[Greens-Media] Federal, State governments bid to enter Wielangta court action

[Oquist, Ben (Sen B. Brown)]

Monday, 22 August 2005

Federal, State governments bid to enter Wielangta court action

But Canberra fails to meet court deadline

Missing a deadline set a month ago for Thursday morning at 10.15, the
federal government has belatedly sought to enter Senator Bob Brown's
Federal Court challenge to Forestry Tasmania's logging at Wielangta on
the east coast. Last Thursday state Attorney-General Judy Jackson moved
to intervene, also on the side of Forestry Tasmania.

Late on Friday the federal government wrote to Senator Brown to seek
leave to enter the case. Senator Brown will meet his barristers today
and respond to Canberra by close of business. The case is listed for
preliminaries in the Federal Court in Hobart on Tuesday at 10.15am, with
a video link from Judge Shane Marshall in Melbourne.

Senator Brown said his action is to defend Wielangta as a stronghold of
the state and federally listed endangered species, the Swift parrot,
Tasmanian Wedge-tailed eagle and Wielangta stag beetle. He is seeking
documents from Forestry Tasmania, which says it is not yet prepared. The
full hearing begins in the Hobart court on 17 October and may take 2
weeks.



Further information: Ben Oquist 0419 704 095