Tuesday, 12 November 2024

 David LIMBRICK (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (18:33): (1258) My adjournment matter this evening is for the attention of the Minister for Environment, although the issue is also relevant to the minister’s others responsibilities in tourism, sport and outdoor recreation. In 2019 I attended the inaugural meeting of the Australian Climbing Association Victoria, who came together out of concern about the restrictions to climbing that were occurring in the Grampians. It was not just the restrictions that people were concerned about but the process. Climbers felt like they had been locked out of the process, and many felt that goodwill and collaborative conversations had been circumvented. The majority of people genuinely wanted to find a way to protect important cultural heritage sites while maintaining as much climbing access as possible. Instead, climbers were smeared as being reckless and destructive, with accusations they had damaged Aboriginal artefacts, when the damage was actually caused decades ago by well-meaning bureaucrats in a sloppy attempt to protect these areas. This was particularly hurtful to many people in the climbing community, as they tend to be very environmentally conscientious, and rather than damaging these areas, they treasure them with pride.

Now the same thing is happening at Mount Arapiles. The government have announced a plan to restrict about half of the climbing routes without any meaningful engagement with the climbing community. I have many emails in my inbox from people devastated by this decision. Their emails consistently reflect their respect for the local Indigenous community but also for the land. These are people who also have a deep connection to this land. Maybe it does not go back hundreds of generations, but they know in very deep detail the exact shape of the mountain, where the handholds are and what it looks like as you are clinging to the rock face part way through a challenging climbing journey. They reference specific climbing routes, such as the Punks in the Gym climb, which held the title as the hardest climbing route in the world when first established. These are people that volunteer in track upkeep, environmental work and community building in the local area. Indeed some are so connected to this place that they have established themselves in the local town of Natimuk. Some of these people have included photos of themselves on the mountain. They highlight that the proposed closure of half of the routes does not capture the full impact, as some people have noted that all of the climbs they have done in recent years would be closed and others highlighted that the majority of the easy and challenging climbs will be banned. Many of these emails contain suggestions of how this could be better managed.

My request for the minister is to refer this matter to a select committee for a full inquiry that examines the economic, sporting, tourism and cultural heritage issues.