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  1. Melbourne Push for the Bush Protest Rally 20 November 2006
  2. Barmah Koondrook Protest November 2006
  3. Lake Mokoan Protest Rally October 2006 and Benalla Nov 2006
  4. Warragul Protest October 2006
  5. Dargo Protest 2006
  6. Wonnangatta Protest January 2006
  7. Melbourne Country Voice Rally 2005
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  • Greened Off, A Critical Analysis
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Push for the Bush has received many letters of support, here are a few:

 

From: Brook Alkom, 27 November 2006

Greens flatlined - YEAHHHHH!

Also looks like all those nasty horse-riding, 4WD-driving, land-loving types who marched outside Ian Maxfield's office might have had some effect:

BEAUTY!

Brook

 

Dear Bob,

I am fully in support of "Push for the Bush" keep up the good work. I am a beef and sheep farmer at Cudgewa, and a councillor on Towong Shire. In my younger days I spent much of my leisure time skiing in the Kosciusko National Park, at one stage tried to establish a day resort at Round Mountain on the Khancoban - Cabramurra Road. Beaten by the NSW Gov. and the greens of the day.

The cattlemen were still in the park at that time,and in the late autumn at the end of the muster the leases would be set alight. These fires would burn for sometimes weeks at a time usually getting going in the warmth of the day and practically going out at night. No one was watching them, unless they threatened adjoining farmland, and if the did these fires were easily put out because of the lateness of the season.

The mountains were very accessible in those days as there was very little heath scrub. After the cattle were removed the scrub started to thicken until it was it was all but impassible except on cross country skis after heavy snow in mid winter. In either 1982 or 1985 a big fire swept through that area of the park. By 2003 there had been a reasonable recovery in the vegetation although the white snow gums were a reminder of the fires in the 80's.

Then came the 2003 fires, and what more can be said, the area is totally been devastated, burnt to bare earth. No one will ever see again how beautiful it was at the time when the cattlemen left that area. Not even in a hundred years. Yes! people will become used to the new look of the Park, and will think it is normal, but to people like myself who can remember what it used to be like it is saddening.

Parts of the Victorian Alps have also been devastated in the 2003 fires probably never to be the same again as well. However, I could almost guarantee that areas where the cattle were grazing will recover better than where no grazing had taken place.

As responsible Victorians, we need to use every sustainable method available to manage these beautiful alpine areas. Just locking them up is not the way, Kosciusko National Park is testament to that. Best management occurs when people are ownership either by way of some monetary return, or pleasurable right.

Management by public servants, working nine to five, even though they have the university degree to prove their ability, and with every good intent, will never work. We have all been so brainwashed by the so called scientist into believing that every thing will be righted if we follow their principles.

The other thing that really worries me is the way the "green movement" has used the drought to push their theories on climate change. There is a widespread feeling of alarm and fear being spread in the community, about climate change, which is panicking the government into making hasty decisions on a whole rang of issues particularly relating to the environment and water, This is really the biggest problem we face, as they canvas the electorate for votes.

Best of luck with the battle ahead as it is not going to be easy, I will follow the campaign with interest and am happy to help if I can.

Cheers _ Linton Vogel

 

From: Wes Sheilds
Sent: Wednesday, November 01, 2006 1:51 PM
To: pushforthebush@bigpond.com
Subject: Its my bush too.

Please keep sending me all the info you get. I am a deer hunter, fisherman, 4WDer, snow boarder, really keen camper and can't wait to take my 2 and a half year old into OUR bush. I've got many friends in the bush and this is exactly what they don't need.

Thanks DSE- Department of Scorched Earth, for nothing AGAIN.

I (want) to show my feelings and I'll definitely be bringing my daughter.

Kind Regards and many thanks for all your hard work.

Wes Shields

 

From: Brian Blundell
Sent: Thursday, November 02, 2006 6:21 PM
To: pushforthebush@bigpond.com
Subject: push for the bush support

 

I appreciate this forum where people are able to see other peoples
experiences with the nonsense that state governments are carrying on with in
regional areas.

I am not from Victoria but was so disgusted by what the Victorian Government
was doing to the mountain cattlemen that I wrote to several Victorian State
MPs. A Mr Brendan Jenkins MP responded to me with an off the planet response
brushing aside my concerns and boasting what a wonderful job his Labour
comrades were doing for rural Victorians.

At the time I hadn't heard about the Octopus, but I now see he was trying a
classic Octopus move on me. Fortunately I could smell a rat a mile away. It
is sad but unsurprisingly typical when I read about the latest going ons and
see that things have deteriorated even further in Victoria, especially
recalling all the assurances (spin) I was given. I did foresee this in my
response to Mr Jenkins MP, but of course he and his cronies knew best.

Keep up the good work and I can assure you that the number of people pushing
back against these looneys is growing as more people understand what is
really happening on the ground.

 

 

G'day Bob,

Firstly I'll introduce myself - my name is Michael Schmidt and I'm a deer stalker who frequents the Alpine National Park. I'm also an active member of a well known hunting [deer] organization. Can't say I know you or even met you.

I fully agree with your comments below and can only reinforce your views with a few observations of my own.

To start with, I frequent the Alpine Park via Licola were I personally know Ralph Baraclough - the local CFA Captain. Ralph keeps me up-to-date on current issues via email.

I've spent a considerable amount of time in the Bennison Plain, Caledonia and Maccalister region over the past 15 years - pursuing my passion for deer hunting [rifle & video camera].

