The first of the controversial Regional Forest Agreements (RFA) to expire has been extended for 12 months. The agreements were signed by state and federal governments between 1997 and 2001. A 20-year old East Gippsland Regional Forest Agreement was set to expire on Friday, but will now continue for one year to allow for further …
The owner of Australia’s largest hardwood processor has asked the Victorian Government to fund a $40 million refit of the mill. Australian Sustainable Hardwoods employs 250 people at Heyfield in Gippsland, but is threatening to close the mill due to a cut in native timber supply. The company said it could access younger regrowth forest …
People collapse, buildings collapse, economies collapse and even entire human civilizations collapse. Collapse is also common in the natural world – animal populations and ecosystems collapse. These collapses have the greatest impact on us when they affect resources our industries depend on, leaving ecosystems in tatters and sometimes ruining local economies. In a new paper, …
Researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) have called for the transition from native timber harvesting to plantation forests with the biggest mainland sawmill in Australia under threat of collapse. Professor David Lindenmayer from the ANU Fenner School of Environment and Society called for the Victorian Government to intervene quickly to minimise the impact of …
Hundreds of jobs are on the line at a sawmill at Heyfield in Victoria’s east if it does not get access to a long-term supply of timber, the ABC understands. Australian Sustainable Hardwoods (ASH), which employs about 250 staff, processes about 150,000 cubic metres of timber each year supplied by state-owned logging company VicForests. Spokesperson …
Premier Daniel Andrews secretly extended the 20 year RFA logging deal for East Gippsland with no review, assessment or public knowledge, one day before it was due to expire. This is an astoundingly irresponsible move considering that in the week before, VicForests admitted there are not enough forests left to keep the sawlog supply going. …
After EEG launched a 10 month Supreme Court battle, the government’s logging agency VicForests, has agreed to await further surveys and put in place protections for wildlife and plants before logging. The court orders made on 23rd December 2016 detail VicForests obligations regarding the high value forests. It’s great that VicForests has finally agreed to …
The magnificent old growth forests of East Gippsland are a national treasure. Yet state-endorsed logging continues in this region, undermining the rich tapestry of plants and animals that support human health. In August of this year, citizen scientists documented the presence of a large population of protected Greater Gliders in these forests, including inside an …
This week a coalition of 25 environment groups is urging Premier Daniel Andrews to abandon his plans to extend the legal exemption given to the native forest logging industry in East Gippsland. The East Gippsland Regional Forest Agreement (RFA) is a 20-year arrangement between state and federal governments that gives special immunity to the logging …
Since the late 1990s the logging industry in Victoria has been exempt from adhering to federal environment laws that protect our nationally threatened wildlife. Only native forest logging gets this special exemption known as a ‘regional forest agreement’ (RFA) In February 2017 the East Gippsland RFA will expire. It should not be extended. Goongerah Environment …
