LCC North Eastern Study Area Districts 3, 4 & 5 (1973-1977)

Progress

Overview

When the LCC originally divided the state into study areas, the North-eastern Area was split into five districts.  The Council published separate reports and recommendations for the North-eastern Area District 1 and District 2, but amalgamated Districts 3, 4, and 5 and published a combined report and combined recommendations for these three districts. 

Notices showing the boundaries of the study districts and advising that an investigation was to be carried out were published in the Victoria Government Gazette and in local and Victorian newspapers in March and April 1973.  A descriptive report was published in February 1975. The Council received 241 submissions on the future use of public land from individuals, associations, companies, and local and State government bodies.  After considering these submissions, and having visited the area, the Council formulated its proposed recommendations, which were published in January 1976. The Council received 136 submissions commenting on the proposals.  The Council published its final recommendations in April 1977.

This investigation established a precedent for gradual ‘phasing out’ of timber production in some recommended parks, in this case over ten years in the Wabonga Plateau State Park. Many believe that this opened the door for the ‘once only logging” approach later used in other areas, notably the Alps.

The descriptive report, proposed recommendations and final recommendations are available from this page.

Districts 3 and 5 were reviewed in the special investigation of the Ovens Softwood Plantation Zone that the government directed the Council to undertake in 1981. The balance of north-eastern Victoria that was not subject to the special investigation i.e. Districts 1,2, and 4 were reviewed in the Benalla–Upper Murray review.  See North-eastern Area (Benalla–Upper Murray) Review (1984-1986) and North-eastern Victoria–Ovens Softwood Plantation Zone Special Investigation (1981) Links?

Government decisions on the final recommendations can be found on this website here .