Students and conservationists are today participating in a peaceful protest in Tasmania’s north east. 35 people have conducted a “walk-in” to a logging coupe in the Fisher Tier forests, halting the ongoing destruction of native forests in an area identified as high conservation value by the Independent Verification Group (IVG).
Still Wild Still Threatened spokeswoman Miranda Gibson stated, “The forests of Fisher Tier, including N111G where today’s peaceful protest is being conducted, have been identified by the IVG as being extremely important for ecological connectivity in North-eastern Tasmania. This forest, like many others, was sacrificed to satisfy the unsustainable, loss-generating native forest industry.”
“Today’s protest highlights Australia-wide concern for Tasmania’s forests and the absence of social license for the Tasmanian forest industry that continues the destruction of native forests. Students from around the country are joining today with Tasmanian grassroots forest campaigners, to express their outrage at the hypocrisy of the Tasmanian Forest Agreement and the entrenchment of industrial scale native forest destruction,” said Ms Gibson.
“This logging of proposed reserves reflects the business-as-usual logging schedule of Forestry Tasmania that is destroying tracts of Tasmania’s high conservation value forests,” Miranda Gibson said.
“The Tasmanian Forest Agreement has failed our forests. No new reserves have yet been created and meanwhile special legislated exemptions allow 42 separate logging coupes to continue inside landscapes identified for future protection” Ms Gibson said.
“These proposed reserves face ongoing logging, and their high conservation values are being destroyed by the native forest industry, which has been granted legislative permission and endorsement by some Environment groups to destroy ancient ecosystems.” Miranda Gibson said.
“Hundreds of university students from around the nation have been in Launceston for the last five days at Students of Sustainability conference ( ). In it’s twenty-second year, SOS is an environmental conference for students. Tasmanian forest campaigners held workshops and discussions at the conference. Over 30 students have joined with Tasmanian forest campaigners to take part in today’s action and are committed to continuing action to stand up for our native forests” Miranda Gibson said.
“Australian Student Environment Network is standing in solidarity with Huon Valley Environment Centre and Still Wild Still Threatened in an ongoing campaign to defend Tasmania’s native forests,” said Ms Gibson.
*Pic: Forest Witness – North East Tasmania – 26/10/12: here
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First published: July 10
• Friday: 40 people Protest at Sarawak timber company mill in North West Tasmania
Forty people are today conducting a non-violent protest at the timber company Ta Ann’s Smithton mill in north-west Tasmania. Students and conservationists have today continued their campaign collaboration to defend Tasmania’s native forests.
Still Wild Still Threatened spokeswoman Miranda Gibson stated, “Two people have attached themselves to machinery at the mill. Today’s protest highlights Australia-wide concern about the notorious company that is Ta Ann, and the appalling acceptance of this company in Tasmania.
In Sarawak, Ta Ann has proven and extensive links with corruption, human rights violations and environmental devastation. In Tasmania, Ta Ann has been exposed to have misled their customers in the international market and continue to source timber from controversial sources, forests with ecological importance and high conservation values.”
“We are concerned that Ta Ann is sourcing wood that comes from inside forests designated by law for future reserve protection, and selling it in Japan as ‘eco-friendly’ plywood. This timber source is from some of Tasmania’s spectacular forests that are scientifically recognised as very high conservation value and an important priority for conservation,” Miranda Gibson said.
“Tasmania’s outstanding native forests and their threatened species remain at risk of continued industrial scale destruction, despite the passage of new forest legislation in the Tasmanian Parliament. This legislation has not declared new reserves, and it has allowed ongoing logging of proposed reserves,” Miranda Gibson said.
Huon Valley Environment Centre’s spokesperson Jenny Weber said, “Ta Ann campaign continues, as their controversial wood supply continues, and their timber supply has been locked in.