When I first ventured into these parts [early 1990's] it was fairly normal to see notices on track intersections advising of proposed 'Back-burning / cold burn / maintenance-burn', that were planned for various sectors of bushland. "Great, I thought". Not only did it remove all that 'crappy undergrowth' and provide prime hunting with the nutritious regrowth, it gave me a sense of well being knowing the surrounding bushland was relatively safe to be in. I could have a camp fire that was safe and I could wonder for hours through the relative uncluttered country side [that had received the 'cold burn' treatment in previous years]. I'd have the crap scared out of me from the frequent encounters of those little black wallabies that would erupt from under your feet as you approached, and down on the river flats seeing the lyrebirds scamper off as my approach interupted their mating call repertoire' was a common occurance.

Having just returned from a two week backing packing trip into the region I've never felt so concerned for the well being of the region I've grown so fond of.
Apart from the rivers being so low and the overall dryness, the density of the undergrowth, the build up of tree debri, and the overall fire danger is something I haven't felt before. Apart from that, no longer is it viable to hunt the river flats as what was once semi open grass land with ferny gullies is now choked with dogwood and other vegitation 2 to 3 metres high. The previously mentioned small black wallabies are an extreme rarity along with the frequent previous encounters with lyrebirds; wild dogs?? maybe, but going by the evidence on the ground [foot prints, droppings etc], it's no difference from previous years - if anything it's probably less - in that area.

THINGS HAVE DEFINITY CHANGED FOR THE WORSE IN THE ALPINE PARK IN THE LAST 15 YEARS AND THIS IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE LACK OF MAINTENANCE. I must admit though, bulldozer track maintence in the region I frequent has been upheld and is relatively satisfactory.

Bring back the cattle and the 'Cold Burns' to protect our High Country.

Incidently, deer numbers in the area that I hunt have remained stable throughout the time since I've been backpacking in there; with overall sightings fluctating between 5 and 10%.

Cheers
Michael Schmidt
One who cares for the High Country

 

Dear Bob,

Thanks for your news, pity it’s all bad, but if it’s the truth, then so be it.

I hunt and fish regularly right throughout the area you describe, at least fortnightly, more often if I have time available.

Last weekend I was hunting the area directly above Licola, off Cob Spur Track, in particular, the area north of the Telecom tower. That whole area is as dry as a biscuit, and is typical of just about every north-facing slope in the region. The build-up of detritus and forest floor leaf litter is frightening, but more so is the amount of standing dead timber, most of it solid, not rotted.

This appears to be the result of the scorching that took place in January ’03, where millions of mature gums were scorched so badly that they died after the fire, dropping an unknown tonnage of leaves, twigs and branches of all sizes. To estimate the total amount of fuel per acre up there is to make one’s self a nervous wreck.

My feeling is that when, not if, it goes up, it will be virtually unstoppable – and go up it most certainly will. The current weather conditions are such that there is an inevitability about it, not including the acts of arsonists, but from lightning strike. I will hunt this weekend, then no more til next winter, as I am too afraid of becoming trapped by a fire. To say there will be fatalities this summer is almost a fact at this point, as people will still enjoy the bush in traditional ways, but few have the knowledge and experience to survive a fully-blown bush fire.

So far this spring, I haven’t seen a single DSE or Parks Victoria fire team, fuel estimation team, or any other action by either party in connection with fire prevention in that region. Does this mean they’ve already got the situation under control? Or the opposite, that they’ve just given up before it starts? All I see is more locked gates, more regulation preventing bush users from using the bush, more results of mismanagement, or more accurately, non-management. Where are their cool-burns, fuel-reduction burns or whatever they like to call them? Haven’t seen one all year, yet we’ve had ideal conditions right through winter.

And here we are on Thursday 12th October 2006 – with mid-summer heatwave conditions producing classic fire weather, with gale-force winds, blistering heat and low humidity. With a cool change forecast for tonight, and hopefully some showery conditions over the weekend, my biggest challenge will be finding some moist ground to hunt on – it’s disappearing fast this year, and the stream levels are already very low.

Here at Cowes where I live, our local water supply reservoir is currently at 36% - same time last year 100% and overflowing. I’m wearing shorts & t-shirt & thongs, and have the air-conditioning going. Is this really October? What’s summer going to be like? I hunted right through last summer, but that’s not even a possibility this year.

Our local council is continuing to pass development proposals as if we had an unlimited water supply, yet it’s already a known fact that if every house and motel unit on the island was occupied, we’d run out of water in only one month. It’s this kind of stupidity promoted by greed and egotism that is ruining our bush, because every time a metropolitan or regional centre okay’s a new development, it puts more demand on the bush’s water supplies. This equates to lower stream levels year-round as greedy people literally suck the available water out of every possible river, stream, creek and dam, not to mention the water table, for personal gain. At the same time our beloved Prime Minister and his mates continue to push for increased immigration on the premise that we need more skilled workers in Australia, totally ignoring our current water crisis. Where will they find the water to support our growing population as it is, without even considering increasing immigration? It just makes no sense at all.

It’s time to put more emphasis on this scenario – time to halt immigration altogether, time to slow development down to a manageable level, time to convert all open irrigation systems to fully-contained pipelines no matter what the financial cost, and time city dwellers felt the water crisis they’re causing in the bush.

Time also to force through changes that will stop greedy and ignorant people from stripping trees from small pockets of forest – this occurs 10, 20, 40, 80 acres at a time – these trees are needed to retain water in the ground and control water release. The Mallee is mute testament to the clear-felling practices we thought gone in the 1970s, but in fact continue today in order to beat new legislation.

I know I sound like a doom-sayer, but just stating the facts.

I dread the thought of another Labor victory this year, but it seems probable at the moment.

Rod Barford, Cowes.