nefa.org.au

NORTH EAST FOREST ALLIANCE

Media Release June 18, 2008

FOREST REVIEW MUST CONSIDER CLIMATE CHANGE AND DIEBACK

The North East Forest Alliance has welcomed an announcement by the NSW Government that it is finally going to conduct a review of the NSW Forest Agreements for northern NSW, and raised climate change and dieback as big issues that need to be addressed.  The Forest Agreements cover logging in State Forests.

“We are pleased that the NSW Government has finally taken the step of initiating the review – however, we are deeply disappointed that a five year review that should have occurred in 2004 has turned into a 10 year review” said Ms Carmel Flint, spokesperson for the North East Forest Alliance.

“The Government has failed to meet many of the key milestones and targets set down in the Forest Agreements.  It has not delivered the proper protection of high conservation value Crown lands, and it has not assessed the World Heritage potential of our northern eucalypt forests” Ms Flint said.

“It is vital that the Government now conducts these reviews properly and implements its commitments.  We are concerned that the Minister for Primary Industries is already trying to shut down any real outcomes by declaring ‘it is not an opportunity for renegotiation’.  The fact is, the environmental crisis presented by climate change requires major improvements to management of our internationally significant forests.

“We want to see climate change and forest dieback properly considered. These have emerged as significant issues affecting the future of our forests and yet they weren’t considered at all when the Forest Agreements were signed in 1999

“Climate change represents a major new danger to many plant and animal species in northern NSW – species such as the nationally endangered Spotted- tailed Quoll which are threatened by increased fire and the spread of introduced predators and the vulnerable Koala whose main diet of eucalypt leaves is likely to become less nutritious with increased levels of carbon dioxide.

“The review must conduct a detailed assessment of forest species in northern NSW that are at risk from climate change – and identify improved constraints on logging to better protect them into the future.

“The review must also address the issue of forest dieback.  More than a quarter of a million hectares of coastal forests are now affected by dieback, it is spreading rapidly, and there are no adequate resources in place to control or prevent its spread.

“There are numerous other issues that this review needs to address – it should fully protect streamside vegetation, put in place compulsory pollution control measures, markedly improve protection for threatened species habitats, and involve a rigorous review of timber volumes in the region.

“Major improvements are also needed to make logging conditions more enforceable and to properly penalize breaches of the law.  Despite numerous legitimate complaints by the community in relation to logging in State Forests there is a very weak prosecution record, and this review must dramatically improve the compliance culture within the Department” Ms Flint said.
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For further comment contact Carmel Flint on 0267724904

MEDIA RELEASE:  10TH September 2008

ENVIRONMENT COUNCIL:  NO CARE IN ‘CARETAKER’ MODE

The North Coast Environment Council (NCEC) has called for greater controls to prevent Local Councils making important planning decisions whilst in caretaker mode in the lead-up to Local Government elections.

“NCEC has been informed of at least three controversial developments approved by three different Local Councils on the North Coast in the lead-up to the Local Government elections this weekend” said Mr Jim Morrison, President of the North Coast Environment Council.

“The Director General of the Department of Local Government has issued a circular to Councils advising them to avoid significant or controversial developments in caretaker mode, but that advice has being ignored.

“Strong, enforceable laws are clearly needed to prevent major planning decisions being taken during caretaker mode in the future.  Local Councils should not have the power to make these sorts of decisions when an election is pending.

“Proper process has been undermined and, in some cases, important environments will be irrevocably destroyed, as a result of decisions made in the last six weeks.

“Kempsey Shire Council this week approved a development to extend a sporting field that will impinge on a high conservation value wetland and has the potential to negatively impact on at least 17 threatened species.  The costs of the development are not well-established and are considered likely to blow-out – and will have to borne by the new Council.

“Nambucca Shire Council just recently approved a six lot rural residential subdivision in core koala habitat.  This had been on the books for four years, and was rushed through whilst the Council was in caretaker mode.

“Lismore City Council decided to send its draft Local Environment Plan to public exhibition during caretaker mode.  The LEP includes 4 significant areas for urban land release, including 29 hectares of core koala habitat at Invercauld earmarked for a 269-lot development.  This means that the incoming Council has effectively been denied the opportunity for ownership of the Councils most significant planning instrument.

“It is apparent that actions that are being taken in caretaker mode are being influenced by the looming election, and are not being delivered for the long-term good of the whole community.

“We are calling on the Local Government Minister to take immediate action and institute law reform, if necessary, to prevent caretaker mode being abused in this way in this future” Mr Morrison said.

For more information or comment contact Jim Morrison on 0266645233 or 0488696846

Much less of the flock together

Jennie Curtin
September 24, 2008
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WORLD bird numbers are in serious decline, with some populations battered by climate change, said an international report released this week.

The report, State Of The World’s Birds, found many common species are under threat, often by human activities including logging, agriculture and fishing. The replacement of natural, biodiverse forests with single-species plantations has also contributed to declines.

The study was done by BirdLife International, an alliance of conservation organisations working in more than 100 countries and territories. It investigated the status of birds, why they are declining and what can be done to improve conditions for them.

In Australia, one of the most significant findings was that shorebirds in eastern states have reduced in number by 79 per cent over the past 25 years.

Climate change is playing havoc with many Australian bird populations, affecting distribution patterns and abundance. Migratory birds are arriving earlier and departing later. Seabirds in tropical areas, such as along the Great Barrier Reef, have declined because of rising sea temperatures and increasing extreme El Nino weather events.

Species restricted to high elevations, such as the tooth-billed bowerbird in the high altitude rainforests of the Atherton ranges of north-east Queensland, are especially susceptible. Those on low-lying coastal sites, such as the endangered orange-bellied parrot, will be threatened by rising sea levels. The report is at www.biodiversityinfo.org/sowb.

? If you have a bird bath, Griffith University needs you.

Associate Professor Daryl Jones from the school of the environment wants information about what species are using bird-baths, be they in a suburban backyard, on a city balcony or a country property. Any details are welcome, from a simple list of the birds that bathe, to a more complete study of how long each bird lingers, whether it interacts with other species and what time of day or year this occurs. Email d.jones@griffith.edu.au.