This disreputable company continues to receive support from the Australian and Tasmania government and now some Australian environment groups, despite their notorious practices in their home-state where they are a key player in the devastation of Sarawak’s environment and indigenous people’s rights. We will not stand by and be silenced on pressuring this company for the deplorable practices Ta Ann is responsible for in Sarawak and Tasmania,” Jenny Weber said.
“Today we are standing in solidarity with people of Sarawak. Every time we protest here in Tasmania against Ta Ann, we put a spotlight on their unacceptable practices in Sarawak, and we send a message of support to the people of Sarawak who are struggling under the regime of Chief Minister Taib and his timber cronies, including Ta Ann,” Miranda Gibson said.
“Australian Student Environment Network has joined with Huon Valley Environment Centre and Still Wild Still Threatened in an ongoing campaign to defend Tasmania’s native forests, and hold Ta Ann accountable for their disgraceful practices in Sarawak and Tasmania,” said Ms Gibson.
4.30pm, Friday: 40 people Protest at Sarawak timber company mill in North West Tasmania
Forty people are today conducting a non-violent protest at the timber company Ta Ann’s Smithton mill in north-west Tasmania. Students and conservationists have today continued their campaign collaboration to defend Tasmania’s native forests.
Still Wild Still Threatened spokeswoman Miranda Gibson stated, “Two people have attached themselves to machinery at the mill. Today’s protest highlights Australia-wide concern about the notorious company that is Ta Ann, and the appalling acceptance of this company in Tasmania.
In Sarawak, Ta Ann has proven and extensive links with corruption, human rights violations and environmental devastation. In Tasmania, Ta Ann has been exposed to have misled their customers in the international market and continue to source timber from controversial sources, forests with ecological importance and high conservation values.”
“We are concerned that Ta Ann is sourcing wood that comes from inside forests designated by law for future reserve protection, and selling it in Japan as ‘eco-friendly’ plywood. This timber source is from some of Tasmania’s spectacular forests that are scientifically recognised as very high conservation value and an important priority for conservation,” Miranda Gibson said.
“Tasmania’s outstanding native forests and their threatened species remain at risk of continued industrial scale destruction, despite the passage of new forest legislation in the Tasmanian Parliament. This legislation has not declared new reserves, and it has allowed ongoing logging of proposed reserves,” Miranda Gibson said.
Huon Valley Environment Centre’s spokesperson Jenny Weber said, “Ta Ann campaign continues, as their controversial wood supply continues, and their timber supply has been locked in.
This disreputable company continues to receive support from the Australian and Tasmania government and now some Australian environment groups, despite their notorious practices in their home-state where they are a key player in the devastation of Sarawak’s environment and indigenous people’s rights. We will not stand by and be silenced on pressuring this company for the deplorable practices Ta Ann is responsible for in Sarawak and Tasmania,” Jenny Weber said.
“Today we are standing in solidarity with people of Sarawak. Every time we protest here in Tasmania against Ta Ann, we put a spotlight on their unacceptable practices in Sarawak, and we send a message of support to the people of Sarawak who are struggling under the regime of Chief Minister Taib and his timber cronies, including Ta Ann,” Miranda Gibson said.
“Australian Student Environment Network has joined with Huon Valley Environment Centre and Still Wild Still Threatened in an ongoing campaign to defend Tasmania’s native forests, and hold Ta Ann accountable for their disgraceful practices in Sarawak and Tasmania,” said Ms Gibson.
• 5.09pm: Two conservationists arrested and charged at Ta Ann Mill after protest
Two conservationists have been arrested and charged this afternoon at the Smithton Ta Ann mill.
“Support and action from the Australian environmental students network in the campaign to highlight the ongoing logging of proposed reserves for Ta Ann, is a result of these students being informed of the real issues behind the Tasmanian Forest Agreement. This Agreement has thus far failed to deliver any reserves, has resulted in continued logging inside proposed reserves and entrenched a controversial company in native forest logging,” Still Wild Still Threatened’s spokesperson Miranda Gibson said.
