Interesting advertisement placed in The Weekly Times on February 22, 2006. People interested in getting a Strzelecki Reserve in place have recently been told by Hancock that the company's wood supply commitments/licences mean that the reserve is not possible due to a shortage of wood. If that is the case then how does one explain this ad? People have recently been told that logging will commence in the highly sensitive College Creek Core area on July 1, 2006. Are logs from College Creek Core Area going to end up supplying the quantity mentioned in this add? If so, this means that College Creek, an area of National Conservation Significance and an area central to the publicly announced Cores and Links Reserve, will be logged to meet the demands of supply contracts not yet finalised! Why on earth would a company publicly announce a reserve system in October 2004 only to have plans to log that reserve? The community apparently has been duped the whole time. Is this why multi-national companies such as Hancock are never to be trusted?
March 2006: Grand Ridge Plantations lie in close vicinity to the township of Moe. These plantations were intially softwood established by Australian Paper Manufactuers in the 1970's. A couple of years ago this portion of the plantations was logged and replanted with Shining Gum. Insecticides may possibly be used in this plantation in the future, if the plantations suffer insect infestation. Insecticide would be aerially sprayed, leading to the high possibility of spray drift occurring so close to the town.
March 2006: The Moondarra fires burnt out about 15,000 hectares in January 2006. Only 100 or so hectares of hardwood plantations, managed by Grand Ridge Plantations in the Anderson Creek catchment, were also burnt by the fires. Bushfires near Linton also burnt out 1100 hectares of Hancock pine plantations.
March 2006: Moondarra pine plantations were also burnt by the fires. Grand Ridge lost about 200 hectares of young radiata pine located in the north west corner of this plantation. A further 200 hectares or so of very young plantation and unplanted plantation was also burnt. Fires place high risks on plantation managers.
March 2006: Plantations owned by Gippsland Water surrounding Moondarra Reservoir were hardest hit by the January 2006 fires. Gippsland Water may have lost up to 500 hectares of plantations.
March 2006: Fire loss in the hardwood plantations in the Parish of Tanjil East could have been much worse and were limited only to about 100 hundred hectares.
March 2006: Pine plantations managed by Gippsland Water lie in close proximity to Moondarra Reservoir - within 20 metres at places. Note the large amount of water flowing - odd during a drought.
Google Earth image of Moondarra Reservoir and proximity of Hancock plantations and Gippsland Water plantations.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: Albert River Catchment. Recent logging just off Grand Ridge Road. Why was the additional track required?
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: Headwaters of Turtons Creek off Anyos Road recently cable logged.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: Turtons Creek headwaters drainage line. Note lack of buffer protection on slope closest to camera.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: Highly controversial pine plantation in Macks Creek catchment, located in very close proximity to the very rare Strzelecki Warm Temperate Rainforest.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: Macks Creek Warm Temperate Rainforest to left of photo. No buffer.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: Exposed buffer on Macks Creek Warm Temperate Rainforest after the surrounding pine plantations have been logged.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: The northern edge of the recently cleared coupe on Macks Creek.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: View looking north into extensive pine plantations of Macks Creek.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: Macks Creek Warm Temperate Rainforest taken from Roberts Road.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: Recent clearfelling in Morwell River catchment.
February 2006: Recent clearfelling on western edge of Scarsdale Plantations near Linton (Ballarat Region).
Eastern Central Gippsland February 2006: Recent clearfelling of pine plantations in the Mitchell River catchment on ex APM sites.
Eastern Central Gippsland February 2006: Recent clearfelling of pine plantations in the Mitchell River catchment on ex APM sites.
Strzelecki Ranges March 2006: Good regeneration of recently logged Mountain Ash coupe in the Tarra River catchment on 1961 lesehold land (Yarram Water Supply Catchment). This site more resembles a native forest as it contains native understorey plants. This site was replanted with indigenous Mountain Ash, not Shining Gum as is occurring on over 90% of Hancock's hardwood sites in the Strzelecki Ranges.