AUSTRALIA: End Tasmanian old growth logging -- Greens
Copyright 2001 AAP
October 25, 2001, Thursday
The Greens today called for a major revamp of Tasmania's timber industry.
Logging should stop in old growth and high conservation value forests, Tasmania Greens Senator Bob Brown said.
Major forests now at risk from logging should become national parks or part of the wilderness world heritage area, he said at the party's Tasmanian forest policy launch in Launceston.
Senator Brown said the Regional Forest Agreement had failed to create jobs in Tasmania despite woodchipping being at record levels.
The state government-owned Forestry Tasmania was in financial trouble and a commission of inquiry was needed to investigate its management and whether a culture of cronyism was compromising its independence, he said.
Forestry Tasmania's regulatory and commercial functions should be separated and its tourism activities transferred to Tourism Tasmania.