Renewable Bill Passes: It's a Forests Horror

[Oquist, Ben (Sen B. Brown)]

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Friday, December 08, 2000


Renewable Bill Passes: It's a Forests Horror

"I rate the ALP as an opposition 4 out of 10. The Greens are at about 9.
But I'll leave others to judge that"-Brown

The Labor Opposition again showed its spinelessness last night when it
supported a Government bill to license burning of forest for 'green' energy,
Greens Senator Bob Brown said today.

"This week the ALP sold out on education, they dealt out consumer and farmer
protection on GE and then they caved on the renewables bill last night.  As
an opposition I rate them about 4 out of 10," Senator Brown said.

"The Renewable Energy (Electricity) Bill 2000 will be a boost for the
woodchippers.  There are proposals by the logging industries in Tasmania,
Victoria, NSW and Queensland to create furnaces which would consume an
average 300 000 tonnes of wood each to create 30 Megawatts of electricity
per annum - enough to supply a regional city like Launceston or Tamworth.

"With prospects bleak for native forest woodchips on the Japanese markets
because of the maturation of the huge eucalypt plantations establishment
around the world, the Australian woodchip industry has lobbied the big
parties for this option.

Classifying burning woodchips as 'environmentally sustainable' is high
greenwash.  It's a horror for forest campaigners.

"The woodwaste fiasco has sullied the integrity of a bill meant to foster
true green power like solar and wind power.  There's a rotten apple in
Senator Hill's barrel of green power," Senator Brown said.


Further information: Ben Oquist 02 62773170 or 0419 704095

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Ben Oquist
Australian Greens Senator Bob Brown
Parliament House, Canberra 2600
Australia
+61 2 62773170 ph
+61 2 62773185 fx
0419704095 mobile
http://www.greens.org.au/bobbrown
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