Our friend Chris, the forester, had explained how forest management works. After logging the old growth forest, the area is essentially razed, a necessary step to allow re-germination of the trees and the eventual return of the area to its previous state. A new forest arises, where all the trees are much the same size, similar to what happens after a really hot bushfire. These trees are then harvested after around 70 years, and the cycle re-starts. About 30% of Tasmania was set aside in reserves, he said, where this would never happen. In 2011, all logging of old growth forest would cease. When we wondered about the wisdom of clearing any more old growth forest, in the bigger scheme of things, whether our generation has the right, in this nanosecond, to irrevocably and irreversibly change the nature of these forest areas, there was no resolution to the discussion. It came down to a choice between locking up that carbon in forests you could look at but not use, or viewing them as a resource.
This dilemma is driving politics in Tasmania right now, and today is polling day. And here we are in the Styx Valley, sitting in the general store in Maydena, a forestry town. We are careful what we say, is this a timber town, we ask the proprietor. He pauses for a moment, sizing us up in our walking clothes, our prosperous 4WD vehicle. Yes, he says, they do growing, replanting, managing, all that kind of stuff. His answer stays on message for Forestry Tasmania. Everywhere their signs announce: "Proudly Producing Timber and Paper" and "Replanting and Harvesting Occurring". Deeper in the Styx valley there are other signs on which the words "Forestry Tasmania" have been scratched out or defaced. As we drive along the muddy forestry roads, past the long lumbering trucks, past the signs that warn us to beware of logging trucks operating 24 hours a day, we feel uneasy. Are we making the right decisions in this nanosecond?
It turns out there is precious little left of the old forest in the Styx Valley now. A local bluntly tells us that it's all been logged, and the protesters have moved to the Florentine Valley, to try to stop logging there. What is left of the old growth forest of the Styx seems to have been preserved just for tourists like us. It is both beautiful and sad.
We take photos of The Big Tree and walk to the River Styx through a sweet smelling remnant patch of unlogged wet eucalyptus forest. At the river's edge there is a pine seat with thylacine-inspired decorations. Was this artistic irony, I wondered?
The Styx water is black, which led to its being named after the mythical river between the living earth and Hades, the domain of the dead. There was no ferryman to pay, so I did what had to be done and stepped naked into the dark water. This did not still my voice for nine years, nor render me immortal. So far as I know. It did feel somehow like an act of defiance. But of what? Death? Or modern life?
We didn't say much as we left the Styx Valley and pointed Rover towards Devonport. We are on the Spirit of Tasmania back to Melbourne at 9am tomorrow morning.
But Tasmania gave us a couple of farewell treats. The first was the unexpected, spare beauty of the World Heritage listed Central Plateau. We walked a little boardwalk in the Meander Valley that traversed a stunning range of plant zones, from alpine heath with cushion plants, then on to a rock stream area with thousand year-old pencil pines, to a bog zone at the tarn's edge. There were hot black mountain pepper berries, plum pines, spiky scoparia and vibrant red mountain rocket. For plant lovers like us, it was the sweetest walk of all. And the second treat? See the final blog, tomorrow.
Probably worth putting into context. There is 1.25 milllion ha of old growth forest in Tasmania. Of this 79% is excluded from harvest in reserves such as National Parks and Conservation Reserves. 2% that is within State Forest is unavailable for harvest. 10% is within State Forest and is available for harvest. 9% is on private land.
ReplyDeleteIt is a personal view whether harvesting the 10% and regenerating it for perpetual productivity is reasonable; in my view it seems to be a reasonable balance when we are rapidly being forced to look at all forms of renewables whether for energy or building or providing reading material. Having worked for all the private companies (except Gunns who bought North Forest Products) and for Forestry Tas. I found the old growth harvesting a bit mind boggling but it was very clear that, with the far superior qualities of the planted forests (for chips), the end of harvesting the old growth and a focus on the regrowth forests (when they get old enough) is inevitable. I suspect there is a lot of misinformation on Forestry Tas. practices that look ghastly but mimic nature (which is ghastly!).