Petition signatories wanted.

A petition has been put together, what the heck... get behind it, print it out, enlist friends and family and post it on back! The link is provided below.

http://www.scribd.com/Old-Growth-Petition-1/d/30691007

Letters to Mr Appleford

Australia is one of the many countries now signed onto the United Nations Collaborative Programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing countries (REDD+). Contributions from the countries have agreed to contribute 3.5 Billion dollars (as confirmed by Penny Wong). I have asked Mr Appleford to provide the estimate of figures to be distributed to the Victorian state under this agreement.

I think it will be interesting to see how this money will be spent across the state, if provided at all...to be continued.

Forests could become another victim of the Black Saturday Fires

Click the link below, post to your facebook profile and/or email to your networks!

Public consultation is now in full swing until April 8. Make your voice heard.

Forests could become another victim of the Black Saturday Fires

Watch out! VicForest TRP Amendments

Check out link attached below for the proposed Timber Release Plan (TRP) amendments. VicForests are calling for public consultation until 8th of April 2010.

The proposed amendments plan to add "...242 new areas of native forest (coupes) and roadlines, and modify 56 coupes and roadlines already on TRP's..." across the state to meet projected VicForest annual report targets (VicForests website, 2010 see link below)

Currently, in the process of setting up an online petition site to increase public awareness of these amendments and the destruction of areas of old growth forest included in the plans.

Stay posted...

http://www.vicforests.com.au/proposed-trp-amendments.htm

Facebook exceeds 500 members!

Well, its been only a couple of weeks since its conception and the 'GECO Facebook fan page' has grown to over 500 members. It has become a successful forum for like-minded individuals from all over Australia and the globe to connect and/or become informed on issues concerning Victoria's forests.

Members are actively involved in contributing to the page and proliferating discussion on topics, which are often 'swept under the rug'. The open two-way communication on the site empowers individuals to share their insights and become a part of a broader forest protection community.

To become a fan click on the link (attached to the blog*)

FYI *Non-facebook members can also visit and view all it has to offer however, will be unable to make contributions without setting up a profile.

What a joke- forgotten forests

Australia's association with the Copenhagen accord negotiations for emissions targets bottom line is currently at 5% provided a global agreement is made to stabilise levels of green house gases. "Quantified economy-wide emissions targets for 2020 5% up to 15% or 25%" provided greenhouse gases are at "450ppm CO2 or lower" See http://unfccc.int/files/meetings/application/pdf/australiacphaccord_app1.pdf for more details.

Australia is included in the many countries with no clear accounting rules for Land use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) with no stipulation, these agreements are piecemeal setting easily achievable targets will make little difference, leaving the future of our forests totally uncertain.

Action you can take:

Write to Penny Wong and place pressure on the government to stipulate their Land use, Land use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) agreements in the Copenhagen accord.

Simple feedback form link to Penny Wong

http://www.aph.gov.au/SEnate/senators/homepages/contact.asp?id=00AOU

River alert fails to halt logging in burnt bush, The Age reports.

Melbourne's water supply is being jeopardised by logging around the water catchment worsened by the char of the Black Saturday fires. A warning was issued on  July 24 last year. Kerr reports "... this practice has been common in Victoria since the 1939 fires but has been questioned recently by scientists because of the environmental damage it causes" (Kerr, 2009 The Age). They fear other impacts from the logging include habitat reduction, impairment of forest regeneration, erosion, sediment input and loss of some fish species. 

The article states "Removal of standing and fallen logs from burnt areas represents a particularly large treath because if left (in place) these logs would trap sediment and limit the amount of material entering tributary streams and ultimately the Yarra" (Kerr, 2009 The Age).

Circulate amongst your networks, for a link to the article http://www.theage.com.au/national/river-alert-fails-to-halt-logging-in-burnt-bush-20100205-niq3.html

The Lorax

By Dr. Seuss

"I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees. I speak for the trees, for

the trees have no tongues."

