This week is a MASSIVE one for Blue Derby Wild and the forests of Tasmania.
On Tuesday April 18 we will be in front of the Full Court of Tasmania for the hearing of the next instalment of our court case claiming unlawful logging of our forests. This case is about holding to account a problematic self regulating system, carried out by government logging agency Sustainable Timber Tasmania (legally called Forestry Tasmania), and the Forest Practices Authority.
This is where we need your help! As the volunteer community group who has brought this case about, and giving it our all for our forests, we are not able to be too vocal about the case. We need our community of supporters and fellow forest advocates out there talking about the fact this case is happening. That logging of Tasmania’s high conservation value forests is increasing and has been an non-transparent and self regulating system for too long. Most importantly that our forests are worth more standing! You can take action here
It has been a long road getting to this point after our Supreme Court trial dates of May 9, 2022 that went much longer than planned, and had many unexpected turns. Including the Tasmanian government passing retrospective legislation while the court was hearing our case to try and fix the legal issues we’ve raised (it didn’t) and after the 4 day trial concluded, an attempt by the Attorney General to re-open the case.
This case has significant implications for how the logging of native forests is carried out across Tasmania. We are shining the light on self regulating and non-transparent practices going back to 1985. It’s a big one.
The importance of this case is, ironically, one of the reasons you’re not seeing much about it in the media. It’s the biggest forest story in Tasmania being talked about only in hushed tones, and not in the mainstream media.
Other voices are increasingly coming forward about how the government logging agency fails to consult and consider community and environmental factors in their native forest logging and burning. You may have seen ABC coverage of owner/operator of Maydena Mountain Bike park, Simon French making it abundantly clear that the native forest logging and burning around Maydena is hurting the forests and the booming mountain bike trade in the area. With high conservation value forests being logged, access roads being closed and high intensity burns all impacting the town, the people of Maydena (and Tasmania) have had enough.
Even the conservative Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania have again come out against the practices of STT and their burns in peak tourism periods. This is just over a year after the TICT ended their formal agreement with STT after we presented the Parliament with an Open Letter signed by more than 200 tourism business operators calling for an end to native forest logging. Which the Liberal government and its logging agency Sustainable Timber Tasmania again ignored.
This is why we need to take the broken, self regulating government logging system to court. Our forests need urgent protection for climate action, protecting our unique biodiversity as a place our communities value for so many reasons.
If you value our forests, government transparency and community rights, you can help this vital work by donating to our Legal Fighting Fund.
Blue Derby Wild Legal Fighting Fund:
BSB 313140
ACC: 1229 4120