VEGETATION MANAGEMENT PLAN for Bidjigal Reserve - Land

Vegetation Management Plan - Bidjigal Reserve6.11.3 Maintenance of Walking Tracks and TrailsIt is understood that the Trust has not as yet prepared a Policy or adopted Guidelines for the upkeepof tracks and trails. It is also understood that BHSC does have such a policy, although possiblymaintenance in the Reserve has not been as regular or consistent as might be hoped for.It is recommended that in the short-term, the Trust adopt the policy used by BHSC, and that theyshould allocate resources to undertake urgent maintenance tasks as required. Sites needing trackrepair in varying degrees were noted during the field survey, and it was also noted that the bridgeclose to the junction of the two (2) main creeks is now impassable. This could have seriousconsequences in a bushfire situation.The need to ensure public safety for visitors using the network of tracks and trails in the Reserve isvery important, and all public liability insurance policies must be kept up to date as a matter orpriority.6.12 Limitations to Bushland Rehabilitation & Viability6.12.1 Impacts of Past & Current Land UsesAlmost 200 years of settlement have impacted heavily on native vegetation in the Shire. Theseinclude:• Fragmentation and isolation of bushland through urban development, road construction,drainage works, creation of service corridors and the like;• Changes to local drainage patterns and site hydrology as the result of urban development,particularly the direction of stormwater into bushland;• Disturbance to soil profiles and soil chemistry (via excavation, introduction of fill soils,pollution and contamination);• Clearing of native vegetation, particularly the removal of understorey/groundcover speciesand its replacement with introduced grasses (as turf);• Weed invasion, from past and current agricultural land uses, garden escapes and dumping ofunwanted garden waste, and• The suspension of ‘natural’ (pre-settlement) ecological processes such as the fire regime.All of the impacts listed above contribute in some degree to the decrease of species diversity andsimplification of ecosystems, both floristically and structurally.These long-term standing impacts cannot but militate against the bushland restoration process,particularly if this is to be achieved through purely ‘natural’ means, i.e. using traditional bushregeneration methods as opposed to the restoration of the vegetation community by planting withlocal species. A short discussion is presented below.UBM Ecological Consultants Pty Ltd 128