Balance Needed in Independent Forestry Panel

North East Forest Alliance 

MEDIA RELEASE 27 August 2024

The North East Forest Alliance (NEFA) is concerned that the NSW Government’s recently announced Independent Forestry Panel is not independent and is calling for the appointment of a forest ecologist to provide some balance.

The three member Independent Forestry Panel can not be considered independent when Peter Duncan AM was once the Chief Executive Officer of the Forestry Corporation and Mick Veitch was previously the ALP’s shadow Forestry Minister, NEFA spokesperson Dailan Pugh said.

“We would welcome a truly independent and impartial review of logging of public native forests in NSW as the evidence is that it is neither economically nor ecologically sustainable.

“In 2022/23 the Forestry Corporation lost $15 million on its native forestry operations, costing the NSW Government $1,281 per hectare to log the homes of Koalas and Greater Gliders. In addition the Forestry Corporation was paid $31 million of taxpayer’s money for its community service obligations in 2022/23, while also receiving regular massive public handouts.  

“Logging increases the risk of extinction of many threatened species, reduces stream flows and inflows to regional water supplies, increases wildfire risks to local communities, spreads weeds, increases erosion, while reducing the carbon stored in forests and forests’ ability to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere” Mr Pugh said.

For north east NSW Blueprint Institute (2023) found that ending native forest logging in 2023–24, and instead utilising the land for carbon sequestration and tourism will deliver a net benefit valued at $45 million in present-day dollars. This includes the estimated cost of providing transitional packages to the industry as it shuts down, as well as the cost of breaking wood supply agreements that extend to 2028.

“NEFA considers that if the NSW Government was fair dinkum about undertaking an independent assessment they would ensure the assessment was undertaken by a balanced panel that will fairly deal with our evidence.

“The appointment of an independent ecologist could provide the balance needed” Mr. Pugh said.

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SAVING THE GREATER GLIDER, KOALA AND YELLOW-BELLIED GLIDER FROM EXTINCTION

 The North East Forest Alliance calls on the Federal Government 

to save Koalas and Gliders from extinction

In a media release on July 5 the North East Forest Alliance (NEFA) demanded the Commonwealth urgently remove its approval for the NSW Government to clear and log the homes of Koalas and Greater Gliders now that they have both been listed as nationally Endangered.

The Greater Glider has now been listed by the Federal Government as Endangered because of “an overall rate of population decline exceeding 50 percent over a 21-year (three generation) period, including population reduction and habitat destruction following the 2019–20 bushfires”, the Scientific Committee further noting “cumulative impacts of the 2019-20 bushfires, ongoing prescribed burning, timber harvesting and climate change will continue to put pressure on remaining greater glider habitat. Fire-logging interactions likely increase risks to greater glider populations”.

“The Federal Government cannot continue to turn a blind-eye to plight of nationally listed threatened species as NSW drives them to extinction, it is equally culpable as co-signatory to the North East NSW Regional Forest Agreement which gives blanket approval for clearing and logging of threatened species habitat across public and private lands in north-east NSW.

“Populations of many of our forest species have been decimated by clearing and logging, and now their depleted populations are being pushed to extinction by the increasing severity of droughts, heatwaves and bushfires.

“The 2019/20 fires took a huge toll on our forest wildlife, causing massive losses in the heavily burnt forests, leading the Federal Government to list the Yellow-bellied Glider as Vulnerable in March, the Koala as Endangered in May, and now the Greater Glider as Endangered.

“The Commonwealth should no longer allow the NSW Government to clear and log the remaining refuges for Koalas, Greater Gliders, and Yellow-bellied Gliders if it wants to avoid their extinction.

“The new federal Environment Minister, Tanya Plibersek, needs to intervene by changing the North East NSW Regional Forest Agreement to restore the requirement for pre-logging surveys to identify where nationally listed threatened species survive, and ensure that clearing and logging is prohibited in their homes.

“To save our species, we first need to identify where they live, protect their homes and then start restoring their habitat” Mr. Pugh said.

Conservation Advice for Petauroides volans (greater glider (southern and central))

https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/species/pubs/254-conservation-advice-05072022.pdf

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NEFA CALLS FOR END TO LOGGING OF NSW PUBLIC NATIVE FORESTS

NEFA Media Release 8 September 2021

NEFA is calling upon the NSW Government to follow the leads of Western Australia and Victoria by immediately adopting a plan to phase out logging of public native forests because of their vital roles in taking up and storing carbon and providing homes for so many of our threatened species.

