An open letter to the Victorian government

The Hon Jacinta Allan, Premier of Victoria

The Hon Steve Dimopoulos, Minister for Environment, Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events. Minister for Outdoor Recreation

It's time to fund our public lands

Literally millions of people enjoy our public lands each year.

Between 2002-03 and 2018-19 there was a steady increase in visitation to national and state parks and major metropolitan parks, rising from 41.5 million visits to 79.1 million visits. 

Public land in Victoria covers approximately 8 million hectares, approximately one third of the state. It is made up of over 110,000 parcels which form parks, reserves and areas of state forest.

These areas of public land provide vital habitat for animals and are home to much of the state’s biodiversity. They provide clean water, space, silence, beauty, and diverse opportunities for recreation. 

However, in many places our public lands are being Loved to Death. Littering, erosion, overuse, destruction of trees, and dumping of waste are common problems across our much loved public lands.

This situation is not sustainable. Without action by your government, we face the loss of many of the values that attract people to visit these areas.

The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) manages public lands like state forests. Having faced brutal budget cut backs DEECA can no longer manage the lands entrusted to them. More than 200 jobs in land and fire management across 90 regional centres have been cut by your state government in the past year. There are simply no longer enough staff to manage the impacts of recreation on our public lands, let alone restore them to health and manage them for their increasingly important biodiversity values.

DEECA needs more resources. They need more fire fighters engaged in bushfire detection and suppression activities. They need more rangers on the ground, providing jobs for regional community members. They need better pay rates to deal with managing and cleaning up the ongoing deterioration of our public lands.

As the Great Outdoors Taskforce considers additional recreational opportunities across public lands in the east of the state, land managers do not have the resources to manage existing impacts, let alone future ones.

It is essential that in the 2025/26 state budget, that DEECA receives a substantial increase in funding to allow it to look after the lands your Government has entrusted to it. Without additional funding, it will be impossible to ensure these areas are not irreparably degraded.

Restoring and expanding funding for public land management would allow physical works to maintain infrastructure, education and outreach, bush clean ups and forest restoration projects. The Victorian government need to make sure the bush we all love is being looked after in the long-term.

Signed