Dear Premier Bacon,
Apparently your government is at the forefront of international conservation efforts - some 40% of Tasmania being represented in our reserve system. I'm sure you know that many types of reserves allow for harvesting of natural resources - this hardly constitutes conservation.
Boasting of Tasmania's conservation record in response to the public forest debate is a distortion of the truth. The truth is that your government perpetuates ecological vandalism of some of our most precious natural assets - rainforests and old-growth forests. It is small wonder that Tasmanians continue to leave this state, disgraced and embarrassed by short-sighted government policies.
Contrary to your government's well massaged media unit's manipulation of fact, your forest protection policies are second-rate. Consider the following:
* Western Australia easily exceeds Tasmania's protection of old-growth forests. Logging in all of WA's old-growth forests has ceased and they are now in the process of being protected in national parks. This has been achieved by an ALP state government that realised how farcical the RFA process has been.
* Meanwhile, in May of this year New Zealand transferred all of its West Coast forest estate from Timberlands (their equivalent of Forestry Tas) to the NZ Department of Conservation. These temperate rainforests are now managed for conservation rather than timber harvesting.
* Also last month, Peru created a 1,353,000ha rainforest national park. The Tarkine Wilderness Area recognised by the Australian Heritage Commission is 1,000,000ha smaller, but large areas of its old-growth rainforest remain unprotected and may be logged as of next year.
* In April of this year the Canadian province of British Colombia protected more than 600,000ha of its temperate rainforest.
What is the ALP's rationale for not protecting 100% of Tasmania's old-growth forests? Why doesn't the ALP support the creation of a Tarkine World Heritage Area?
In responding please avoid using any semblance of economic rationale. I'm sure we progressed well beyond that when whaling and CFCs were banned in the 1970s and 1980s, and when it was agreed this year that persistent organic pollutants be banned and WA's old-growth forests be protected.
I look forward very much to your reply.
Brenda Rosser 16/17 Alanvale Road ALANVALE 7248
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