Environmental Defenders Office: “In a huge win for native animal habitat and the climate, the West Australian Government has announced an end to native forest logging.
The move is expected to preserve at least an additional 400,000 hectares of karri, jarrah and wandoo forests when a new Forest Management Plan comes into force in 2024.
The government will also move to immediately protect around 9,000 hectares of high conservation-value karri forest, with other high-value forest areas to be recommended for national park status.
In its announcement, the WA said the “ever increasing impacts of climate change, the importance of maintaining biodiversity and forest health, the need for carbon capture and storage, and declining timber yields” were behind the decision.
EDO WA Managing Lawyer Tim Macknay says Wednesday’s announcement is wonderful news for EDO clients in the West.
“This is a hugely significant moment in the fight for nature in Western Australia.
“Some of the first cases EDO ran in WA in the late 1990s were against logging operations and the issue has been front of mind for our office and our clients ever since.
“This win is a testament to the efforts of our clients – particularly the WA Forest Alliance and the South-West Forests Defence Foundation – some of whom have been fighting the logging industry for 50 years.””
