By Callum Ludwig
The Victorian National Park Association (VNPA) has been left dejected after an application for a Critical Habitat Determination (CHD) for the Mt Donna Buang Wingless Stonefly was rejected.
The VNPA started the push in March 2023 in response to the approval of the Warburton Mountain Bike Destination, worried that despite the removal of the highest-risk sections of the bike trail and the National Park protections in the area, the already limited habitat of the insect was under threat.
VNPA Parks and Nature Campaigner Jordan Crook said it was an incredibly disappointing decision.
“The stonefly lives in a small area susceptible to major threats including climate change, fire, water pollution and visitation, meaning it needs special management,” he said.
“A critical habitat determination for the wingless stonefly would have started a process to give this remarkable creature the extra care and effort required to protect it from extinction.”
In the official statement of reasons DEECA Secretary John Bradley, who reviewed the application alongside the Scientific Advisory Committee, based the decision on the former Minister for Planning Lizzie Blandthorn’s assessment report for the Warburton Mountain Bike Destination.
In the report, the proposed trails 1, 45, 46 and 47 were considered to pose an ‘unacceptable risk’ to the environment near the Mt Donna Buang summit, including adverse impacts on the Mt Donna Buang Wingless Stonefly. The proposed trails were subsequently scrapped.
“The decision not to make a critical habitat determination on this occasion was because the majority of the habitat is already protected as National Park managed by Parks Victoria and as such the existing protections for the stonefly are adequate,” a DEECA spokesperson said.
“Making a critical habitat determination would not increase the conservation status of the land.”
Almost all of the Mt Donna Buang Wingless Stonefly’s habitat falls within the Yarra Ranges National Park, managed by Parks Victoria, though some smaller areas to the northeast fall within the Marysville State Forest and are managed by DEECA.
The rest of the Warburton Mountain Bike Destination was approved with acceptable environmental effects, subject to modifications and an ongoing environmental management regime. Amendments were made to the Yarra Ranges Planning Scheme, Mr Bradley was ‘satisfied that the existing arrangements’ in place ‘adequately mitigate threats to the habitat value of the area.’
The VNPA argued in its application that despite National Park protection, the Mt Donna Buang Wingless Stonefly had suffered an 80 per cent decline in population despite being protected in a national park.
The Australian Government’s Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water’s own page on the Mt Donna Buang Wingless Stonefly as part of the threatened species list admits that there is is little quantitative data on the population numbers of the Mt Donna Buang Wingless Stonefly.
“Scientists agree that a critical habitat determination should be made under the state’s Flora And Fauna Guarantees Act, an important but widely neglected tool in Victoria’s nature laws,” Mr Crook said.
“It’s time the Victorian government stepped up and used all of the tools available, like critical habitat determinations, to protect the growing list of threatened species. We need a clear annual critical habitat to-do-list, so we can tick them off, not reports that gather dust on a shelf.”
The stonefly spends its time by the streams on the mountaintop, burrowing and hiding to avoid the heat of summer, and has a relatively extraordinarily long lifespan of over two years.
