NEWS RELEASE
Friday 25th June 1999
Environment groups reject fraudulent, pre-determined Southern forest "agreement"
Local, regional and peak environment groups today publicly rejected as fraudulent the NSW government's claimed forest "agreement" model for the south coast forests. The groups held a campaign meeting at the sleepy holiday town of Durras last Saturday to consider the fate of precious and rare south coast forests which are being assessed for woodchipping this year.
They issued the following statement:
"We do not accept that any system based on 20 years of clearfelling native forests for woodchips is sustainable forest management.
"It is a legal certainty that the Japanese woodchipping giant Daishowa will get 20 years of guaranteed access to our forests under the Regional Forest Agreement model. This is already set in legislation under Sections 15 and 30 of the Forestry and National Park Act 1998.
"The same Act (Sections 36 to 40) removes hard won environmental safeguards in the Threatened Species Act, National Parks and Wildlife Act, Local Government Act, Environmental Offences Act, Environmental Planning Act and Wilderness Act.
"This means 'open slather' logging in those forests not protected as National Parks.
"We demand the government immediately save the forest catchments and tourism assets in our 14 community reserve proposals and shift industry into the plantation stockpile" the groups concluded.
Comment:
- Tim O'Rourke, Vice-President, South East Forest Conservation Council...........6496 7036
- Harriet Swift, ChipStop..................................................0414 908 997 / 64923267
- Indra Esguerra, Cons. Council of SE Region & Canberra.............................6262 8488
- Richard Barcham, Bega Environment Centre............................................6492 3385
- Peter Evans, Peak Alone-Wandella Catchment Association............................6493 7253
- Gerhard Weidman, ForestCare Australia.................................................6496 7094
- Gus Gulson, Old Growth Preservation Society..........................................9876 6424
- Tom McLoughlin, Friends of the Earth/Southern Forest Alliance...0410 558838 / 9283 2004
- Frank Miller, FoE Southern Tablelands...................................................4884 4427
- Michael Canopy, FoE Shoalhaven........................................................ 4446 6477
- Elizabeth Cook, Eurobodalla Greens......................................................4474 2900
- Catherine Moore, Braidwood Greens.....................................................4842 8055
- Kath Friehaut, Bega Greens................................................................6494 0145