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan today announced that logging of public native forests will be phased out by 2024, stating "Protecting this vital asset is critical in the fight against climate change."

This visionary decision is in stark contrast to the announcement by NSW Environment Minister Matt Kean on Tuesday that he will increase protection for 4% of existing national parks, said NEFA spokesperson Dailan Pugh.

“This is the best that Matt Kean can offer at a time when logging of north-east NSW’s public forests is set to be ramped up to extract millions of tonnes of woodchips to replace coal in electricity generation, and while existing protections for threatened species, including Koalas, are weakened on State Forests and private lands.

We are in the midst of climate and species-extinction crises that need to be urgently addressed, said NEFA spokesperson Susie Russell.

“The simplest and most effective action we can take to buy us time to reduce emissions and replant forests, is to stop logging those we have left so they can regain their lost carbon and habitat values.

”Most Wood Supply Agreements expire in 2023, so this would be an appropriate time to end logging of public native forests in NSW”  Ms Russell said.

The Victorian Government has already announced that they will phase out logging of public native forests by 2030.

The Queensland Government is still debating whether to honour the 1999 South-East Queensland Forests Agreement (SEQFA) commitment to phase out logging of public native forests by 2024.

The West Australian Government has committed $50 million for a Just Transition Plan to support affected workers, businesses and local economies, and $350 million boost to planting of softwoods as an alternative resource.

“We need to follow West Australia’s lead and provide support to affected workers, businesses and local economies as part of the necessary transition to a cleaner and greener future.

“If we want to improve the lives of our grandkids we must act urgently to stop all logging of public native forests” Mr Pugh said.

https://www.mediastatements.wa.gov.au/Pages/McGowan/2021/09/McGowan-Governments-historic-move-to-protect-native-forests.aspx

 

BURNING WOOD FOR POWER IN NSW

In a Media Release dated October 22 the North Coast Environment Council (NCEC) has condemned the NSW Government for its plan to burn forest biomass to produce electricity.  The NCEC media is printed below: 

Ten north coast environment groups are signatories to a global position statement against wood-fired power stations released today. More than 120 groups internationally have signed on.

The statement begins: We share a vision of a world in which thriving natural forests play a significant role in tackling climate change and contribute to a clean, healthy, just and sustainable future for all life on earth. Burning forest wood for large-scale energy production cannot be part of that future for all of the reasons outlined below. Instead we must protect and restore natural forests, thereby reducing emissions and removing atmospheric carbon dioxide while supporting biodiversity, resilience and well-being.

The reasons elaborated are that it: harms the climate, harms forests, harms people and harms the clean energy transition. See the statement for detail.

“The same people who have been pushing coal are now also promoting wood-fired power stations. It does nothing to solve the urgent need to lessen global greenhouse emissions, quite the opposite,” said NCEC Vice-President Susie Russell

“All around the world communities are fighting to keep their forests and to protect them from what has become a voracious monster with a bottomless appetite. Signatories include environment groups from China and Indonesia, as well as groups across the American, European and African continents.

“This monster reared it's head here with the release last year of a report from the NSW Government Department of Primary Industries (DPI) saying there was enough wood, that if burnt, to power 200,000 north coast homes. That's one million tonnes of wood per year. It would involve tens of thousands of truck trips and cause irreparable damage to our region's precious forests,” Ms Russell said.

“The crazy thing about burning wood to generate electricity is that it actually produces more greenhouse gases and pollution than burning coal. But because of flaws in the international greenhouse gas accounting rules, burning biomass, including wood, is classed as a renewable energy. They make no distinction between burning annual crop wastes and burning 20-30 year old trees.

“The NSW Government is pushing it because it's trying to create a market for all the small trees that will be removed from the forests when its broadscale clearfelling comes legally into force. That was clear from the DPI report,” she said.

The statement concludes: We, the undersigned organisations, believe that we must move beyond burning forest biomass to effectively address climate change. We call on governments, financiers, companies and civil society to avoid expansion of the forest biomass based energy industry and move away from its use. Subsidies for forest biomass energy must be eliminated. Protecting and restoring the world’s forests is a climate change solution, burning them is not.

“The NSW Government ignores this message at its peril. As we saw in Wentworth on Saturday, people want genuine action on climate change,” Ms Russell said.

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Note:  "Wentworth" in the last paragraph refers to the federal byelection in the Sydney seat of Wentworth which was held on October 20 following the resignation from the federal parliament of former Liberal Party Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.  A substantial swing against the Government means that the seat is likely to be won by an independent, Dr Kerryn Phelps.  The result will not be finalist until all postal votes are counted in approximately another week.