NPA NSW is concerned the NSW Government is turning a blind-eye to the public owned logging corporation’s persistent practice of taking advantage of loose forestry rules that are enabling it to industrially-log the best parts of the Great Koala National Park.
President Dr Grahame Douglas said Oakes State Forest compartments 18-21 have progressed from ‘planning’ to ‘active’ with less than the two days notice required under the terms of the Integrated Forestry Operations Approvals (IFOA).
“Logging should be immediately suspended for not following the most basic of rules,” said Dr Douglas.
“NPA NSW is further concerned the IFOA does not provide sufficient notice for when a logging operation goes from ‘planned’ to ‘active’. Two days is not enough notice for the community to process what is happening, to lodge any potential complaints with the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) and to enable the EPA to do its job.
“Just over a month ago, the NSW auditor-general found the EPA lacked the equipment to undertake basic forestry inspections. This should ring alarm bells in the community — it shows that there is far from adequate oversight over the mounting breaches in the GKNP.”
Yesterday, a letter signed by a group of researchers, academics and practitioners with expertise in koala conservation, physiology, history and management was circulated calling on NSW Premier Chris Minns to urgently install the long -promised Great Koala National Park. Like NPA NSW, they expressed alarm that NSW’s public logging company has not been suspended to enable a proper assessment of the forests proposed for the GKNP.
ENDS Media Contact:
NPA President: Dr Grahame Douglas,02 9299 00
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