14 May 2020

“The Rubicon Forest Protection Group welcomes the establishment of the Parliamentary Inquiry into Ecosystem Decline in Victoria” Mr Ken Deacon, Convenor of the group, said today.

“We urge the Committee to recommend the listing of the mountain ash and alpine ash communities of the Central Highlands as threatened under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act.” Mr Deacon said.

“The ash forest ecosystems of the Central Highlands are now seriously degraded by unsustainable logging, particularly over the years since the 2009 fires, and are gravely threatened by climate change and future fires. With this summer’s fires in East Gippsland and North Eastern Victoria and in NSW further jeopardising the survival of the alpine ash community, there is now a very real and substantial risk that they may not survive as ash forest ecosystems, with appalling consequences for the flora and fauna which these ecosystems comprise.” Mr Deacon said.

The RFPG has previously called upon the State Government to recognise the existential risks facing the mountain ash ecosystems of the Central Highlands and act to protect their ecological integrity; in the first instance by listing these ecosystems as threatened in accordance with the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (FFG).

A research report published by the RFPG in August 2019 (here) sets out in clear detail the impact of aggressive unsustainable logging on the Rubicon State Forest, in particular, the emergence of a forest which is largely under 40 years old; this for species which can live to maturity (120 years) and continue to support the ecosystem for hundreds of years (see Chart 2). On top of intensive logging extensive areas of the forest have been burn in several rounds of bushfire (Figure 3). Looming beyond are the threats associated with global warming.

See earlier RFPG report on the skewed age class distribution in the Rubicon State Forest, here.

For a more broadly based assessment see Lindenmayer and Sato (2018) who describe a scenario of ‘hidden collapse’

which occurs when an ecosystem superficially appears to be intact but a prolonged period of decline coupled with long lag times for recovery mean that collapse is almost inevitable. This is because key ecosystem components continue to decline for long periods even after drivers of collapse are removed. Hidden collapse suggests a need for actions well before managers perceive they are required.

Background

The State Parliamentary Inquiry was announced and community input invited by the Chair of the Committee on 6 May 2020, here. Submissions will be welcomed up until 31 July.

The terms of reference include:

• the extent of the decline of Victoria’s biodiversity and the likely impact on people and ecosystems;
• the adequacy of the legislative framework protecting Victoria’s environment and ecosystems, particularly in the context of climate change impacts;
• the adequacy and effectiveness of government programs;
• opportunities to restore the environment while upholding First Peoples’ connection to country.

The Inquiry has been welcomed by the Victorian Greens, Environment Victoria, and the Victorian National Parks Association, among others. 

Call for submissions

The RFPG will be preparing a submission to the Inquiry which will fully address all of the terms of reference.

However, the Group now calls on all supporters and friends to consider making a submission, using as needed the various suggested guides linked above. 

The key issues for the Rubicon Forest include:

• Unsustainable logging: which has led to a grossly skewed age class distribution: a forest made up almost entirely of immature trees!
• Repeated forest destruction through bush fires;
• Drying out through logging and climate change risking further bushfires and stressing the resilience of the ecosystem; further threatening a range of endangered species including the Leadbeater’s Possum, the Sooty Owl, the Greater Glider and more;
• A regulatory system which was designed to fail and is failing disastrously.

“This Inquiry is about far more than the science”, Mr Deacon said. “We need to use this opportunity to build community support for an immediate ban on further logging in Victoria’s native forests”.

This means, not just submission writing, but promoting community understanding of the dire state of our forests: letters to local media, posters, street stalls, actions in the forest, and social media activism.

Resources for social media activism

There is a great deal of science and policy on the RFPG website. The testimony of the expert witnesses in the Possums Case (being run by Environmental Justice Australia for Friends of Leadbeater’s Possum) is also an excellent source of information. (Go to FLBP-The Possums’ Case and scroll down to Court Signed Documents/January 2019.)

The Rubicon Forest Facebook page and the page of Forest Forever Films both carry photos and videos of the destruction being wrought and the beauty being lost. See also the Rubicon Forest Instagram account.

Please increase your writing, emailing, demonstrating, posting and tweeting!  Now!

RFPG Media Statement
14 May 2020