The
Mersey River Forest Reserve is located within the
Mersey River Conservation Area. In Tasmania, the sustainable use of natural resources may be permitted in Conservation Areas such as mining, special species timber harvesting or hunting.
In the winter of 2016 the
Mersey River had a major flood as a result of widespread heavy rainfall across Tasmania. The flood resulted in significant damage to bridges and other riverside
infrastructure, as
well as extensive erosion of the river bank and uprooting of trees, leading to numerous logjams in narrow gorges.