The Hodgman Government has abandoned a longstanding promise to limit and end land clearing[i] in Tasmania, removing protections for Tasmania’s native forests in a policy reversal that takes environmental protection back over 20 years.

Yesterday the Hodgman Government released its Permanent Native Forest Estate Policy which:

• Abandons a ban on broad scale landclearing – allowing broadscale land clearing if it fits under a number of new loopholes
• Abandons a 20-year commitment that at least 95% of 1996 levels of native forest must be retained statewide – there is now no minimum amount of native forest that must be maintained (ie there is no maximum that can be cleared)
• Allows the Forest Practices Authority broad ‘discretion’ to approve broad scale land clearing
• Doubles down on the lack of protections afforded rural zoned land, given this Zone is exempt from the new ‘Natural Assets Code’ of the State-wide Planning Scheme

“This policy takes Tasmania back 20 years, to before the Regional Forest Agreement and John Howard’s commitment to end land clearing in Tasmania,’ said Vica Bayley, spokesperson for the Wilderness Society.

“Premier Will Hodgman and Environment Minister Matthew Groom are abrogating their responsibility to protect Tasmania’s environment by stripping away protections against land clearing and giving the green light to every landowner who thinks their native forest is getting in the way of development.

“Land clearing is antiquated and destructive – permanently destroying habitat, degrading waterways and emitting massive amounts of carbon into the atmosphere.

“20 years ago when the RFA was signed there was to be a limit on clearing. Over 10 years ago, John Howard and Paul Lennon reconfirmed that limit. Now it’s gone thanks to the Hodgman Government and we can expect a ‘death by a thousand cuts’ for our important native forests as people exploit the loopholes and lack of clearing limits.

“This is a bad policy for Tasmania, its environment and threatened species”.

[i] Land clearing is the permanent conversion of native forest to another use, such as plantations or agriculture. Native forest that is clearfelled, burnt and ‘regenerated’ back to native forests is not considered land clearing and therefore not captured as part of this policy.
Vica Bayley Tasmanian Campaign Manager The Wilderness Society (Tasmania) Inc.