ru'% 1uVuff. UVINIEUIM I IE'I 6/ 95
STATEMENT BY THE PRIME MINISTER, THE HON P J KEATING MP
TIMBER INDUSTRY
Cabinet met tonight to discuss the woodchip issue.
As I said last week, the Government is determined to find
a means by which the timber industry a vital part of
Australia's economic future and the economic foundation
of many Australian communities will be supported and
encouraged in its growth and progress towards ecological
sustainability. As I also said, we are determined to see that our forests
are adequately protected for this and future generations.
This is a major national issue, and a complex and
passionate one. There is no simple answer which will
satisfy the demands of those on the extremes of the
debate.
The Government is in no doubt that the vast majority of
Australians wish to see the issue resolved in a way which
will enable an Australian timber industry and its workers
to prosper while our native forests are preserved.
Without qualification, the Government believes its
responsibility is to find such a solution in the
interests of both our timber industry and our
environment. A solution, in other words, which is in the national
interest. Accordingly, Cabinet has tonight decided that the
following assessment process will apply in relation to
509 coupes identified as requiring further consideration
before logging should proceed:
priority attention will be given to resolving the
status of those coupes which meet all three of the
following conditions
are currently being logged in accordance with
their licence conditions ( ie following
correct forest practice, preserving identified
endangered species etc);
have licences which were renewed in 1994 ( ie
were originally issued earlier than 1994); and
are not registered as part of the National
Estate.
Following consideration by officials from the Departments
of DEST, DPIE and PM& C, and consultation with the
relevant State Departments, next week Cabinet will
consider the status of these coupes, with a view to the
statutory decision maker, the Minister for Resources,
making a final decision on them.
As to all the remaining coupes, the following
assessment process will be followed:
a preliminary assessment of the conservation
value of each coupe will be made in
accordance with the criteria laid down in the
National Forest Policy Statement by a team of
officials from DEST, DPIE and PM& C working with
relevant State Departments;
these assessments shall then be the subject of
consultation with representatives of the forest
industry and unions, and the environmental
movement; Cabinet will then consider the appropriate
status of all these coupes in the light of this
advice; and
the Minister for Resources, as statutory
decision-maker, will decide the final status of
the coupes, taking into account this
consultative process and Cabinet's
deliberations.
In order to reduce uncertainty as much as possible, it is
proposed that this process be completed within eight
weeks. This week in Canberra has provided ample and reassuring
evidence that Australia remains a robust and tolerant
democracy. By their demonstration outside the national Parliament
people engaged in the timber industry have been able to
express their concerns, but nothing will be gained by
continuing the action.
Certainly, the Government will not allow its decisions to
be influenced or enacted in an atmosphere of
intimidation.
Cabinet's resolutions will be acted upon immediately and
I urge those involved to return to their communities so
that this issue can be resolved in their interests and in
the interest of Australia.
CANBERRA 2 FEBRUARY 1995