Bushfire Commission monitor – 5% target questioned
This just shows how expendable our natural ecosystems and wildlife are in exchange for cheap political expedience.
This quote is taken from the latest report of the Bushfires Royal Commission’s independent monitor, Neil Comrie(p.63). Thousands of people, including scientists and biologists have been saying this since day one.
For Recommendation 57 which covers impacts on biodiversity, Comrie says (p. 65) that the DEPI report that was due in October 2012 is still ‘in progress’. He says that he has ‘a particular interest in biodiversity impacts reported in the DEPI 2012-13 Annual Report on their Planned Burning Program’. He seems to have put DEPI on notice re the impact of these burns on native species and biodiversity. That report is due in a month or so. From what we can tell, the ecological impacts are not monitored.
Neil Comrie’s report can be downloaded here www.bushfiresmonitor.vic.gov.au/