"Look Lorax," I said "there's no cause for alarm. I chopped just one

tree, I am doing no harm....."

Go to page http://www.doctors.for.forests.org.au/ and click on link The Lorax to read full version.

OR

Go to GECO on Facebook to watch the video

http://www.facebook.com/pages/GECO/294487068419?ref=ts

DOIN TIME

This is a comment posted earlier on that rightfully deserves it's place in the primetime.

Emma Jayne said...

An East Gippy activist is currently in remand in Orbost police cells pending an appearance before the magistrates court in Bairnsdale tomorrow morning. The forest defender has refused to sign his bail conditions in view of the fact that they prohibit him from entering a vast legion of locations throughout East Gippsland.
Imposing these broad bail conditions on activists has been common practice throughout the East Gippsland forest management area and these unreasonable conditions are invariably deemed superfluous and are generally amended prior to a hearing.
After spending 40 hours tree-sitting in the survey road coup [shown above] this activist is taking todays demonstration to its limits by prolonging his efforts in a bid to draw attention to yet another legal oversight on behalf of the Victorian logging industry.
Good on him!

GECO on Facebook

Started on Monday the 25th of Jan GECO's fan page on Facebook. Today reaches 100 and counting...

With lots of great comments and plenty of people watching footage uploaded from youtube and directly from actions, it seems to be a successful way to communicate with people based all over the world, drumming up support and bringing together networks of likeminded individuals.

While I have been in Sydney visiting family and friends I have been able to log on and view what is happening on the ground receiving updates virtually as fast as they happen.

A couple of people have been assigned to be able to make updates and fans can comment or post at liberty, this ensures freshly updated information and the ability to update from multiple computers in many different locations.

Hopefully this tool can also be used to enlist the professional support of specialists based in Melbourne or Canberra to offer their skills to stop the logging of these magnificent trees.

Invasion Day 26th Jan.

Before there was white man there was old growth forests.

Today 26th Jan marks an annual event often recognised as Australia Day. For Indigenous peoples this day marks the destruction of country and dispossession of land.

Share the Spirit Festival

Start: 26 Jan 2010- 11:00am

End: 26 Jan 2010- 8:00pm

Treasury Gardens, Spring St Melbourne.

"A range of individual Aboriginal artists and bands commemorating and presenting elements of the complex Aboriginal agenda from a socio-political perspective through performing arts. Songlines Aboriginal music is pleased to announce that Dan Sultan will be Headlining the 2010 Share the Spirit Festival."

Untapped Tourism.

Inquiry into Rural and Regional Tourism East Gippsland.

"East Gippsland is a largely untapped tourism destination with huge potential to add to Victoria's tourism income through creative developments. The region offers such a wide range of natural attractions for the tourist from its extensive coast, its unique network of lakes, river and streams, parks and reserves covering bushland, hills and high country and mountains, it has the potential to rival successful destinations such as Tasmania and New Zealand. Government policy and support programs must recognise this potential and help support the sensitive and sustainable development of this rich resource." ( ERGBTA, 2007 p.4)

East Gippsland Regional Business Tourism Authority 2007, 'Inquiry into Rural and Regional Tourism East Gippsland', viewed Jan 25 2010.

http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/rrc/inquiries/tourism/PDF%20for%20web/055_East%20Gippsland%20Regional%20Business%20&%20Tourism%20Association.pdf

http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/rrc/inquiries/tourism/PDF%20for%20web/055_East%20Gippsland%20Regional%20Business%20&%20Tourism%20Association.pdf

DIY Brown Mountain walk

Jill Redwood from Environment East Gippsland has created a fantastic self-guided walk resource that can be printed and taken up Brown Mountain. Follow link below to download booklet:

http://www.eastgippsland.net.au/downloads/Brown_Mt_walk_lflt.pdf

Peak marketing board tourism Gippsland are currently being contacted to endorse the walk and bring more tourism to the area to save Brown Mountain. Visit the Environment East Gippsland website for further information.

http://www.eastgippsland.net.au/

Total fire bans in place

Media Release

Department of Sustainability and the Environment (DSE) data shows that 1 in 20 fires on public land have been started by logging industry practices in state forests. When conservationists arrived on the 11th. Loggers were prepared to start work on the morning of a catastrophic total fire ban day across the state.

