Is all Tasmania poisoned? (2)

300,000 hectares of plantations cover Tasmania, half the fast-growing genetically enhanced eucalyptus nitens.

The further revelations in Part 2 of Australian Story last night were devastating.

They told a story of a dogged and determined search for truth by St Helens GP Dr Alison Bleaney and Sydney scientist Dr Marcus Scammell – in the face of ridicule and government indifference, ministerial derision and careless-ness stretching beyond a decade.

Scammell and Bleaney were searching for indications that chemicals sprayed liberally over plantations in catchment areas had turned the Georges River toxic.

What they found – through lengthy and forensic application stretching over years and involving scientists throughout Australia and in New Zealand – was even more devastating.

It wasn’t the chemicals. It is the plantations themselves. Perhaps it may turn out to be a deadly cocktail of both. For now the culprit in the dock is genetically enhanced eucalyptus nitens.

And Tasmania is covered in them; a toxic cancer which has spread the length and breadth of Tasmania, changing communities and the landscape for ever as forests have been chainsawed, firebombed and recreated in the image of a rapacious, care-less industry, in thrall to one mega-player, Gunns Ltd.

Every major community in Tasmania draws its water from catchments which include extensive plantations of eucalyptus nitens.

Hobart and Launceston are not exempt.

Hobart’s water source includes the large plantations in the Lower Florentine, Styx and Upper Derwent. (Disputed: As for Hobart’s water supply, doesn’t the Florentine flow the other way, and not into the Derwent? And isn’t it the case that there are only very small areas of Nitens in the Derwent catchment, and that a quantity of Hobart’s water comes directly from the pipeline from Lake Fenton, that is higher in altitude than any plantations? Woodworker, Comment 8, HERE)

Logging in the north-east and subsequent huge plantation forestry establishment there have silted the Tamar River and surely rendered Launceston’s water equally as suspect as water sourced from the Georges River. (The water supply to Launceston and the Tamar Valley comes from three rivers: St Patricks, North Esk and South Esk. Roughly 50% of the combined upper catchments of those rivers is covered in monoculture tree plantations, a poisonous biomass of stupendous proportions: HERE: Bob McMahon, Comment 10)

The fallout from the truth-seeking of Bleaney and Scammell has barely begun.

Earlier, and links to the original reports on Tasmanian Times stretching back 7 years: Is all Tasmania poisoned?: HERE

Dr Alison Bleaney is Tasmanian Times Tasmanian of the Year: Alison, You Beauty! HERE