The Greens have today launched a plan to protect lutruwita/Tasmania’s forests for future generations and for a safe climate, all while ensuring new job opportunities.

With states across Australia ending native logging, it’s clear the writing is on the wall for Tasmania’s native forest logging industry. The IPCC tells us our forests are the first line of defence against climate change and must be protected. Native forest logging is destroying biodiversity and undermining climate action, and consumers are waking up to the damage.

With joint state and federal funding set to run out in June, the Greens have pledged $30 million to extend the Yellow Crazy Ant Eradication Program and fund a coordinated eradication program in Townsville, protecting North Queensland’s ecological health and tourism industry from one of the world’s most invasive species.

The Greens will provide:

The Greens have called for an end to native forest logging in addition to plantation forestry reform following the Morrison Government’s announcement today about increasing its self-reliance on wood supply. 

Quotes attributable to Greens Senator for lutruwita/Tasmania, Peter Whish-Wilson:

“It’s no surprise that the Liberal Party is announcing another taxpayer-subsidised lifeline to support the loss-making forestry industry in Tasmania prior to an election.

Senator Peter Whish-Wilson has called on Tasmanian Minister for Resources Guy Barnett to not withhold critical information needed for bushfire research.

This data includes:

• maps showing fire impacts
• photo interpreted data
• historical forest loss
• forest change layer since logging commenced on public land in Tasmania

Senator Whish-Wilson said, "as Tasmania approaches bushfire season yet again, access to this information is critical.

Greens climate and energy spokesperson, Adam Bandt MP, has said the latest IPCC climate report released today is a giant SOS for our forests and land, particularly in Australia.
 
The IPCC’s Climate Change and Land: an IPCC special report on climate change, desertification, land degradation, sustainable land management, food security, and greenhouse gas fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems report released in Geneva says that reforestation, protection of forests and a shift away from unsustainable intensive farming systems is critical to solving the climate crisis.

Labor’s latest backflip, abandoning support for more native forest reserves in Tasmania, including 356,000ha of permanent reserves, shows they cannot be trusted to protect the environment or tackle climate change.

“Labor talks big about overhauling environment laws and taking strong action on climate change, but has now backflipped on protecting vast areas of Tasmania’s native forests,” said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens forest spokesperson.

You just can’t trust Labor on environment laws overhaul after the Victorian Labor government increases the native forest area open to logging, say the Australian Greens.

"This is a disastrous decision by the Andrews Labor government," said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens forests spokesperon.

"For the Victorian Labor government to increase the area of forest to be logged and extend native forest logging to 2028 is a disaster for our forests, a disaster for our climate, a disaster for water security, and a disaster for threatened animals."

With the stroke of a pen rolling over last century’s destructive logging laws, WA Labor has signed the death warrant on threatened animals like the critically endangered Western Ringtail Possum, say the Australian Greens.

“This rollover is the first by a Labor government. While federal Labor talks tall about strengthening federal environmental laws, the WA Labor government is allowing precious native forests to be destroyed for another 20 years,” said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens forests spokesperson.