C'mon Mr Bartlett - look at the carbon in the forests

The Wilderness Society (Tasmania) Inc
Media Release
17th July 2008

The Wilderness Society has welcomed the acknowledgment in Premier David Bartlett’s climate change report that Tasmania’s forests are vast stores of carbon and the Society has called upon the government to protect them from logging.

Despite this, the government’s Framework for Action on Climate Change is sparse on detail of how emissions will be cut. In relation to forestry, the report recommends no action at this stage. This will see the continued destruction of massive carbon stores by the logging industry.

“This report acknowledges the vast amounts of stored carbon in our forests yet talks only of the need to protect them from wildfire.” said Vica Bayley, spokesperson for The Wilderness Society. “While wildfire is a threat, the fact is that these carbon rich forests are being destroyed by logging.”

“Forestry Tasmania’s own conservative figures show that by 2030, over a quarter of the carbon currently stored safely away in the commercial forest estate will be released into the atmosphere by logging.

“In a carbon constrained world where action on emissions is needed, converting real carbon in a living forest ecosystem into greenhouse pollution is an insult to future generations,” said Mr Bayley.

Mr Bayley said that Tasmania and the Bartlett government were well placed to benefit from protecting native forests: forests that provide biodiversity and water services and which have been the focus of long and widespread community conservation campaigns.

“Protecting forests would be a popular move and show that Tasmania is a leader in acting on climate change.

“Business as usual for the logging industry and 20-year wood supply deals such as that signed for the pulp mill represent a blinkered approach to climate change.
 
“While a call for increased individual action to contribute to emission cuts is welcome and encouraged, Tasmanians will be cynical when they see their carbon storing forests logged, burnt and contributing to climate change,” concluded Mr Bayley.