Compensation paid by developers who damage biodiversity may do more harm than good if it is misused by governments, say researchers. The team, writing in today’s issue of the journal Nature, argue that there is nothing to stop such ‘biodiversity offset’ funding from being used to carry out conservation work governments have already agreed to …
A secret deal by the former State Government to supply Australian Paper with timber at a discounted fixed price has shed further light on the financial vulnerability of the Maryvale Mill. A Department of Treasury briefing, seen by The Express as supplied by The Age, reveals Maryvale Mill owner Australian Paper had failed to hand over …
The rules governing our native forests, RFAs, were drawn up nearly 20 years ago. They need to be thoroughly reviewed and updated to reflect the changes in the forestry industry that have occurred in the last two decades. BIT BY BIT, Tony Abbott is dismantling everything scientists are telling us we need to do to …
The Victorian Government has agreed to set aside 2,000 hectares of forest in East Gippsland to help protect three threatened species of owl. Environment East Gippsland took legal action against the Victorian Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) and state-owned VicForests over the issue. An agreement was reached on Friday between the parties …
LOGGING will be put on hold in parts of Victoria’s forests to protect three species of threatened owl. In an out-of-court settlement today, green group Environment East Gippsland, VicForests and the Victorian Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning agreed to terms that will see increased protection of owl species that are threatened under the …
Victoria’s native timber was offered to a Japanese-owned paper mill at a discounted fixed price as part of a secret government deal to end a protracted multimillion-dollar dispute over unpaid debts. A Department of Treasury briefing obtained by Fairfax Media reveals Gippsland-based Australian Paper – the state’s largest wood customer – failed to hand over $10 million that VicForests …
The day after the national Threatened Species Summit ends, a Supreme Court case brought by Environment East Gippsland has reached an out of court settlement The case challenged logging in threatened owl habitat by the state government’s Environment Department and VicForests, which have now agreed to set aside over 2,000 ha. This 10 month case …
Three environmental activists have been fined for surveys they carried out in a logging coupe in East Gippsland, though the state government conceded it needed to bolster timber harvesting rules following the activists’ report. The activists from the Goongerah Environment Centre are facing fines of $440 each for entering the coupe in late April, which they say they will likely …
Three recent reports make clear that we should be saving habitat in order to save species. It is pretty simple. Destroy a species’ habitat and you destroy its home. The first report was issued last week by the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF), Birdlife Austrlia and Environmental Justice Australia*. Its take away message is that in …
Victoria’s low grade native timber could soon be packed into shipping containers bound for China and other cut-price countries for processing under a plan to help ailing state timber company VicForests. In response, a rule requiring local processing before export has now been relaxed in a bid to open up new markets for the struggling state-owned …
