Conservationists halt logging in the Counsel and Esperance forests - 17/03/2011

Today
eight conservationists have halted logging operations in coupe CO010B in the
Counsel forest to highlight the urgent need for logging operations to cease
immediately in high conservation value forests.

Conservationists
also remained overnight in the Esperance and continued a second day of halting
roading operations in the area.

“This
counsel forest contains spectacular old growth that is bordered by the World
Heritage area and surrounded by an informal forest reserve. Until operations
began for roading into this coupe, the area was pristine and untouched. This
forest is part of the area agreed to by negotiation process to be protected and
will become a forest reserve in the future. It is outrageous that forestry
continue to allow logging in the area, causing irreparable damage and
fragmenting the new forest reserve area.” Said Miranda Gibson, Still Wild Still
Threatened.

"Conservationists from Huon Valley Environment Centre remain in the
Esperance forests in far south Tasmania where a new logging road has destroyed
a significant tract of old growth forest. One conservationist is in a tree sit
and one other is attached to a logging machine," Huon Valley Environment
Centre's Jenny Weber said.

“Today’s
protests are part of a 10 day action campaign which has seen the community
taking a stand against the state government’s failure to meet the moratorium
deadline of March 15th. The Tasmanian community has waited long enough to see our
forest’s protected. We are now losing world class forest every day that would
have been protected had the State Government honoured their commitment.” Said
Ms Gibson.