The flip-flopping of Bryan Green on a wood fibre export terminal for the South of the State demonstrates that Labor has learned nothing from the March election and remains in lockstep with the Greens in opposition to the forest industry.
Earlier this month Mr Green himself suggested the use of the Macquarie Wharf.
“It is possible to just woodchip or chip residue in the bush and containerise those and export them in containers. They are options that are available to the Government, and they could easily be shipping from Hobart.”*
Today, Mr Green has failed to back up his own words by supporting the Liberal Government’s decision to investigate using Macquarie Wharf to export wood fibres.
In contrast, the forest industry has reacted positively to our announcement because Tasmania now has a Government prepared to make decisions to grow our economy and create jobs, rather than the opposite.
Mr Green cannot run around the State trying to make the case that Labor is somehow pro-industry when his first response is to go back on what he said only a fortnight ago and sing from the same anti-jobs hymn sheet as the Greens.
The Liberal Government has identified Macquarie Wharf for further investigation, only as a short to medium term option, with a lifespan of one to five years.
Claims of a “massive woodchip dump” are just plain wrong.
We have specifically said that woodchipping would take place offsite, and there would be an undercover base load storage capacity on the wharf with shipments topped up by direct transport.
The Tourism Council has noted that tourism and industry work harmoniously together in one of the world’s most visitor friendly cities, Vancouver, which attracts up to one million cruise ship visitors a year while having the largest woodchip export terminal in the world. Last year Vancouver exported 7.5 million tonnes of woodchips.
Unlike Labor, the Liberal Government is committed to growing our forest industry, and that includes taking advantage of the opportunity to export wood fibres from our Southern forests.
* ABC News, October 2, 2014
Paul Harriss, Minister for Resources
