RSOS threatens ash sawlog supply

Otway Rainforest Sites of Significance (RSOS) pose one of the greatest threats to Forestry Victorias access to mountain ash sawlog resource from public land in the Otways. Currently sawmills are licensed to extract about 6000 cubic metres of ash sawlogs a year. Ash woodchip is also favoured by woodchip mills.

Most scientific advice on what should be done to protect RSOS has identified the exclusion of logging as the most appropriate management strategy.

However due to public ignorance of the existence and values of rainforest in the Otways, the State government has never had enough political pressure applied to get RSOS placed into reserves or prescriptions developed to prevent logging practices damaging or destroying rainforest areas.

Government processes to identify and protect rainforest are full of evidence that Forestry Victoria has frustrated public awareness and debate by withholding and misrepresenting information in a bid to allow logging for ash sawlogs to continue within RSOS. For example of the quality of information provided by the Department see Otway Regional Forest Reference Group briefing paper.

This mismanagement by Forestry Victoria results in logging proceeding in areas where the governments own policies and prescriptions would otherwise prevent it. Click here to see a summary.

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