“Ta Ann continues to take wood from high conservation value forests in Tasmania that have been exempted from the proposed reserves, which makes it an unacceptable product. Ta Ann is producing a composite product out of Tasmanian eucalyptus and Sarawak hardwood which makes it doubly unacceptable,” Huon Valley Environment Centre’s Jenny Weber said.
“Suggestions that those who support and endorse Ta Ann in Tasmania are not going to affect the issues of the company in their home state of Sarawak are wrong. The ongoing campaign in Tasmania is putting a spotlight on the practices of the timber industry in Sarawak,” Miranda Gibson said.
“Today’s action participants are people with a stake in the future of environmental protection and global citizenship,” Miranda Gibson said.
• Nick McKim: Call for calm over forest protests
Nick McKim MP
Greens Leader
Friday, 12 July 2013
The Tasmanian Greens today called for calm in light of forests protests in Smithton, and urged those protesting to consider the big picture for forest protection.
Greens Leader Nick McKim MP said that those fighting for the forests need to keep in mind that the Tasmanian Forests Agreement’s first tranche of 392, 237 hectares of new proposed formal reserves depends on Legislative Council support before they can be secured.
“People have a right to peaceful protest but at this point in time this type of protest is unhelpful and potentially counter-productive to forest protection,” Mr McKim said.
“The Greens hold to our long-held conviction that everyone has the democratic right to non-violent protest, however the political reality is that today’s action could threaten the fate of over 390, 000 hectares of high conservation forests that are currently before the Upper House.”
“The majority of Tasmania’s conservation movement does not support actions like this at this stage, instead wanting to keep the reserve process alive in the Parliament.”
“The Greens do not condemn people for exercising their democratic right to an opinion, whether we agree with it or not, and I do not intend to start doing so now, but today’s protest is not helpful,” Mr McKim said.
• Bob Brown hits protest double standards
Double standards on anti- and pro-environment protests are in danger of becoming acceptable and entrenched in Tasmania, environmentalist Bob Brown warned in Hobart today.
Backing State Greens leader Nick McKim’s defence of the right to peacefully protest in our democratic system, Brown pointed to the acceptance of 3000 anti-environment protesters at Smithton two weeks ago in contrast to the complaints about yesterday’s protest by 30 young pro-environment students also at Smithton. Logically, the protest by 3000 is a much bigger threat to the forest agreement than the protest by 30. Certainly, it will have kept more people away from work.
This is an historic low in Tasmanian discourse about the future of our wilderness, wildlife and growing nature-based jobs industries, Brown said.
Tasmanians need to know just how much more of our wild forest treasure chest will be fed to the Malaysian logging juggernaut Ta Ann and why it will get $20 million out of the forest agreement while much more job-rich locally owned tourist businesses will get nothing.
It is for the Wilderness Society, Australian Conservation Foundation and Environment Tasmania to back Ta Ann and to be bound by their agreement to support it but in a fair and reasonable society they cannot expect to bind other citizens who wish to campaign for the high conservation forests and wildlife which have failed to be assured protection or which are still being logged for Ta Ann.
It is likely that a High Court challenge to the forest agreement deal seeking to deny citizens their right to stand in defence of this island’s threatened natural areas would be successful.
Brown was held for 19 days in jail for joining protests to save the Franklin River in 1982 and for 11 days for joining protests to save the Tarkine wilderness in 1995.
Tourism directly supports 15,000 jobs in Tasmania and the historic trend is upward. This is many more than the combined direct jobs in mining and logging.
• Tasmanian Public and Environmental Health Network (TPEHN) backs actions at Ta Ann Smithton “Environment Tasmania and The Wilderness Society know full well that the forest protest groups have been holding the line for many, many long years. Both organisations need to review their fawning support for Ta Ann as clearly their position is not supported and has seriously split communities in Tasmania,” David Obendorf said.
