Liberals threaten desecration of UNESCO World Heritage Area

The Tasmanian Greens today condemned the Tasmanian Liberal Party over its irrational, embarrassing and unprecedented commitment to desecrate a UNESCO World Heritage Area.

Greens Leader Nick McKim MP today tabled a notice of motion calling on the Liberal Party to reverse their policy of logging in Tasmania’s World Heritage Area before the damage to Tasmania’s image and international reputation becomes irreversible.

“Here it is in black and white,” Mr McKim said.

“The Leader of the Liberal Party in Tasmania, Will Hodgman, has publicly threatened to direct Forestry Tasmania to log forests that the World Heritage Committee has included in the World Heritage Area.”

“A bit over 40 years ago, the world’s nations came together to create the World Heritage Convention, inspired by the idea that humanity shares a universal heritage.”

“The World Heritage Committee itself requested that a boundary extension to be submitted three times, in 2008, 2010 and 2013.”

“What the Liberals are promising to do is akin to mining the pyramids of Egypt for road gravel.”

“The Liberals would expose Tasmania to international embarrassment and condemnation and destroy the clean, green brand that underpins tens of thousands of jobs.

“It threatens the very future of this state, and it threatens pitch Tasmania back into conflict and division that has been so corrosive to our social and economic progress.”

“That’s not a brighter future, it’s a return to the dark ages when tens of millions of dollars each year were ripped out of essential public services to support an unviable forest sector.”
Nick McKim MP Greens Leader