The Impact of Commercial Horse Riding on Sub-Alpine Environments at Cradle Mountain, Tasmania, Australia

Horse riding is one of the more controversial recreational uses of the alpine and sub-alpine environments of Tasmania. Monitoring was initiated in an established commercial horse riding area immediately adjacent to the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area to measure the impacts of high level horse usage on the soils and vegetation. The greatest soil loss was measured in the eucalypt forest where some 397 cm2of soil per 1 metre width of track was lost over a two year period. The next greatest soil loss occurred inGleicheniamoorland (236 cm2of soil per 1 metre width of track). In rainforest, the amount of soil lost from the sites is less significant (35 cm2of soil per 1 metre width of track), as the soil is churned and redistributed along the trampled and unstable track. Once tracks deteriorated into a quagmire in moorland, new tracks were established with several new braids occurring. The results clearly show that current levels of commercial horse riding cannot be sustained without track hardening.