Secret forest deal leaked. Draft agreement in full
Karl Stevens, writing on his blog*
04.09.10 9:45 am
Industry: Create a strong sustainable timber industry including the development of a range of plantation based timber processing facilities including a pulp mill. There will need to be stakeholder consultation and engagement with the proponent, ENGO’s and the community.
What Phil Pullinger says to ET supporters: * That from the start we have been very open about the fact that talks are occurring between environment groups and the timber industry, that ENGOs have put out a number of media releases about the talks, but that we have had to keep the specific content of the forest talks confidential, and the
content of discussions and debates within the Forests Reference Group confidential, in both instances to ensure that we can build a ‘safe space’ where trust can be built. I explained that the 30 environment groups involved in the Forests Reference Group process had agreed that they wanted to have a process where confidentiality was respected, so as to ensure that people are able to put their hearts on their sleaves, speak their views and state their positions about the various issues that we are working through, frankly and fearlessly.
The Height of Stupidity or Stupidity on High?
Peter Whish-Wilson. Picture: of Greg L'Estrange
03.09.10 11:14 pm
An Open Letter to Greg L’ Estrange, CEO Gunns Ltd What a poor co-incidence your comments coincided with the first visit from Brown Brothers new marketing manager, new owners of Tamar Ridge. What would they be thinking now with this Cradle Mountain scaremongering? If your Mill proceeds, no one will have a better view in the valley than them. Second point please, have you actually verified this Timber Communities Australia “mischief” that a pulp mill in Hampshire CAN actually be seen from Cradle Mountain?
Examiner: Gunns boss talks pulp mill and a gentler forest giant ...
Wilkie backs Gillard government
ABC online political correspondent Emma Rodgers
02.09.10 6:16 pm
Mr Wilkie also revealed Opposition Leader Tony Abbott offered him almost three times as much for the Hobart hospital, but he turned it down. “The ALP best meets my criteria that the government must be stable, competent and ethical,” he said
Glenn Milne, The Drum: By signing on to support a minority Gillard Labor Government, Tasmanian Independent Andrew Wilkie may very well have also signed his own political death warrant at the next election. Read more HERE
Tasmanian Times: A Rage Against the Dying of the Light ...
Lindsay Tuffin*
02.09.10 11:00 am
... or a Wayward Angst-ridden Nihilistic Kneejerk? Well, they’ve got to earn a crust somewhere and the media experience in Tasmania isn’t helped by management that has lost its way… through timidity and a desire to keep the Masters and Overseers and Advertisers happy (particularly true of The Examiner whose home town is also base to perhaps the nation’s most reviled company of the past decade, Gunns Ltd). Other reasons are the daily-changing media landscape as the Net revolution lays waste, and the intolerable pressures of declining circulations, revenue and staffing levels; a pervasive emphasis on superficiality and celebrity and uniformity - a media monoculture if you like (only browsing animals and snails live in monocultures) - graduate journalists who have not learnt the way of terror and failure; and the development of Journalist As The Story, or part of the story, rather than telling the story. Tasmanian Meedja also has a very fragile glass jaw. Criticise them and they lash back, or decide to put you on virtual ignore ...
Dr Clive A Marks
02.09.10 4:09 am
The news media template for science reporting is well known. It seems to demand one of either broad category. There are scientific stories that offer opportunities to announce that a breakthrough or a world first is at hand - however spurious the claim. Then there are scientists who come out to slam something. The news media loves a good slamming. … The first handful of inaccuracies had been fed into the media sausage mix and the media fed upon it, building upon them. The absolute bitter irony of it all was that my original on-line story dealt precisely with the consequences of misinterpretation, inaccuracy, poor deductions, flawed data and an inability to discern between belief and knowledge. Like a Greek tragedy, the media martyred itself to these very failings.
Overall in Tasmania, the relentless inaccuracies, poor analysis and the Jackson Pollock approach to news reporting has made the Tasmanian fox saga the intractable, fact aversive and odious saga that it is today. And people are being asked not to criticise? Really? ABC news cannot be held responsible for all, or even a good swag of the current confusion. Not by any means. At least they were prepared to have a crack at the issue and try. Yet tabloid reporting has left everyone badly confused, and the issue has become “a sun drenched bucket of prawns” as one person so vividly described.
Today
John Lawrence's critique of forestry plans; with links to Dr Graeme Wells' analysis which reveals $767 million in forestry subsidies; and Ian Johnston's way forward
Panel on CHEMICALS gutted. PAKISTAN: A land left to drown by TIMBER MAFIA. Keep WALKING. TOMMY Fleming. WOOD fiber. Oxygen CRISIS. HIGHER temperatures. RICK's Rogues Gallery. OCEANS under stress.
SHOCK for Airdy. OOPS: Birds caught up in rabbit cull ... POLL: A Better Package. We're READY. SUNDAY PORKA back! The LEADERS. DICK'S National Food Plan. The DEBATE.
WILKIE stance welcomed. Saving LEATHERWOOD. GOOD NEWS for Hobart. Reckless bid for WOODCHIP votes. Compare the POLICIES. PPOR student Lib targets. It matters to the ABC. Restart
Again I ask who is going to continually directly or indirectly subsidise this proposed essentially foreign owned, unviable,…
WEDNESDAY: DENISON DEBATE. STUDENT readings. TRAIL action. HEAPS!!! Action galore. FULLERS speaker. GOULBURN Gallery. CUNDALL, Flanagan, Oosting. Biochar conference.