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https://theconversation.com/after-the-chainsaws-the-quiet-victorias-rapid-exit-from-native-forest-logging-is-welcome-and-long-overdue-206181>
"By the end of the year, Victoria’s trouble-plagued native forest industry will
end – six years ahead of schedule. The state’s iconic mountain ash forests and
endangered wildlife will at last be safe from chainsaws. And there will be no
shortage of wood – there’s more than enough plantation timber to fill the gap.
Tuesday’s announcement by Premier Daniel Andrews is excellent news for forests,
the state’s economy, and its threatened species. We congratulate the Victorian
government for this decision.
Ending native forest logging is long overdue. For decades, we’ve known of how
much damage it does to biodiversity. Logging vast areas of Victoria’s native
forests over the past several decades has pushed many once-common animals, such
as the greater glider, to become endangered.
Even now, the last remaining logging areas proposed under the state’s Timber
Release Plan overlap directly with the areas of highest conservation value for
biodiversity.
Our research has catalogued the damage done to produce low-value products such
as woodchips and paper pulp. The industry never made economic sense. The
state-owned logging company, VicForests, has been running at a loss for many
years. The industry can switch to our abundant plantations of eucalyptus and
pine."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