Environment and Natural Resources Committee, Parliament of Victoria Inquiry into the impact of public land management practices on bushfires in Victoria shows the causes for fires on public land over the past 20 year is heavily attributed to the logging of state forests.

"...DSE data claims the 5% of all wildfires are started by prescribed burn escapes. Given that 63% of prescribed burns are for logging coupes then at least 3% of wildfire starts are attributed to logging coupe burn escapes. Combined with machinery fire starts (2%) this indicates that 5% or at least one in 20 fires started in State forests are by logging industry practices" (Parliament of Victoria Environment and Natural Resources Committee 2008, p.5)

Link to Cann River logging coupe fire which was started last year, the largest of the fires in the area. 17th Dec 2009- http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1153657/Total-fire-bans-in-place

Reference:

Parliament of Victoria Environment and Natural Resources Committee 2008, 'Inquiry into the Impact of Public Land Management Practices on Bushfires in Victoria.

http://www.oren.org.au/issues/fire/Wildfires_public_land.pdf

FYI powerful YouTube footage.

Logging Brown Mountain (inclusive of Vic Premier Brumby's pledge) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FS8p_ky_jsw

After watching this email John Brumby premier@dpc.vic.gov.au and tell him to pull out of old growth logging.

5 Passionate Women speak about Brown Mountain

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_kRLV22U8g

Battle for Bonang River- Violent loggers continue to work around conservationists.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEt34fVA_Oo

Confessions of a skillshare

Heading off from Melbourne with some friends in tow we chased a unknown email we had received titled GECO Goongerah Skillshare Jan 8^th to 11^th . Picking up supplies at Aldi in Bairnsdale and a final fuel top up in Orbost we pulled into the campsite around 5pm. Finally nerves grew we were initially greeted by a character who introduced himself as Flynny. He was just the kind of bloke we had expected to meet on our weekend in Goongerah, full of stories and experiences from the early campaigning days. Welcomed by many locals we naturally gravitated towards the other newcomers to share with our experiences.

After a swim and a delicious communal feed courtesy of the GECO kitchen, we headed off to the Friday night jam session held at Father Ted’s where we had a rollicking time which could be likened to a classic Irish pub. We were informed that Goongerah's young and old get together every friday to share in the events of the week, play pool and contribute to the eclectic sounds of the evening.

Interesting talks were held over the course of the weekend and time to meet new people, go for walks or much needed swims in the refreshing river that ran through the tranquil campsite, where we even spotted a platypus (a extremely rare citing)!

The final day of the skillshare was a taste of a ‘direct action’, waking up at the crack of dawn and heading out to the logging coup, we huddled in the back of the van like vigilantes working on behalf of the forest unsure of what would happen next.

As the sun rose over the hills and we reached the clearing of the trees. I had this sense, which I felt was shared by everyone in the van, that we were doing the right thing for the right reasons, justified and noble in essence. This devastation must be stopped.

“It didn’t impact so greatly on me until I saw it for myself!”

Newcomers are welcomed to join in on ‘direct action’ by contacting GECO to join the group mailing list for updates on up and coming skillshare’s, donating to support direct action or simply heading out to the Goongerah campsite.

GECO’s campaigning has led to a landmark 44,000 hectares saved, however more must be done to save this beautiful region!

Thank you to GECO for giving me this opportunity to experience ‘direct action’, our support is with you…

it all started 'ere est.1994!

While the rest of us are partying down in Melbourne there is a grassroots organisation called GECO in the small town of Goongerah located in the Snowy River region of East Gippslandadvocating for the protection of Victoria’s last remaining old growth forests. See www.geco.org.au