Ecological Blog

Have a look at this segment from the ABC TV program and see what is happening to the Strzelecki Koalas.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-05/concern-over-koala-numbers/2826748

Trust for Nature, together with Friends of Gippsland Bush and Friends of the Earth, was heavily involved in helping to protect koala habitat - but the Trust for Nature has chosen to back away from this vital conservation effort.,

Tags: nature conservation, strzelecki koala, trust for nature

Have a look at the latest photos on the Hancock Watch website at http://www.hancock.forests.org.au/docs/08oct.htm

Among the photographs are shots of  the 'reserve' areas which are part of the 'deal'  in the Strzeleckis. It seems that the arrangement which hands over more than $5 million of taxpayers money to the company will protect a few remnants of vegetation along creek lines and gullies as well as weed infested areas which the company had no intention of harvesting anyway. Great deal Minister Jennings!

The caption on one of the photographs reads:October 2008: Morwell River East Catchment. New reserve surrounded by Shining Gum. This part of the Reserve dedicated to Mike Gooey, CEO of Trust for Nature who was never enthusiatic about being gifted the cores and links rainforest reserve from the State Government.

Tags: hancock, logging, trust for nature

It will soon become clear who has done what to whom on the Strzelecki's fiasco!

Requests for details of actions, under Freedom of Information were lodged by Friends of the Earth, and copies of letters and emails should be available in the next day or so.

It's hard to wait, because much of the duplicity is already known. Government employees have actively worked against the implementation of Government policy - but the details need to be made public before demands are made for the right heads to roll.

Roll on!   

Tags: hancocks, logging, strzeleckis, trust for nature

It's a red letter day! I managed to get a response from Minister Jennings' office. After hearing that DSE staff in Traralgon were saying the decision had been made to hand the Cores and Links over to VicForest - dumping Government policy for the sensitive areas to be managed by Trust for Nature - I emailed the Minister's Chief of Staff, Ben Hart.

The only reason for the response was that I copied in Age investigative journalist Richard Baker. Mr Hart didn't like that, saying it wouldn't do the cause any good. He claimed that "This is a very unfortunate situation and one we have been working very hard to resolve for some time.

But what the hell have they been working hard at? The previous Minister John Thwaites, thrashed out a deal over some years. The deal was accepted by the community and the company and it became Government policy - announced before the last election. All Mr Hart had to do was to oversee the  implementation of the policy.

Instead of that, he and DSE staff have been running around working against policy to come up with a bodgy deal.

Tags: rainforest, strzeleckis, trust for nature