Mountain bikers take to the trails of Derby to protest logging as ‘big mama’ continues standing strong

It’s a mecca for mountain bike riders and a battlefield in the forestry debate. Tensions are expected to flare again at Derby with logging slated for 2021.

• Bob Brown Foundation fights for urgent logging injunction to protect swift parrot habitats
• Bob Brown wages historic logging battle in the Federal Court as time runs out for the swift parrot

OVERLOOKING a forested trail in the small township of Derby is an alpine ash so blessed in magnitude it’s become colloquially known as “big mama”.

Big mama is a landmark tree in the forested area next to Krushka's trail, in an area of North-East Tasmania that has become both a mecca for mountain bike riders and a battlefield in the forestry debate.

That debate is flaring again this summer, with forested areas near Derby’s mountain bike trails – including a coupe near Krushka’s – scheduled to be logged in 2021.

On Tuesday, a group of mountain bike riders will protest against logging in the area by scaling Krushka’s trail and gathering at big mama.

It’s an effort spearheaded by Blue Derby Wild – a grassroots organisation that has spent the past few years campaigning to protect North-East forests.

“We’ll be setting off from the trail head at Derby and gathering at big mama, which is this iconic old tree that sits off the trail,” coordinator Louise Morris said.

“She’s sitting in the middle of the trail. She’s been a great icon of the sort of trees that will be lost.”

Ms Morris said a 20-metre buffer would be placed around big mama, which meant she would be protected from logging, but said the entire area slated for “shaving” at Derby this summer was of high conservation value.

She said the trees were “worth more standing”, with the forests ideal for world-class mountain biking trails, eco-tourism, hiking and outdoor sport.

Ms Morris said many of the forests were “Gondwanic remnants” and home to Tasmanian devils, spotted quolls, eastern quolls, wedge-tail eagles, masked owls and insects unique to the area.

“They can just keep logging despite the fact we’ve recorded these species in these forests,” she said.

“We can do all the citizen science work, we can show all the values, and it keeps going.”

Sustainable Timber Tasmania has scheduled two of the eucalypt coupes in question – one 60ha and the other 65ha – for logging in 2021.

The third coupe in question – 40ha of eucalypt – will be clear-felled in 2022.

One of the trees in the forests of Derby. With three coupes near Krushka's trail slated for logging in 2021 and 2022, tensions are again flaring in the small North-East township. Picture: Supplied

Follow @ambervwilson