Fears Forestry operation encroached on heritage-listed Bundian Way

Historian and author John Blay is on the Bundian Way Advisory Committee and has extensive knowledge of the area and its significance.

He said the section of land bulldozed included the historic Bundian Pass and was part of, or adjacent to, a significant Aboriginal site, and beside the remarkable Nalbaugh Falls.

The area near the headwaters of the White Rock River had been earmarked to be developed for walkers as an important stage of the coastal section of the Bundian Way.

Forestry Corporation acknowledged a softwood salvage operation in the area, but said its system had no records indicating any Aboriginal cultural heritage sites in the vicinity of the operation.

Mr Blay said after discovering the damage on March 18, he tried unsuccessfully for many days to get in touch with Forestry Corporation.

He said he eventually made contact with a Forestry employee at Bombala on Tuesday, April 4.

"It's tragic really. They were very sympathetic, it seems it wasn't a deliberate thing on Forestry's part but was a failure of their systems," Mr Blay said.

"They had it listed on their system, but it didn't show the 10 metre buffer either side of the track."

The scenic area impacted was adjacent to the South East Forests National Park and the publicised tourist spot at Nalbaugh Falls.

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"I'm deeply concerned about that, it is one of the major tourist attractions of the region that lies only a few kilometres from the Monaro Highway. Schools are using that area as an example of historical and Aboriginal significance," Mr Blay said.

Mr Blay said he was worried about the logging operation encroaching on the designated picnic area and the buffer zone along the heritage-listed track.

He said "a considerable number of artefacts" had been found in the area when conducting a survey in preparation for the heritage listing.

"The sites officer for EALC will need to assess how much has been bulldozed and ascertain if there were any artefacts on the site," Mr Blay said.

When approached by ACM about the incident, a Forestry Corporation spokesperson said an operation was recently undertaken to salvage burnt pine trees from a softwood pine plantation near the Bundian Way.

"In planning a plantation timber harvesting operation, Forestry Corporation refers to a database on cultural heritage to determine if any special forest features need protecting," the spokesperson said.

"In this instance, no records in the system indicated any Aboriginal cultural heritage sites in the vicinity of the operation."

Mr Blay said it was alarming that the incident had happened.

"We will be meeting with them [Forestry Corporation] in the next week or two and see what can be done to rectify the situation.

"They vow it won't happen again, but it's too late in a sense. Perhaps it's largely down to overzealous contractors, but it's really scary, it's going beyond the pale."

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Mr Blay explained the aim of having a set-off area either side of the walking trail was to mark the route with vegetation so it would be an enjoyable surrounding to walk, even if in a State Forest.

"When it's bulldozed right to the edge of the road it's pretty horrible, you've lost the pleasant grasses, shrubs and paper daisies bordering the walking track," he said.

The exact area and length of pathway impacted by the Forestry operation is unconfirmed at this point, but Mr Blay estimated between five and 20 kilometres along the Bundian Way.

The spokesperson said Forestry Corporation had only just been made aware of the concern and intended to inspect the site with the community member over the coming weeks.

"Forestry Corporation always takes steps to protect cultural heritage sites it is aware of and will work with the Local Aboriginal Land Councils on accessing the information which was not in the database."

The Bundian Way was entered on the NSW State Heritage Register for its Aboriginal, European and shared heritage values in 2012, having connected the Monaro to the coast for tens of thousands of years, with traditional owners showing settlers the pathways.

Eden Aboriginal Land Council (EALC) was recently awarded funding through NSW Government Regional Growth, Environment and Tourism Fund to construct the first section of the Bundian Way from Jigamy to Bilgalera (Fisheries Beach).

EALC chair, Uncle BJ Cruse, is also on the Bundian Way Advisory Committee, and said he agreed something had to be done about the matter.

"There need to be systems and procedures in place to ensure that it doesn't happen again," Mr Cruse said.

"It's a worry, we can't go back and fix the problem now."

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According to Mr Cruse there were two issues: the negative impact on Bundian Way, and the clearing of any land without appropriate Aboriginal cultural heritage assessments being conducted.

The spokesperson said Forestry Corporation was committed to protecting Aboriginal cultural heritage.

"Forestry Corporation is working with the Local Aboriginal Land Council to review this site and assess other plantation sites along the Bundian Way and ensure any records are in the databases to inform future harvesting operations to source renewable timber resources," the Forestry Corporation spokesperson said.