WHA threat

Geoff Law Wilderness Society MR

“Big old trees in native forest less than one kilometer from the World Heritage Area are being burnt,” said Mr Law. “The World Heritage Area is threatened by a fire that appears to have started from a logging operation.”
MEDIA RELEASE 19 March 2008

FIRE IN LOGGING COUPE THREATENS WORLD HERITAGE AREA DURING VISIT OF WORLD HERITAGE MISSION

Bushfire near Lake Gordon in state’s south-west has burnt 20 hectares within 1 kilometre of World Heritage boundary

A bushfire that started in a logging coupe is burning forest less than one kilometer from Tasmania’s World Heritage Area, according to the Wilderness Society.

The fire is believed to have started yesterday, when the World Heritage Mission was visiting nearby forests with the Wilderness Society.

“The fire is immediately up-wind of the World Heritage Area, and if it can’t be effectively controlled, it could burn important wilderness areas within the World Heritage Area,” said the Society’s Tasmanian Campaign Coordinator, Geoff Law.

The fire started yesterday in logging coupe WE038A, less than one kilometer from the boundary of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area. The forest being logged is on very steep country that requires cable-logging.

“Big old trees in native forest less than one kilometer from the World Heritage Area are being burnt,” said Mr Law. “The World Heritage Area is threatened by a fire that appears to have started from a logging operation.”

“This is a perfect example of the threat to Tasmania’s World Heritage Area from logging operations,” he said.

The World Heritage Mission is in Tasmania to assess the risk to the World Heritage Area from fires caused by forestry operations in adjacent forest.

Mr Law called on Forestry Tasmania to publicly explain how the fire started. Mr Law said that he heard a loud explosion while in the area yesterday, and that, shortly afterwards, smoke appeared from the region where the fire is burning.

And:

MEDIA RELEASE – 18th March 2008

WILDERNESS SOCIETY SUPPORT FOR GREENS SENATE MOTION AND CLOSURE OF ‘THE ROAD TO NOWHERE’

Fire serves as a warning against new roading proposals

The Wilderness Society today expressed support for the motion put forward by Australian Greens Senator Christine Milne, calling on the infamous ‘Road to Nowhere’ to be closed to vehicular traffic.

The fire currently burning in the area is a real example of the dangers of opening up remote wilderness areas to human access. Despite these risks, Forestry Tasmania plans to develop new roads in the sensitive Tarkine.

“Fires such as the one currently burning were predicted as a likely outcome of the construction of the ‘road to nowhere’,” said Vica Bayley, spokesperson for The Wilderness Society. “Yet the Government of the day ignored these dangers.”

“Senator Milne’s motion to close the track to vehicles has our full support, as does the call for the entire Tarkine area’s nomination to be incorporated in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area.”

New roads into remote areas pose significant environmental risk in the form of increased fire incidents, the spread of disease and invasive feral species and increased levels of poaching of threatened or restricted species such as the giant freshwater crayfish and tree ferns. In addition, it dramatically increased the risk of vandalism or malicious damage of ‘protected’ cultural heritage sites such as aboriginal shell middens or rock carvings.

At taxpayer expense, Forestry Tasmania continues to push new roads into wilderness areas to facilitate logging and is currently planning a loop road in the Tarkine that would push through kilometers of previously untouched rainforest.

“Tasmania needs to learn from the current fire in the Tarkine and stop road construction into remote areas where natural and cultural values need proper protection,” continued Mr Bayley.

“Forestry Tasmania’s proposed link road in the Tarkine is a new example of expensive and inappropriate roading that opens up wild areas to new and unacceptable risks such as fire.”

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