Recently, a Freedom of Information request of VicForests showed that at least 85% of our native forests are used for cheap throw-away paper and cardboard. The last VicForests Annual Report revealed that we tax payers are aiding the industry to log our native forests. This is on top of their existing subsidies. Now we learn …
After a lengthy process, the Sambar Deer has formally been listed as a threat to biodiversity in Victoria, and will be listed under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act. Deer populations are increasing every year in Gippsland and their behaviour is threatening very sensitive areas such as rainforests and riparian forests. They can grow up …
“European settlement certainly brought an extraordinary increase in both frequency and intensity of fire in south-eastern Australia. People lit fires everywhere, at any time, to burn off or to clear land. Rural manhood was forged in fighting fires.” Paul Collins, author of BURN
Brown Mountain was assessed and listed as an old growth National Estate area by the Commonwealth Heritage Commission in the 1980s. That means it has the same values as a National Park. The management of these areas were handed to the state government which promptly set about clearfelling them in 1989. The protests on Brown …
In 2006, the then premier, Steve Bracks, made a promise to protect all significant stands of old growth currently available for logging. This, with several other areas called icon forests amounted to about 41,000 ha. However, he also promised there would be no impact on the logging industry – an impossible undertaking. A few days …
All eight councillors of the Shire of Yarra Ranges voted in early December to oppose any further logging of their water catchments. They will ask our state’s Water Minister, Gavin Jennings, to stop VicForests plans to clearfell eleven logging coupes in the Armstrong and Cement Creek catchments. That area is the stronghold of the loggers …
If anyone had a flicker of optimism left that Peter Garrett might start to show some tiny verdant streak – even under his armpit or hidden deep behind his kidneys – sometime soon – then anticipate no more. We’re all wasting our hopefulness. He’s approved the Gunns pulpmill and now the dredging of the beautiful …
The natural diversity of unlogged forests makes them very robust. This healthy resilience is extremely valuable at a time when climate disturbance is impacting more harshly on disturbed environments. But besides being sturdy arks and biological refuges, forests are one of the worlds best carbon capture vessels. While the world authorities try to work out …
The headline in the Sunday Age in early December 2007 was ‘How to turn $99 million worth of trees into a $17,000 loss’. VicForests was exposed as incompetent economic managers of our public forests. Even with a state government gift of tens of millions of dollars to get it set up, it’s still not profitable …
Gippsland saw the Greens increase their vote by just over 1% to 6.06%. Though in the end, National Party senator, Peter McGauran (“Chops”) romped back in with hardly a chink in his support base (the Liberals never stand in Gippsland’s Federal elections). In Victoria the Greens should be close to or just above 10% in …
