… the broader conservation movement and Tasmania’s forests?
The TCT stated today that the ‘Give Peace a Chance’ media release, issued on Friday 18 May 2012 by the Tasmanian Forests Reference Group of Signatories, shows that the participating ENGOs are willing to accept a deal at any cost – peace at any cost – and may have sold out their principles, the broader conservation movement and Tasmania’s forests!
The ‘Give Peace a Chance’ statement confirms that the ENGO’s:
– are willing to collaborate with industry to develop a durability package to forcibly stop protests;
– supports the continued and possibly expanded logging of proposed reserves as a condition of the peace talks continuing; and
– appear to have compromised on the area they want to see reserved to bring Forest Industry Association of Tasmania back to the negotiating table.
Added to these compromises, the ENGOs still fail to call for a complete forests deal, one which commits to:
– a stronger forest practices system to meet biodiversity conservation obligations;
– provision of support for private landowners to protect their forests;
– disestablishment of Forestry Tasmania;
– properly resourcing a reformed Parks and Wildlife Authority;
– supporting measures which will ensure forest managers can earn income through protection of the carbon value of their forests;
– no support for the Tamar Valley pulp mill and abandonment of any linkage between that pulp mill and protection of native forests.
“This media statement by all signatory groups confirms our fears that the ENGO’s are willing to bargain away anything to get a deal regardless of how weak it is.
“With so many compromises and so many essential elements missing, the environmental benefits of the impending forests deal, in terms of new reserves, may be surpassed by the environmental losses.
“These ENGOs may accept peace in the forests at any cost but the TCT will not.”
“The TCT feels compelled to publicly ask these groups, have they sold out their own principles, the rest of the conservation movement and the forests they claim to want to protect just to get a peace deal at any cost?”
Durability package
The ‘Give Peace a Chance’ media release acknowledges that the participating ENGO’s are working with the forest industry to develop a durability package – which is loose code for legislating to stop protests in the forests and markets – and this has resulted in FIAT re-entering the negotiations.
‘Give Peace a Chance’ media release states in part (underlining by the TCT):
The Tasmanian Forestry industries represented by the Forest Industries Association of Tasmania (FIAT), the Tasmanian Sawmillers Association, and the Tasmanian Forest Contractors Association and at the national level by the Australian Forest Products Association and Australian Forest Contractors Association have worked together with all signatories to successfully identify the needed elements of a durability package to ensure that a successful agreement will have lasting benefits and FIAT is now entering the negotiations.
“To be involved in a process which proposes draconian measures to forcibly stop protests is outrageous and must be opposed by all conservation groups.”
ENGO pro-forestry market campaign
The ‘Give Peace a Chance’ media release included a statement from the ENGO’s that encourages the continued and possibly expanded logging of proposed reserves as a condition of the peace talks continuing and in direct opposition to campaigns by groups such as Markets for Change.
‘Give Peace a Chance’ media release states in part:
“The Wilderness Society, Environment Tasmania, and the Australian Conservation Foundation….., are urging buyers of current Tasmanian forests products to not make any decisions that would adversely affect Tasmanian suppliers during the period of the negotiations.”
“This statement shows that the ENGO’s have now become a lobby-group for Ta Ann and other forest companies rather than trying to represent the conservation interests of the broader conservation movement.”
Forest reserve ask now 300,000ha
The ‘Give Peace a Chance’ statement announces major changes in the forestry talks and therefore it is very significant that the ENGOs fail to include a statement of their conservation goal and the figure of 572,000 ha of reserves does not appear in the media release.
“It is has been an open secret for many months that some or all of the ENGO’s would accept 300,000 ha being reserved and we fear this card has now been played in order to get FIAT back in the talks.”
“While it appears that FIAT’s return to negotiations is a positive move, it concerns the TCT that the participating conservation groups probably enticed FIAT back to the negotiating table with promises they will accept much less forests being reserved as well as offers of a durability package and a counter markets campaign.”
Protection of forests outside the proposed reserves may be sacrificed
“Despite our repeated calls, the ENGO’s have never committed to including in a forests deal the need for an improved Forest Practices Code in line with the completed but yet to be implemented 2007-10 Code review. A stronger code is essential to ensure forest biodiversity and other values found outside of reserves are effectively protected.”
“We fear that their silence on this critical biodiversity conservation issue means they are willing to use it as a bargaining chip and rather than a stronger Code we may end up with weaker forestry standards to enable the industry to extract the same wood volumes from a reduced area of forests. The Forest Practices Code is an important bottom line that urgently needs strengthening if the forest industry is to regain a social licence. It would be perverse, indeed, if ‘peace in our time’ was based on a weaker Code.”
First published: 2012-05-20 01:40 PM
• Media Release
18 May 2012
Tasmania’s forest groups looking for swift resolution and forest protection
Grassroots environment groups will take a watching brief over the next
fortnight of forest talks in Tasmania, after today’s announcement that
Forest Industries Association of Tasmania (FIAT) will return to the
table for negotiations. Huon Valley Environment Centre, Still Wild
Still Threatened and Code Green remind people today that unique
forests are still being destroyed.
“While verified world-heritage value forests disappear and critical
endangered species habitat vanishes, the native forest logging
industry lingers in an irreversible decline. Immediate protection of
572 000ha of native forest, and a transition out of industrial scale
native forest logging, is the only solution for the environment and
the industry,” said Ms. Weber spokesperson for Huon Valley Environment
Centre.
“FIAT has been holding back these talks over the future of forest
protection in Tasmania. The negotiations have been stalled while FIAT
remained outside the process and continued to level false accusations
at community groups highlighting environmental concerns. We recognise
the positive gesture by FIAT to proactively engage in securing a
protection outcome,” Jenny Weber said.
“Tasmania’s native forests and wildlife are unique icons that draw
international attention. To squander assets of such immeasurable value
is to fuel the downward spiral in the current native forest industry.
Protection of the verified 572 000ha of high conservation value forest
and a transition to an ethical and sustainable industry is the way
forward to securing stability in international markets,” said Miranda
Gibson of Still Wild Still Threatened.
“We would like to remind everyone that while the negotiations occur
the logging of world heritage value and unique native forests is
continuing. A resolution is needed within a strict timeframe so the
ongoing logging in these precious ecosystems ceases. I will continue
to occupy this mature eucalypt tree, known as the ObserverTree, in
these threatened forests until protection is secure,” Miranda Gibson
said.
“These are iconic world heritage value forests in Tasmania and now
it’s time for their legislated protection. This is a crucial moment
for the Intergovernmental Agreement which could result in these
globally significant forests being given the protection they deserve.”
said Jared Irwin of CODE GREEN.
Jenny Weber (HVEC)
Miranda Gibson (SWST)
Jared Irwin (CODE GREEN)
• What Peg Putt told Garry Bailey on ABC local radio …
Drive Program with Garry Bailey, ABC Northern Tasmania. 18 May 2012
The green activist group, Markets for Change, will not launch any new campaigns internationally against some Tasmanian forest companies as part of a new bid to get the state’s forest peace deal across the time. Drive spoke with the group’s Peg Putt.
