Nick McKim: Liberals threaten World Heritage environmental and economic vandalism

The Tasmanian Greens today said the Federal and State Liberals threats to the Tasmanian World Heritage Area risked making Tasmania an international pariah.

Greens Leader Nick McKim MP said threats to log the internationally recognised forests of the WHA equates to threatening economic and environmental vandalism.

“Will Hodgman and Tony Abbott are placing Tasmania on a crash course with international condemnation and ridicule with their myopic threats to either wind back the current World Heritage Area, or to allow logging of these globally recognised forests,” Mr McKim said.

“The World Heritage Committee itself requested the boundary extension be submitted, to enhance the integrity of the TWWHA boundary, in 2008, 2010 and again last year, and the Greens do not believe that the IUCN will take kindly to having the area they have declared as holding global significance wilfully trashed as the Liberals are proposing.”

“A Commonwealth report has calculated that the World Heritage Area even before the extension contributed an annual $721.8 million in direct and indirect state business turnover, and 5 372 direct and indirect state jobs. This contribution would be expected to increase with the additions of internationally acclaimed icon areas such as the Styx.” [1]

“The Chair of Forestry Tasmania released a public statement in April this year stating the corporation has no intention of logging either WHA nominated or listed forest areas. The industry knows such a move would both doom any attempt to secure FSC, and lock them out of the markets.”

“This divisive behaviour and chest beating we are seeing is not the behaviour of someone deserving the title of leader at either the federal or state level.”

“It is sheer environmental and economic vandalism being threatened by Mr Hodgman with his plan to take the chainsaw to our invaluable World Heritage Area.”

Reference: Economic Activity of Australia’s World Heritage Areas, Report to the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Gillespie Economics, July 2008.
Nick McKim MP Greens Leader