Yarra Junction man upset Melbourne Water poisoned trees near Little Yarra River
An elm that could date back 100 years is one of many non-indigenous Yarra Junction trees ringbarked and poisoned by the State Government. But could this act make the bushfire threat worse?
Outer East
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The State Government has been accused of environmental vandalism after ringbarking and poisoning potentially historic trees in Yarra Junction.
Richard Hartley came home to find Melbourne Water employees had taken steps to kill a number of old Elm and plane trees on the banks of Little Yarra River, which runs along the bottom his Benwerren Drive property.
While the trees are on Crown land, Mr Hartley is one of the many Upper Yarra farmers who previously maintained the river banks until the Government announced it would revegetate along the waterways for native wildlife habitat.
Lilydale & Yarra Valley Leader previously reported the Government phased out farmers’ grazing licences along the Yarra River and its tributaries in 2016 including Launching Place, Yarra Junction, Wesburn, Millgrove, Gladysdale and Three Bridges.
Until then, farmers had kept weeds and grass at bay for more than a hundred years by legally allowing the cattle to graze near the river — but now if they’re caught they could face a $3000 fine per animal.
Mr Hartley said he was not informed the workers would be coming down or would be poisoning the trees.
“I’m happy for the willow, holly, blackberries and honeysuckle to go because they’re invasive,” he said.
“But they’ve poisoned elm trees that were 100 years old and other trees about 80 years old.”
He said believes the trees were planted by a World War I veteran who was staying nearby with Miss Phyllis Christie – a well-known Upper Yarra identity, who ran a tourism business in the early to mid-20th century.
Yarra Waterways member Rick Houlihan called it “pure vandalism” by Melbourne Water.
Eildon state Liberal MP Cindy McLeish said the situation was “absolutely outrageous”.
“It’s an area of high fire danger and these European trees don’t burn,” Ms McLeish said.
“Eucalypts and tea trees ignite quite quickly but these non-indigenous trees help with fire protection.”
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Melbourne Water waterways and land team leader Steve Hosking said he understands while there may be some concern around the removal of the elm and plane trees, it was necessary for the longterm health and sustainability of the river and its habitat.
He said Melbourne Water had carried out planning for the next stage of the broader waterway improvement along the river between Warburton Highway and the Warburton to Lilydale Rail Trail.
These investigations included a botanical survey of indigenous vegetation condition and weed threats.