Gavin butcher photo Manjimup-Bridgetown Times
A fresh row has erupted over the prohibition of native logging in Western Australia, with members of the forestry industry arguing state government documents prove there is no “smoking gun” justifying the ban. Source: ABC
The West Australian government last year cited “scientific evidence” to explain the decision to ban native logging throughout the state by 2024.
Gavin Butcher, who previously worked for the Forest Products Commission (FPC) for 20 years, recently obtained documents after a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Department of Biodiversity and Conservation and Attractions (DBCA).
Mr Butcher told the ABC he was hoping the FOI documents would the reveal scientific data which shows the effect climate change and logging was having on the forests of Western Australia.
“There was no smoking gun to explain the government’s decision — in fact it really showed nothing,” he said.
The ABC says some members of the forestry industry believe the decision to ban native logging, announced in September 2021, was politically motivated to win green votes.
“We all support action on climate change and using regrowing wood in preference to other non-sustainable materials is recognised as a positive action,” Mr Butcher said.
“This is about accountability in policy making.
“I think the government’s made it clear that that it has made its decision and it’s really about a matter of formulating a policy to go forward on — there is no actual clear forest policy written out there.”
The ABC contacted Forestry Minister Dave Kelly and Environment Minister Reece Whitby for an interview for this story, however both declined.
A government spokesperson told the ABC the science showing climate change was having is well established and cannot be ignored.
“The 2019 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which is an intergovernmental body of the United Nations, found reducing deforestation and forest degradation rates is one of the most effective and robust ways to mitigate climate change,” a statement said.
“Climate change and its impacts on rainfall in the south-west is well documented, and the decline in rainfall since the 1970s has been deemed greater in south-west WA than anywhere else in Australia.”
The documents stated the role of DBCA is to ensure ecologically sustainable forest management; the department researches the impact of activity in the forests of Western Australia and documents the data.
Danielle Wiseman previously worked in conservation for DBCA, where her role was to manage invasive weeds, pests and diseases in the forest.
She told the ABC that due to a lack of funding; the carbon storage of the forest had not been measured by DBCA for years.
“The forest — and its growth — is measured constantly, to ensure that we don’t take more timber from the forest than what is growing,” she said.
“Although the government has claimed that one of their reasons is to mitigate loss of carbon in the forest, they actually haven’t done any measurements to see if that is so.”
The ABC said there were also concerns about whether more funding will be made available to DBCA to help with the future of forest management in the South West and Great Southern regions of WA.
“It would be really nice to see the government invest more money in getting good conservation outcomes on the on the reserves that we already have,” Ms Wiseman said.
DBCA is currently finalising the draft Forest Management Plan for 2024-2033, which will ensure state forests are cared for and maintained.
The draft plan will be released for public comment later this year.
