Andrea Dawkins MP | Greens Environment spokesperson
The only way for a pulp mill to be viable in the Tamar Valley is for the FSC accreditation for our forests, which is proving to be problematic, and issues such as dioxin run off and carbon emissions would need to be addressed. To date the latter has never even been considered.
Viability has really only been assured in terms of construction, and on the back of current global and domestic economic factors. But, the question still remains; where is the wood going to come from?
New Forests have indicated they have no interest in supplying plantation timber to a pulp mill in the Tamar Valley, and the Greens feel the majority of Tasmanians would be loathe to see it fed with timber from old growth native forests.
In spite of the survey conducted by The Examiner, a pulp mill in the Tamar Valley is not the answer to the dismal jobs market in the North of the State.
The lack of significant growth in employment is an indictment on the Liberal government, and the construction of a pulp mill would just be a quick and dirty solution for a lazy government lacking in real policy.