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Candidates for the Democrats, Greens and Liberals for Forests welcomed Michael Bjork-Billings' stand against clear-felling in the electorate, in the state's south-west, but said it meant little if the ALP did not change its forest policies.
Minor-party preferences could affect the outcome in Corangamite, where logging and its impact on water catchments, tourism and endangered species.is a key issue.
A Saulwick poll commissioned by the informal ALP Otways Ranges Interest Group found 69 per cent of voters wanted an end to clear-felling. Of the 21 per cent of undecided voters, almost three-quarters wanted the practice to stop.
The Greens and Liberals for Forests candidates, Iain Lygo and Dr Nigel Strauss, said Mr Bjork-Billings would receive their preferences if the ALP guaranteed an early end to logging in the Otways. Democrats candidate Robyn Hedge has split preferences on her how-to-vote card between the ALP and the Liberal Party.
But the State Government and federal ALP yesterday indicated there would be no policy change. A spokesman for the shadow forestry and conservation minister, Laurie Ferguson, said Mr Bjork-Billings was expressing a personal view and had no authority to make promises.
He said the ALP understood forestry practices needed to improve, but any changes had to be implemented under the Commonwealth-state regional forest agreements. These agreements allow unlimited woodchip exports without federal approval.
A spokesman for Victorian Premier Steve Bracks said a review of logging was being undertaken but there were no plans for a transition from native forests to plantations.
Mr Bjork-Billings said Corangamite's future lay in tourism. "The timber industry in this area would be best served by an expansion in hardwood and softwood timber plantations," he said.
"If there is proper consultation and partnership between state and federal governments to redirect employment in the Otways, there will be jobs created in the medium to long term."
The Liberal Party's Stewart McArthur holds Corangamite by 4.5 per cent.
In 1998 he won 46 per cent of the primary vote, followed by Mr Bjork-Billings
with 36 per cent, The Greens and Democrats won a combined 9.5 per cent,
while One Nation polled 5.5 per cent. Liberals for Forests is a new party
formed this year to offer conservative voters a green alternative.
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