Hello Koala Lovers,
Today in Canberra, I am calling for the Prime Minister to repeal the ridiculous, outdated and monstrous Regional Forest Agreements Act 2002 – a piece of legislation that is now completely not fit for purpose.
In recent weeks I kept asking myself the question – how come this legislation is so powerful? The answer is shocking. “Someone”, probably around 2000 and 2001 realised that the forests of Australia were starting to run out and the workers in the logging industry were looking down the barrel of extinction. And those workers belong to unions that often make large political donations. This legislation gives untrammelled power to industry and it can over-ride all manner of other legislations that purport to protect the Koala and other species.
It came up for review and now it has been renewed until 2039. Truly I was shocked, and it explains why the current Environmental Minister Tanya Plibersek did not answer my letter last year when I asked her to explain why and how the RFA’s became more powerful.
Logging is a thing of the past, whether we like it or not. Because there are only 15% of the world’s original forests left and I always ask myself when will we stop? A logger would say that trees grow, and yes, they do, but the trees currently being cut down are hundreds of years old and this industry is now on the endangered list, just like the Koala.
Do I have sympathy for those that work in that industry? Yes, I do. There is nothing scarier than seeing yourself out of work. The number of workers fluctuates, and it ranges from 6000 to 90,000. Who knows, but their time is coming to an end.
It is time to re-educate them into other industries. There is a wonderful show on TV called the Antiques Road Show, which I love. For me, it shows that we want to honour what has gone before and there was an item featured which was made by the Coal Mining Artists – there are also Coal Mining Tin figurines. I was so pleased to see that an industry like coal was phased out in the early 1900’s, paving the way through the transition to other professions. Like so many of our forebears, they had vision to protect their countrymen and women.
I am confident too that some trees over time could be used for exquisite furniture and other hand made objects, but the wholesale slaughter of hundred/thousand-year old trees, is now and should be a relic of the past.
I call on the Prime Minister to find the teams that are needed to re-train our Australian workers and repeal the ridiculous Regional Forest Agreements Act of 2002.
Deborah
REPEAL THE RFA AND ENACT THE KPA