01/03/2017
The Australian Conservation Foundation has mounted a petition to Daniel Andrews to bully him into making a decision regarding closing the Ash Forests to the forest industry. I disagree with the petition due to the following reasons:
The forests and wildlife of eastern Victoria are not suffering from the forest industry. In fact the uneven aged forests created by the logging industry provides a much greater diversity of habitat for the animals and plants to flourish. However there is always opportunity for improvement in practises that enhance conservation values through appropriate research. By an aside, in the absence of the setting aside of the forest reserves for the forest industry at beginning of the 20th Century, these forests would now be farmlands. Its also interesting that an industry that has been working in these forests for over 100 years has continued to produce forests considered to be of conservation value.
The harvesting and regrowing of the forests provides an opportunity for the forests to evolve in the presence of climate change, an opportunity that will otherwise only be provided through wild fires. This is particularly important with the introduction of new plant pests and pathogens that could devastate the forests in the future. Selection for resistance through genetic variability is the only long term management option in native forests.
Trees do not last forever and need to regenerate if the species is to survive. They need to be managed otherwise uncontrolled wildfires will do it for us.
The younger forests also fix much more carbon than do older forests, and combined with the off site wood storage in wood products, will help reduce the CO2 in the atmosphere.
The industry also provides valuable employment within strict environmental parameters. However there is always room for further employment through tourism, which is not an either/or outcome.
Locking up the forests in National Parks will not ensure their survival as can be seen by the Kinglake fires which killed much of the Old Growth trees in the area. The forest Industry helps provide access to the forest in case of fires and resources to help fight fires which helps protect remaining Old Growth areas. You can see the result of not having industry presence in the Otway fires of 2016.
If you agree with me then I suggest you also make your views known to your local member of parliament.
