By Callum Ludwig
Yarra Ranges Council is seeking an amendment to further protect and safeguard the future of the Cement Creek Plantation site, affectionately known locally as the Redwood Forest.
Yarra Ranges Council is seeking to adjust the mapping of the site’s Heritage Overlay to better reflect the important aspects of the forest and ensure appropriate land use and development controls are in place.
Discussing it at the Tuesday 23 November Council meeting, Mayor and O’Shannassy Ward Councillor Jim Child said the site is close to his heart and this was one of the most comprehensive reports of it he had ever seen.
“We’ve got a forest up there that is frequented by so many visitors, even though there is no advertising there, certainly in the last few years people have gotten to know about it through social media and the like,” he said.
“It’s really put a spotlight on the place but you’ve also got to protect it. We have significant works that are starting to take place now with the redevelopment of the bridge and access into the Cement Creek Plantation and then the significant works that Parks Victoria is going to do along with Melbourne Water to further protect the site.”
The plantation is considered historically, aesthetically and technically significant;
Historically, the plantation is the history of two stages of forestry experimentation and research conducted by the Melbourne Metropolitan Board of Works (MMBW) in the Upper Yarra as part of a 1920s and 1930s revegetation program and the 1960s and 1970s as part of the MMBW’s post hydrological research.
Aesthetically, the ‘striking and imposing’ landscape created by the Redwood trees, systematically and symmetrically aligned, along with being to the Yarra River means the plantation is considered a distinctive landscape feature.
Technically, the forest stands as a demonstration of post-hydrological research into canopy interception.
Deputy Mayor Sophie Todorov said she was fascinated by the whole report.
“I was just having a look at the depth of research, and almost that grounds-proving that has taken place to seek this amendment. I’m really passionate about ensuring that we have these sites of historical significance, and we shape the future use and development of that land which is so important,” she said.
“I support the recommendation today, I feel that this was a really important amendment to be made, ensuring that there’s the revision of the mapping to include the whole area, update the statement of significance, update the place description and noting that the site also meets three of the Heritage convention criterion.”
