Secret talks to close Mt Beerwah for Indigenous cultural reasons

Mount Beerwah is the latest popular hiking mountain to be debated for closure to the public, with radical plans to offer “virtual climbs”. HAVE YOUR SAY

Mount Beerwah could be closed to hikers.

Visitors would have been banned from some Sunshine Coast mountains, with the public offered virtual climbs using drone technology, according to radical plans discussed by the Department of Environment and Science.

Mount Beerwah, which has previously been temporarily closed after sustaining weather damage and graffiti, was one of the mountains discussed for a permanent closure, according to documents obtained by the Save Our Summits climbing advocates.

In emails exchanged between department officers, it was suggested Mount Beerwah climbs could be replaced by a simulator experience using drones, while it was recommended the department keep a close eye on other controversial closures elsewhere in the country, including Uluru and Wollumbin/Mount Warning just south of the Gold Coast.

The Save Our Summits group spent more than $1000 on a Right to Information request and after a 12-month campaign has now been delivered dozens of documents which they say point to moves towards making some peaks off limits for visitors.

However, Queensland Environment Minister Andrew Powell said there were “categorically” no plans to permanently close access to Mount Beerwah and any discussions to that end took place under the previous Labor government.

Plans were discussed in emails in 2022 as part of a push for a Glass House Mountains Precinct Visitor Management Implementation Plan and suggested Mount Beerwah’s closure to the public because it was where “inappropriate use of the natural and cultural resources is likely highest”.

The Save Our Summit envoy claims there are more than 3000 other documents on the subject they have yet to gain access to.

Save Our Summits president Marc Hendrickx said the documents discussing a closure of popular hiking trails such as Mount Beerwah where “extremely concerning”.

Bureau of Meteorology's Australian Weather Calendar for 2025 – November: Fog, Mount Beerwah, Qld – Billy Tillott

“We’ve got clear evidence that the department has been working behind the scenes on closing Mount Beerwah and that is of great concern to the bushwalking community,” he said.

One email seen by The Courier-Mail said the Glass House Mountains precinct plan would be “essentially aiming to close Mt Beerwah, likely close Coochin and implement seasonal closures and other management actions across other peaks.”

Another email suggested strong measures were needed “to respect the special values of these mountains” and went on to offer alternatives to allowing visitors to “climb and conquer” mountains by hiking them.

Mr Hendrickx said banning people from climbing was not the right approach to encourage respect for nature and Indigenous culture.

“We do no harm and leave just our footprints behind, to be washed away in the rain,” he said. “These long established traditions are common to all humanity and transcend cultural boundaries.”

Originally published as Secret talks to close Mt Beerwah for Indigenous cultural reasons