VANDALS have damaged environmentally sensitive areas at Green Hill Lake for the second time in 30 days.
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Ararat wildlife photographer Wayne Suffield found deep tyre marks on the northern side of Warrayatkin Swamp - part of Green Hill Lake - Wednesday morning, where off-road drivers appeared to have driven around, "tearing up" land.
Mr Suffield said on recent previous visit the birdlife had been abundant but on Wednesday morning no birds were present.
"They tore it up," he said.
"I was talking to someone who was staying there overnight and they said they had heard this enormous racket and revving of engines.
"They spoil what I imagine is mostly quite a reasonable form of recreation by deliberately tearing it up."
Mr Suffield found similar damage had been done at the lake about a month ago.
"This is the first time they've been back out (since)," he said.
Green Hill Lake Development Board president Gwenda Allgood said the board is considering its options, including going to the police.
"We haven't done so as yet but that will be the next process that we'll be going through," she said.
"We're going to be talking to the (Ararat) council once again to try and put some sort of barrier up to stop people getting through."
Until then board members will continue to go through security footage from recently-installed CCTV cameras. Another clue may lie in the tyre tracks themselves, Ms Allgood said.
"Because they have such an interesting pattern we're hoping that might be something that will lead us to whoever is doing it," she said.
Ms Allgood condemned the people responsible.
"It's just insane," she said. "We're working so hard to make that an attractive area. It's an act of vandalism to the environment and to the people of Ararat.
"If they have energy to burn do it in a useful way - do something for our community.
"We've got the bypass coming and we're trying to attract people into Ararat and not be suffering this kind of degradation. Sooner or later they will be caught."
Acting Sergeant Ash Murnane, of Ararat, encouraged anyone with information to talk to police.
"They can report activity anonymously through Crime Stoppers or call the station anonymously," he said.
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