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Category: Timber / Forestry / Federal - State Issues

Loggers hit out at decision to drop World Heritage Area plans

Monday, 21 Mar 2016 07:30:45

A special species contingency forestry coupe inside Tasmania's WHA. (Supplied: Richard Colbeck)

Specialty timber loggers are disappointed the Tasmanian Government and its federal counterpart "don't have the stomach" to fight a UNESCO recommendation that selective logging in the state's World Heritage Area be abandoned.

Key points:

  • Specialty timber logging plans abandoned after UNESCO report
  • Loggers disappointed governments won't fight decision
  • Environmentalists say decision was predictable

The Tasmanian Government wanted to open up parts of the protected area for logging, mainly for specialty species timber.

But a UNESCO report advised against the plan and the state and federal governments accepted "the umpire's decision".

Tasmanian Specialty Timbers spokesman Andrew Denman told 936 ABC Hobart the industry was very disappointed but did not expect either government to do anything about it.

"I don't think they have the stomach to [fight it] at the state or federal level," he said.

"There is obviously a fair amount of politics at play here.

"We're fairly disappointed that both governments appear to accept the report as is when there's clearly some glaringly obvious errors of fact in that report and some pretty wild unsubstantiated claims."

Mr Denman said he was worried about what the decision would mean for the future of his industry.

"We are trying to take a holistic view of where the resource is to have the minimum impact for the most sustainable yield," he said.

"We're only talking about accessing about 0.3 per cent of the World Heritage Area that was added in 2013 in an area where there is already existing roads and harvesting and bridges et cetera.

"It was vital to have access to those areas given that the level of supply at the moment has never been able to reach the pre-TFA [Tasmanian Forestry Agreement] levels of supply."

The move to accept the UNESCO recommendation was welcomed by the Tasmanian Greens as well as conservations and environmental activists.

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