The Wilderness Society, Australian Conservation Foundation and Greenpeace today slammed the Coalition’s policy announcement on Tasmania’s forests as a disaster that fails to fully protect forests or to provide a long term future for forest workers.
“The Coalition’s forest policy is nothing more than a logging plan with a conservation figleaf” said Don Henry, Executive Director Australian Conservation Foundation. “It sweeps up the crumbs dropped by the logging industry.”
“On the face of it the ALP’s forest policy will clearly deliver better outcomes for forest protection” said Mr Henry. “The Coalition’s policy protects less than one third of what Mark Latham has said he would protect.”
“The Government has condemned wilderness areas and old growth forests of world heritage value to destruction” said Alec Marr, National Campaign Director of The Wilderness Society.
“These forests will be logged and woodchipped, fire bombed and destroyed. Nothing will survive. Our giant forests will continue to fall” said Mr Marr.
“Then they will be converted to plantations and all the current problems in the timber industry will continue. The Coalition has completely failed to deliver. It’s a national tragedy.”
Mr Marr said that the suggestion that a million hectares would be protected is “at best misleading” as it includes vast areas of forests that were never under threat from logging. “Unlike the ALP’s platform, the Coalition policy also fails to stop landclearing, and will ensure that plantations continue to replace native forests.”
“The election may well be the last chance to save these iconic forests, but instead John Howard is playing politics with the heritage of future generations” said Helen Oakey, Political Liaison Officer with Greenpeace.
“Not only is the policy Mr Howard has delivered a failure in terms of protecting the forests, the manner in which it has been delivered demonstrates his contempt for the real concerns of the millions of Australians who want this national treasure saved. Mr Howard has not given voters the chance to digest this critical policy, preferring to grandstand and make empty statements up to the last possible moment.”
ACF, Greenpeace and TWS identified saving Tasmania’s forests, along with restoring the Murray river to health and cutting greenhouse pollution as the key environmental issues in this federal election campaign.
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