Macedon and Mount Macedon Landcare has flagged concern over mechanical mulching of native forest at Mount Macedon in place of a planned burn.
MMML president Kate Lawrence said the five-hectare site was home to native wildlife and the move “made no sense”.
“It is just devastating to walk around this area that was a native forest right near the top of Mount Macedon and see trees smashed on the ground for hundreds of metres,” she said.
“This area was home to wombats and birds, wallabies and echidnas, and now those animals will be struggling to survive.
“It makes no sense to wantonly destroy an area, instead of planned burning. It breaks every principle of environmental care that Forest Fire Management claim they use when they do planned burns.”
The cleared area was described as beginning just beyond Cameron Picnic Ground and running parallel to the road for nearly 600 metres, to end 500 metres before the car park and tea rooms.
Parks Victoria manages Macedon Regional Park and Forest Fire Management Victoria undertook the works to reduce fire risk around the Mount Macedon fire tower.
“The Mount Macedon fire tower is in a Bushfire Moderation Zone, an area that is actively managed to reduce risk from bushfires,” an FFMV spokesperson said.
They said the joint fuel management program was a three-year, rolling program that nominated when and where planned burns should take place to meet land management objectives.
“Due to unsuitable weather conditions, a planned fuel reduction burn was unable to go ahead in March. Between May 12 and 15 mechanical mulching was undertaken as it was deemed an appropriate alternative fuel treatment for an area of about 4.8 hectares.” they said.
“While achieving fire management objectives is a priority, we acknowledge that these actions can sometimes impact other environmental and community values.
“Forest Fire Management Victoria aims to minimise such impacts wherever possible. Within the area that was mulched, a sensitive area was excluded from mechanical treatment. Furthermore, the area will undergo planned revegetation works using native plant species with local progeny.”
The landcare group has called for an updated comprehensive master plan for the Macedon Regional Park with community consultation.
“The current park management plan was written in 2009, and much has changed since then,” Ms Lawrence said.
“We need a master plan based on wide community discussion and deliberation so we can balance the needs of the environment with the needs of tourism, fire protection and cultural history of the ranges in a cohesive and considered way.”
