[Greens-Media] Media release Baird: just another cut-it-down premier

[John Kaye]

Baird: just another cut-it-down premier

Media release: 6 May 2014

The Coalition's determination to push ahead with burning native forests for power shows nothing has changed despite NSW having a new premier, according to Greens NSW MP John Kaye.

Commenting on the defeat of an Upper House disallowance motion to overturn the Coalition's native forestry biomass regulation, Dr Kaye said: "The Coalition and their allies on the conservative crossbench have made sure that this state's native forests are now open to a new source of exploitation.

"As the market for Australia's native forest wood chips is collapsing, the Baird government had the perfect opportunity to end the destruction of critical habitat and the millions of dollars of subsidies that pour into the industry each year.

"This could have been a graceful exit from an industry that is dying despite heavy subsidies.

"Instead the National Party and the industry lobby got their way. Taxpayers will continue to subsidise the destruction of forests.

"Much more than just small offcuts and forestry 'waste' will be fed into the furnaces of power stations. The energy minister admitted that whole logs are eligible to be burnt for electricity.

"Premier Mike Baird and his Environment Minister Rob Stokes were not strong enough to stand up to the Nationals and protect some of the state's most important environmental assets from being the sacrificed to electricity production.

"Despite the propaganda coming from the industry and the government, the power from burning koala habitat is neither sustainable nor green.

"Greenhouse gas emissions are much greater than from coal-fired electricity generation of the same amount of energy.

"Air pollution from wood-burning power stations will have unacceptable human and environmental health consequences.

"This is a government that is busy killing off the wind industry that produces no carbon emissions, does not harm human health and creates far more jobs.

"It is hard to understand how the state ended up with such an irrational outcome other than by an intense lobbying activity by the logging industry.

"An overwhelming 98% of all submissions made during the consultation period were opposed to native forestry biomass.

"Department of Environment documents show that multiple industry groups and at least one lobbying firm told the government of their enthusiasm for access to the public asset.

"The details have not been made public, leaving too many unanswered questions about why such an irrational policy move continues to be defended.

"Burning native vegetation for electricity is not in the interests of the budget, the native environment or the health of local communities," Dr Kaye said.

For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455

Background:

Summary of submissions made to the  draft POEO (General) Amendment (Native Forest Bio-material) Regulation 2013: http://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/resources/legislation/140096biosumsub.pdf

Media release NSW Energy Minister Anthony Roberts Friday 7 March 2014 Removing Barriers To Renewable Energy Generation:  http://www.resourcesandenergy.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/508787/Removing-Barriers-to-Renewable-Energy-Generation.pdf

John Kaye
Greens NSW MP

P: (02) 9230 2668 | F: facebook.com/john.kaye.mlc<http://www.facebook.com/john.kaye.mlc> | T: @johnkgreens<twitter.com/johnkgreens> | W: www.johnkaye.org.au<http://www.johnkaye.org.au>
Mail: Parliament House, Macquarie Street, Sydney, NSW 2000

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