[Greens-Media] Tas Greens_Forestry Sawlogs Must Not Be Woodchipped_K Booth MP

[greens at parliament.tas.gov.au]

BARTLETT MUST STOP FORESTRY WOODCHIPPING AND WASTING SAWLOGS

Sawlogs Ready For Chipping As Forestry Gluts Market To Serve Gunns And
Ta Ann

Kim Booth MP
Greens Shadow Forestry spokesperson

Wednesday, 5 November 2008
Contact: State Parliamentary Offices of the Tasmanian Greens, (03) 6233
8300

www.tas.greens.org.au


The Tasmanian Greens today called on Premier David Bartlett to rule out
allowing Forestry to sell off prime native forest sawlogs for
woodchipping.

Greens Shadow Forestry spokesperson Kim Booth MP said that in an attempt
to deflect attention from the stock pile, Forestry Tasmania announced,
by media release yesterday, an end to the export of peeler logs from the
end of the year as a good news story, but failed to acknowledge that
those logs should have never been exported in the first place and that
the production of those logs along with woodchips was causing a glut of
stockpiled Category 1 and Category 3 logs in forests which were now
splitting in the sun. 

"Forestry's media release where they say "To reduce the impact of the
weaker saw log demand on harvesting contractors, FT will be tendering
some saw log" is code for the fact that they are about to sell at any
price and we all know that those logs will end up going through a wood
chipper or be sold off at a lower grade," Mr Booth said.

"This latest scandal involving the waste and potential wood chipping of
native forest saw logs puts the lie to the false claim that the woodchip
industry is sawlog driven and the fact that other sawlogs lie splitting
in the bush as  by-kill, in order to supply the peeler markets, is
another example of Forestry out of control."

"It is an absolute scandalous waste of prime sawlogs to let them split
up on the landings and it reveals the lie that the industry is sawlog
driven."

"Premier Bartlett must intervene and ensure that this scandalous waste
of sawlogs stops and also that Forestry is prevented from tendering
those logs off for woodchipping."

Mr Booth explained that log landings are glutted with sawlogs felled in
native forests as a by-kill to supply the foreign owned Ta Ann peeler
mill and logs for woodchipping for Gunns Ltd.

"These logs are surplus to demand and are degrading in the sun, causing
loss in value and headaches for contractors who are generally not paid
until the logs are delivered and who have to re trim the ends when they
split."

"The sawlog glut also shows that there is no need to log the high
conservation value native forests such as the Florentine and that by
sending forestry contractors into those coupes Labor and Gunns are using
them in their cynical political game."

"With sawlogs stockpiled and splitting in the sun and forestry looking
to sell them for woodchips it proves the point that sending Contractors
into the Florentine is nothing more than cynical politics of the worst
kind."

"No wonder Forestry lost $38 million dollars last year, they just can't
see the wood for the trees," Mr Booth said.

 




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