Environment Tasmania, the Tasmanian Conservation Trust and community group Tasmanian Aquaculture Reform Alliance have today urged the Senate Committee conducting the Inquiry into the regulation of the fish farm industry in Tasmania to take immediate action to prevent further environmental and social harm from poorly regulated fish farming operations in Tasmania.

Environment Tasmania has today welcomed the resolution by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee (WHC) to adopt, without amendment, a decision to urge the Hodgman Government to take its Draft TWWHA Management Plan back to the drawing board.

Andrew Perry, Environment Tasmania’s spokesperson for forests, said “What’s essentially happened here is the Tasmanian Government has removed a bunch of critical protections for the World Heritage Area, and said we know this looks bad, but you can trust us to do the right thing. But now the World Heritage Committee has said we don’t trust you, that’s not good enough, put those protections back in.”

Environment Tasmania has today welcomed a decision by the UN's World Heritage Committee (WHC) urging the Hodgman Government to take its Draft TWWHA Management Plan back to the drawing board.

Andrew Perry, Environment Tasmania’s spokesperson for forests, said “What the UN's World Heritage Committee has done here is reiterate the concerns of Environment Tasmania, numerous other eNGOs, and thousands of ordinary Tasmanians. What we’d like to know now is how many voices does the Hodgman Government need to hear before it listens?

ANU RESEARCH TEAM CALLS FOR SWIFT PARROTS TO BE UP-LISTED TO CRITICALLY ENDANGERED

A recent Population Viability Analysis (PVA) by scientists from UTAS, ANU and the Chicago Zoological Society has found that with a business as usual attitude to managing Swift Parrot conservation, their population will decrease by between 80% to 95% over their next three generations (approximately 16 years), as published by the ANU last night. This was largely due to predication by Sugar Gliders, which occurs most in areas subject to logging. These findings see the Swift Parrot now meet the criteria for up-listing to Critically Endangered, which is what they are calling upon the Government to do.

Environment Tasmania seconds this call.

Environment groups have today accused the Tasmanian Government of attempting to "pull a swiftie" over endangered species, by supporting logging of critical Swift Parrot breeding habitat against the advice of their own experts.

A report released today by Environment Tasmania, "Pulling a Swiftie", outlines the findings of a Right To Information (RTI) request. It found that the Forest Practices Authority referred a number of proposed logging coupes to DPIPWE for further advice in the 2013-14 financial year, as recognised guidelines for protection of the Endangered Swift Parrot could not be met.

MEDIA RELEASE

Recreational fishers, yachties, conservationists and locals are alarmed that Tassal is persisting with an expansion of their salmon farms in the D’Entrecasteaux Channel in south-eastern Tasmania when endangered species, native fish, water quality and public access may all be sacrificed in the process.

The Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA) Draft Management Plan demonstrates the Tasmanian Government intends to abandon the concept of ‘wilderness’ amongst a range of changes that water down protections to allow invasive tourism development and logging in the internationally renowned area.

Abandoning wilderness is a reckless and nonsensical move given its importance for the state’s reputation, its centrality to tourism branding and its use as an important conservation management tool.

Today Paul Harriss, Minister for Resources, made a statement to the Tasmanian Parliament further detailing his Government’s moves to return Tasmania to the bad old days of forest subsidies and conflict.

And supporting his statement were numerous misleading platitudes about "agreement", some of which appeared to reference the Tasmanian Forest Agreement, which his own Government repealed.

Environment Tasmania today warned that the unfettered salmon boom in Tasmania could lead to a social and environmental bust if planning, monitoring and regulation is not done better.

 “The salmon industry is trading off the back of a clean, green environment, when in fact they are factory farming fish and polluting Tasmania’s clean waters,” said Rebecca Hubbard, Marine Coordinator with Environment Tasmania.

In opposition, Premier Will Hodgman was very big on his 'open for business' rhetoric.

But now in government, it's becoming apparent that what Mr Hodgman meant was: Tasmania, open for subsidies.