I consider this retrograde step for our country to give its forests over to foreign hands, particularly when already so much of the Otways has been lost. To my knowledge, there has been. no discussion of such a move at a local level, and I think it is very wrong that no consultation took place. What guarantees will there be in terms of usage and conservation for the newly sold areas, particularly in relation to the adjacent Stevenson Falls area?
The proximity of pine forests to such a wonderful area of Australian
flora and fauna had been undesirable in any event. My Impression
is that, in foreign hands, the care of Australian forests will be marred
by the primary objective of earning money, instead conserving valuable
areas of native forest. Also, there is the problem of clear-felling
in the Otways, with lack of regeneration by native seeding and by artificial
seeding of a wide variety of plants and trees to restore the appropriate
ecology for flora and fauna in the area.