MINOR Victorian Upper House members of the Shooters and Fishers Party say they will oppose any plans to create a Great Forest National Park stretching from Kinglake to Mount Baw Baw and Eildon.
Shooters and Fishers MPs Jeff Bourman and Daniel Young said the government had given its strongest indication yet that it intended to push ahead with the creation of the park.
"A Great Forest National Park will destroy timber jobs and shut out hunters," Member for Eastern Victoria Mr Bourman said.
"The bush is there for everyone, not just to lock people out."
The two MPs said they believed the main argument for creating the park was the protection and conservation of the near-extinct Leadbetter's possum, which had been hit hard when the Black Saturday bushfires destroyed nearly 45 per cent of its habitat.
Victoria would stand to lose more than it would gain by turning an additional 355,000 hectares into national park.
Of the total 8.2 million hectares of native forest in Victoria, only about 0.04pc was allowed to be harvested.
Mr Young said creating a national park was not the answer to saving the possum as it would also offer protection to predators such as feral cats, dogs and foxes.
"Parks Victoria does not have the funds or resources to properly manage the parks that already exist - this will create more problems than solutions," he said.
