trentham, the celebration brought together many who had campaigned long and hard to enshrine greater lasting protection and conservation of the forests, the stronghold for many threatened species.

“It was wonderful. It was just wonderful,” said Gayle Osborne convenor of Wombat Forestcare which hosted Sunday’s celebration.

It was attended by about 70 campaigners and supporters, and also by Victorian National Parks Association executive director Matt Ruchel.

“Over the years we’ve had so many people who’ve campaigned for the protection of the forest and on Sunday when we came together it was a great event of celebration,” Ms Osborne said.

“There were grown men crying. Very emotional day. It was pretty special.”

Legislation last month passed in Victoria’s Legislative Council to create the Wombat-Lerderderg National Park, and also the Mount Buangor and Pyrenees National Parks, along with the Hepburn and Cobaw conservation parks, while the Wellsford State Forest has been reclassified as a regional park.

At approximately 44,000 hectares, the new Wombat-Lerderderg National Park is made up of about 20,000 hectares of the existing Lerderderg State Park, and about 24,000 hectares of the Wombat State Forest.

Members of Wombat Forestcare have been campaigning for greater protection of Wombat Forest for fifteen years, and Ms Osborne said park status is a recognition of the very high conservation and water catchment values of the forest.

Over many years, Wombat Forestcare, working with the Victorian National Parks Association, had lobbied the State Government to protect the forests in parks.

“These forests exist in a landscape that has been highly cleared of native vegetation and represent incredibly important habitat for the persistence of very many threatened plants, animals and fungi.” Ms Osborne said.

“We congratulate the State Government for legislating these parks. National parks are the cornerstone of biodiversity conservation in Australia, and the creation of these parks will ensure that these forests are safeguarded for future generations.”

The Wombat Forest is recognised as a stronghold for the protection of many threatened native species including the Greater Glider, Powerful Owl, Brush-tailed Phascogale and the endemic Wombat Leafless Bossiaea.

Creation of the new national park also helps protect the Wombat Forest as a valuable water catchment with the headwaters of seven major river systems contained in the forest.

“The national parks are only part of the undertaking by the government for the central west. There are regional parks, and bushland reserves still to be legislated,” Ms Osborne said.

“We understand that the legislation has been written and we’re now keen to see it go through in the new year.”