East Gippland Forests Photos

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Ellery catchment which is now safe although.  However, the same type of forest is being logged every day in the region and is prime habitat for large forest owls, Quolls and Potoroos. The flowers are the EG Waratahs blooming in Spring  © Ern Mainka. Felled "non-old growth" of Mustards track

 
 
A marked Habitat tree felled. Another serious breach of the code. Other seed and habitat trees have been found felled also. Two women lay stretched out across a tree stump that wasn't part of an old growth forest by the Governement  definition. Again at Mustards Track.
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The waste the woodchippers reject. This is only 'waste' once it has been cut down, but "forest management" dictates these hollow trees be cull-felled to allow for a single species tree farm to be regrown on the site. Diverse old growth forests are being transformed into plantations by
stealth.
More "rejected waste"
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More waste is left than is taken in the old growth forests.  Sometimes as little as 3-5% of the entire forest biomass can end up as pieces of sawn timber. The wood is too imperfect for the woodchip and paper industry. They will wait for the young regrowth which is more uniform, whiter and easier to process. Mustards Track. More "waste", Mustards Track.
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Felled "non-old growth" of Mustards track again. Senator Robert Hill was taken to this coupe by local conservationists to illustrate the problem with old growth definition and management. He walked away while being spoken to.  Is he the Minister for Environment, or Minister for Resources ? Just one of many massive logs that go down to the mills from areas that the Government does not define as old growth. This one was from Mustards Track on the plateau - not an old growth area by their narrow definition.  This allows DNRE to claim they are protecting 60% of old growth, by simply
calling most old growth 'mature' or 'disturbed'.
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And another one And another one
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And another one And another one

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