Warburton Trails move a step closer

Nearly six years after it was first proposed, a mountain bike network in the Yarra Ranges is a step closer to becoming a reality after the Victorian Minister for Planning approved many of the trails in the Warburton Mountain Bike Destination project.

The decision allows the Yarra Ranges Council to begin planning construction for 160kms of trails within the next six months.

While the approval is a boost for mountain bikers and local businesses, construction could have started years earlier had the Council not been required to submit an Environment Effects Statement (EES), a process typically reserved for major developments like open cut mines and forestry operations.

According to AusCycling Executive General Manager of Government Strategy Nick Hannan, the environmental assessment required as part of an EES is not in proportion to the impact of a mountain bike trail, and the level of investment required to complete an EES has the potential to erode confidence in the planning process.

And while Hannan welcomed the Minister’s approval for the Warburton project, he said state governments must provide more certainty in the planning process for mountain bike projects.

“Yarra Ranges Council has spent nearly $5 million on approvals for this project over the last three years without a single meter of trail being built, and only now can the Council be confident that it can proceed,” Hannan said.

“We understand and support the need to be environmentally responsible, but for a mountain bike project to be subject to the same environmental approvals as an open cut mine is unwarranted. The process needs to be simpler, faster, and cheaper, or communities will miss out on the benefits that mountain biking can bring.”

Hannan said AusCycling acknowledged the hard work of advocates in the mountain biking community and staff at the Yarra Ranges Council in reaching this point of the project.

Photo: Matt Staggs