Nick McKim MP | Greens Parks spokesperson
The government’s claim that it is not planning to conduct ‘broad-scale logging’ in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA) does not stand up to scrutiny, and represents a continued snub of the United Nations.
The UN’s World Heritage Committee has specifically asked for all logging to be ruled out, yet the government has stubbornly refused to accede to this request.
The WHC also asked for land tenure upgrades in the TWWHA to prohibit logging and mining, which the government has completely ignored.
Under the current management plan logging is prohibited in the entire TWWHA, but the government’s new draft management plan allows for logging in the entire property except for visitor services zones.
The government’s own legislation classifies some areas inside the TWWHA as Future Potential Production Forest, and allows for logging in iconic forests including the Styx, Florentine and the Weld inside the World Heritage Area.
The government’s verbal commitment to not mine in the TWWHA is welcomed, it but it needs to be explicitly stated in the management plan for the area.
It’s all very well for the Deputy Premier to rule out mining at a press conference, but Parks Minister Matthew Groom needs to state clearly that the mining ban will be explicitly included in the management plan for the area.