Oxford Falls and Red Hill Narrabeen Lagoon Catchment Area Forum

Not sure this is big news, but wanted to share these events just to let everyone know that various parties are still (always) working towards better trail access in the area.

Last night (Aug 16, 2010) a number of riders, members of the local bike industry, conservation group members, a representative from the traditional owners, National Parks Staff and Councillors met at Warringah Council for an open forum. The topic of debate was mainly Narrabeen Lagoon catchment which encompasses the riding areas at Red Hill and Oxford Falls (the latter being mostly unauthorised of course).

There was some good discussion and some common ground reached that all parties could agree on which is a pretty positive step.

Basically - much of the area in question is not official protected in a park or recreation area or privately owned, and although there is currently a moratorium on development this will not last forever. What this means is that if nothing changes much of Red Hill is likely to be developed at some point, as is a large area of Oxford Falls.

Such an outcome would be bad news for riders and conservationists alike.

This being the case the idea is that all groups should, and can work together to protect this area. I guess the ideal outcome would be to have the area protected under some sort of regional park or similar with a plan that included recreational and environmental goals. Conservationists agreed that there would be a place for mountain bike riding (including single tracks) in such a park so long as any trails avoided culturally sensitive areas, or pockets that contain sensitive flora or habitat for endangered native animals. There was a map on hand showing some of what would be 'no go' areas and it wasn't as bad as you'd think. I'm sure a very decent ride could be made under such conditions.

It was agreed that trying to protect such an area on it's environmental credentials alone was not working (the NPA have been lobbying to protect this area for over 40 years without success it seems). This is even though, ironically, someone stated that there are more threatened species in the pocket of Oxford Falls outside of Garigal National park than inside the park to the North. Thus, a collaborative effort that outlines not only the environmental benefit, but also the social aspects such an area could provide (recreation - including mountain biking) and the economic benefits they bring should be agreed upon.

It will be a long road, but anything that allows riders and other users of bushland to work together cannot be a bad thing.

Note that none of this actually has anything to do with National Parks, what with the areas being discussed being outside their borders.

All that said, there were two side issues that emerged that are worth mentioning:

1. Michael Regan (Warringah Mayor) stated that there was $100K set aside to fix Manly Dam.
2. The National Parks Ranger stated things within their department are still moving. An updated cycling policy and other plans are coming. Nothing concrete yet on this front, be patient as always.