August, 2024
In a damning judgement handed down in the NSW Land and Environment Court, Justice Pepper pulled no punches. She found that the NSW Government's logging company, Forestry Corporation, (FCNSW) had failed to protect areas that were unburnt or lightly burnt in Yambulla State Forest after the 2019/20 bushfires, and that the logging of those areas was likely to have harmed several threatened species.
Justice Pepper found:
"…FCNSW's offending conduct was not trivial and occasioned substantial actual and potential environmental harm. FCNSW will continue to undertake forestry harvesting activities and has not sufficiently demonstrated genuine contrition and remorse for its commission of the offences."
The judgement follows last week's revelations by South East Forest Rescue that Forestry Corporation illegally logged Greater Glider den tree exclusion zones in Styx River State Forest on the north coast.
South East Forest Rescue spokesperson, Scott Daines:
"Today's court findings seem to confirm that Forestry Corporation is a rogue agency. They can't be trusted with our forests," said Scott Daines spokesperson for South East Forest Rescue.
"While these offences occurred 4 years ago Forestry Corporation have not learnt from that and are still committing acts of illegal logging.
"In Styx River State Forest, despite being notified of Greater Glider den trees requiring an exclusion zone, Forestry Corporation failed to map these and then logged them. EPA is investigating and probably, in four years time, FCNSW could be fined up to $2million for the offences. But of course, it is the people of NSW who pay the fine and endangered animals that cop the damage.
"This is a reoccurring behavior by Forestry Corporation and the time has come to end native forest logging for the sake of our precious endangered species, and the cost to the public purse. Enough is enough" said Mr Daines.
North East Forest Alliance (NEFA) spokesperson, Dailan Pugh:
NEFA spokesperson Dailan Pugh said they have been waiting since July 2020 for the Forestry Corporation to be fined for illegally logging ancient giant and hollow-bearing trees in Wild Cattle Creek State Forest (north of Dorrigo).
"Justice is far too slow, the Forestry Corporation can go on committing similar offences for years before they are held to account for their environmental crimes.
"To deter these serial offenders we need quicker regulatory responses, along with requirements to rehabilitate the illegally logged areas, and permanently protect compensatory habitat."
Nature Conservation Council NSW (NCC), Chief Executive Officer, Jacqui Mumford:
"Fines clearly aren't enough to stop Forestry Corporation's destruction of endangered species habitat.
"FCNSW cannot be trusted with our precious native forests. It's time for the NSW Government to protect these forests once and for all by ending native forest logging."
Forest Alliance NSW spokesperson Justin Field said:
"We welcome this substantial fine given the egregious violations of the law by the state owned logging company but the question for the Minns Government is when will enough be enough?
"The court's judgement included an acknowledgement that Forestry Corporation has a "significant history of unlawfully carrying out forestry operations" in NSW. The public are right to ask, why is Forestry Corporation being allowed by the Minns Government to continue logging our precious native forests when it has a clear history of breaking the law and is subject to numerous current investigations into other potential illegal logging."
