Yarra Ranges National Park is located in the Central Highlands of Australia's southeastern state, Victoria, roughly 107 km (66.5 mi) northeast of Melbourne.

Among the conservation challenges facing Yarra Ranges National Park are climate change and invasive species of weeds, as well as the interaction of native species with non-native, introduced invasive animals, such as European hares and rabbits, domestic sheep, feral cats and dogs, red foxes, South Asian sambar deer, and European red and fallow deer.

The Yarra Ranges National Park was created in December 1995, and spans 76,003 hectares within Victoria's Central Highlands.

The park is made up of wet Mountain Ash Forest and Cool Temperate Rainforest,[7] as well as a diverse range of flora and fauna species.

The park encompasses the headwaters of the Yarra, O'Shannassy and Taggerty Rivers, as well as their reservoirs, which make up 70% of Melbourne's water supply.

They grow in stands that have the highest above-ground biomass of any trees in the world, allowing them to store large quantities of carbon dioxide.

[12] Once they have reached the end of their lifespan, their dead tree stumps and fallen logs continue to provide homes for at least 40 hollow-dependant species, including Victoria's faunal emblem – the endangered Leadbeater's Possum (Gymnobelideus leadbeateri)[13] – as well as the Mountain Brushtail Possum (Trichosurus cunninghami) and the Greater Glider (Petauroides volans).

There have also been nine epiphyte species that have been observed growing on the Mountain Ash trees, the most prevalent of these being Liverwort (Bazzania adnexa).

[24] Fires are a natural part of Australian environment because they are needed for the renewal of ecosystems;[25] however, in recent times these bushfires have been occurring outside normal frequencies, intensities, seasons and scale of what fauna and flora can tolerate.

[27] The controlled burns are used to reduce the amount of fuel, such as dead wood, leaf litter, bark or shrubs that could easily catch alight during the summer months.

Climate change is having a major impact on all ecosystems within Australia, and the Yarra Ranges National Park is no exception.

Soon after, the area was recognised as a good place for water catchments, so the Maroondah and Upper Yarra dams were built.

To provide special protection for significant plant species by actively managing threatening processes, such as weed invasion.

The restriction on people feeding wildlife has also benefited the native species within the park because it allows the ecosystem to function and evolve without human interference.

This is of great concern when it comes to Victoria's faunal emblem – the Leadbeater's Possum, as well as many other threatened species of fauna within the park.

To help better protect endangered fauna and flora within the area, there is a proposal for the creation of the Great Forest National Park.