Blue Derby Wild forest scouting parties have found logging machinery starting logging of the second Krushka’s forest tagged CC105A, while logging continues in the adjacent Krushka’s forests that wrap around the Blue Derby mountain bike trail of the same name.
It beggars belief that the Government Business Enterprise, Sustainable Timber Tasmania (STT) has pushed ahead with logging these Gondwana forests despite the vociferous opposition from the tourism sector, local business operators and the Tasmanian community. We had over 200 nature based tourism businesses sign an Open Letter to the Premier calling for the protection of our High Tourism Value native forests. While Derby based businesses have asked the Premier to come to Derby to meet with them to understand the impact logging is having on our community. The Premier has ignored all approaches.
This Krushka’s forest is prime Tasmanian Wedge Tail eagle habitat, with a registered active eagle nest on the perimeter of this logging coupe. The nest is so close to the logging impact zone that the map for the logging contractors has the buffer ring known as the Eagle Management Zone (EMZ), running through the middle of the logging coupe.
What is driving this unsustainable logging is the Tasmanian government's minimum native forest logging quota, which even STT have stated is significantly higher than market demand. STT’s three year wood production numbers for Krushka’s forests shows that 80% of this forest will go to the woodchipper. We are subsidis
ing a wood chip based native forest logging industry.
It is time the Premier quits the native forest logging quota as it is driving logging that does not have a market, is destroying the habitat for our most threatened species and using taxpayers monies to subsidise the wood chipping of our carbon dense forests, habitat rich forests.