Deal to protect Australia's native forests blocked amid 'bullying' claims
Australia is the only developed nation to be declared a deforestation hotspot. A new deal would have protected what remains of the nation's forests.
Talks to end native forest logging in Australia were on the precipice of being secured yesterday, sources have told Yahoo News. The Albanese government had been negotiating with the Greens on a deal to include the measure in promised environmental protection laws.
Before last week, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young had insisted the laws should include a “climate trigger”, a reform that would have seen all new development projects referred for federal government assessment if they were likely to be highly polluting. But after Labor appeared to show no interest in this plan, she proposed ending native forest logging instead, a measure which would have helped protect endangered animals like the greater glider and koala.
After her talks with Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek ended, Hanson-Young issued a statement criticising Labor for refusing to protect forests during an extinction crisis. Australia has the highest rate of mammalian extinction in the world, it is the only developed nation declared a deforestation hotspot and there are more than 2,200 species listed by the Commonwealth as threatened with extinction.
“The Greens put a deal on the table and the government has walked away,” Hanson-Young said in a statement provided to Yahoo News.
Senator accuses forestry industry of bullying prime minister
The Greens' plan would have closed loopholes that allow the states to avoid the scrutiny of federal threatened species protections. This would have included the Regional Forest Agreements that allow state governments to clear native forests for timber.
Hanson-Young appeared to place the failure of the negotiations at the feet of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, saying the industry appears to have more influence than the rest of Australia.
“The Prime Minister has been bullied by the mining and logging lobby again,” she claimed.
Parliament will come to a close this week and won't resume until February, and there is speculation the legislation may be shelved until the next election. Reforms to Australia's failing environment laws had been promised by the Albanese government following its election in 2022 and they were supported by conservationists and the Business Council.
Tanya Plibersek and Anthony Albanese have been contacted for comment.
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