SOS members were shocked and outraged to be informed this week that Forestry Tasmania has extended the deadline for the exclusion zone on South Sister until December 31, 2005.
What does it mean?
No persons are able to be on the coupe and the surrounding area i.e. the general public has been locked out of the forest that they have been visiting for many ears — some on a regular basis for bushwalking, horse riding, taking their dogs for a walk, rock climbing, bird watching, having picnics etc.
Travel along the South Sister Road to the summit car park is permissible (not to deviate more than 5 m from the centre of the road), as is the climb to the summit. One is only able to stray up to 300 m from the summit.
The exclusion zone became effective February 15, 2005 and was due to expire on June 30, 2005 (after proposed logging activities were expected to be completed). With the Hearing at RMPAT now postponed until October 2005, SOS members expected that the exclusion zone would not be extended as there are no safety issues to justify restricting access to the coupe. How wrong we were! FT has actively renewed the period which is outrageous.
FT claim that the exclusion zone has been extended “….to protect the values that the residents are concerned about”. This is absolute nonsense as the only natural values at risk are those that will be affected by logging activities NOT by people walking their dogs, riding their horses, listening to the birds or admiring the butterflies.
Noone would argue that there may be reason to keep the public away from falling trees but to prohibit the public from using the recreation area they have used for many years in the interim period before the Hearing is blatant disregard for those who are frequent visitors.
One has to ask why FT would actively extend the exclusion zone.
FT’s actions can only be described as totally unfair and working against the interests of the general public
Frances Daily is a doctor
Save Our Sister
