Clearing a new access track through scrub: what's included

Opening a new access track through scrub is two different jobs that often get treated as one: clearing the vegetation corridor, and shaping the track surface itself. We do the first. The second - grading, drainage, compaction, culverts - needs an earthworks or civil contractor.

Plan the route before any cutting

Walk the intended line on foot first. Check gradient, how it connects to existing gates and roads, and whether it crosses any watercourses, which usually triggers separate approval requirements under local planning schemes. A route that looks obvious on an aerial photo can run straight through a gully, a rocky outcrop or a stand of vegetation that needs checking before it's touched.

Check before you clear a corridor

Any vegetation along the proposed route, including along fence lines and in regrowth areas, may be native vegetation requiring a permit to remove - this applies even for a narrow access corridor, not just broadacre clearing. Check the route against the Native Vegetation Regulation Map and confirm with your council. Get a Before You Dig Australia search done for the corridor too; buried services don't respect property boundaries drawn decades ago.

What clearing the corridor actually involves

We cut and mulch the vegetation along the agreed width, working around retained trees and any marked exclusion zones. The result is an open, mulched corridor at ground level - it is not a graded, compacted or shaped track surface. Stumps and roots within the mulched line generally stay in the ground unless subsoil mulching has been separately scoped and agreed.

Where the job handover happens

Once the corridor is cleared, the ground surface still needs attention from an earthworks or civil contractor if you want a trafficable, all-weather track - that covers grading, drainage shaping, culverts where the route crosses a drainage line, and any surfacing material like gravel. Don't assume a cleared corridor is ready to drive in wet weather; mulched ground without proper shaping and drainage can cut up fast under vehicle traffic.

Width and alignment decisions

Wider corridors cost more to clear and remove more vegetation than needed if the track itself will be narrow - agree the working width against the actual intended track width plus clearance, not a blanket figure. Tight bends through scrub might need a wider clearing radius than a straight run; walk this through on-site with the operator rather than marking it from a map.

Timing

Firmer ground in drier months generally means less disturbance from the mulching machine and an easier job overall, though very hard, dry ground can also mean more dust. Check current CFA activity restrictions and site conditions. Fire Danger Period requirements and Total Fire Ban rules are different; not every machinery activity has a universal permit requirement. If the earthworks stage is also planned, book that contractor's availability before locking in the clearing date so the two stages run close together rather than leaving a cleared corridor exposed to regrowth and erosion for months.

What to bring to the site visit

A marked route (even a rough one), any known service locations, and your intended final use for the track - occasional vehicle access is different from regular heavy traffic, and that affects what width and standard make sense. We'll walk it, confirm what needs checking before cutting, and put the clearing scope and finish in writing.

• Before You Dig Australia
• Native Vegetation Regulation Map