In his environment speech on May 27th, Opposition Leader Mark Latham squibbed on protecting Tasmania’s threatened forests and wildlife. Greens Senator Bob Brown said Labor is set to endorse Prime Minister Howard’s agreement to cut down, burn and poison the grandest forests in the southern hemisphere at the fastest rate in history. Bob Brown welcomed …
The brazen illegal logging of the Snowy National Park, along 60 km of its boundary during the January 2003 fires, shocked many people – even DSE personnel. An investigation was carried out into how this happened and where the logs went. The report has now been officially swept under the carpet. At the time of …
The Bracks government has released new statewide logging prescriptions (though now they’re called “procedures”), combining all regional prescriptions into the one document. The procedures seem to have few changes, at least as far as rainforest is concerned. The Mixed Forest definition (rainforest and eucalypt) is now included but is complex and will be hard to …
Dr. David Lindenmayer has written many books and papers on forest ecology and spent years researching the Leadbeater’s Possum in the Central Highlands. He’s always been a fearless advocate for Leadbeater’s Possum against those who seek to log it out of existence. His books make his research accessible to the general public. However we are …
Several months ago certain logging interests applied to clearfell part of a Special Protection Zone (conservation area) near the Ada River, to make logging an adjoining coupe more viable. This also happened a few years ago in the Hensleigh Creek area. That time the zone was moved secretly and against the agreed protocol for changing …
First it was Phillip Toynecoat (Toyne) and now Trisha Does-it-pay-as-well (Caswell) . She was arrested in the Tarkine in March 1995 along with Christine Milne and Bob Brown. ACF’s then Director, Tricia Caswell, was campaigning for an end to woodchipping. Now she’s CEO of the Victorian Association of Forest Industries (VAFI), the body representing the …
Will loggers define a big tree? The Bracks Government is now drawing up prescriptions for protecting giant trees. This is after Forestry Tasmania torched El Grande recently (which made world news), and the discovery in East Gippsland of a massive tree in a planned logging area (see front page item, Autumn ’04 Potoroo). There has …
Industrial gas plant threatens Snowy Estuary The EPA is currently investigating the spilling of 1000 litres of oil in three separate incidents at the controversial OMV gas and oil processing plant. This plant sits smack-bang on the edge of Corringal Creek in the lower Snowy River flood plain. Despite community meetings and growing concern about …
The Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) were set up on July 1st 1997 to oversee the management of Victoria’s river catchments. It’s been described as regionalising environment problems to let country people deal with them. It has since broadened its scope from the narrow ‘bed and banks’ focus to incorporate whole of catchment – from the …
The latest proposed changes to the Forests Act makes the Bracks Government less accountable and less obliged to consider biodiversity. A new Bill is ready to be passed that will set up an arm of DSE called Vicforests to manage the commercial side of logging. Premier Bracks made a pre-election promise that the Department of …
