Australia: Arrests in Another treesit campaign, this time in E. Gippsland
Police have climbed two 35-metre trees in a Victorian forest and
arrested two protesters locked to the canopy. The search and rescue
squad officers scaled the trees in old-growth forests in Victoria’s
east on Tuesday and used angle grinders to cut free the men, aged in
their 20s. The two men were protesting against logging that started in
the state forest a week ago, Kate Reynolds, a spokeswoman for a group
of about 30 protesters at the scene, said on Tuesday.
“The men were
perched on seat platforms suspended 35 metres high in the forest
canopy chained to the trees and logging machinery immobilising
logging,” she told AAP. “They were up there yesterday, all night and
in the heat of the day today also locked to the trunk with steel
tubes. “I understand it was a peaceful engagement with no conflict.”
The men were charged by the Department of Sustainability and
Environment (DSE) with breaching the forestry act and were bailed to
appear in court at a later date. Ms Reynolds said the search and
rescue unit arrived in the remote logging coupe about 11am (AEDT) on
Tuesday. Since Sunday about 30 protesters have been blockading loggers
who are trying to cut down old-growth forests at Stoney Creek, in East
Gippsland. Victoria Police confirmed four search and rescue officers
had flown to the area on Tuesday. The protesters claim Stoney Creek
and its state forest, located adjacent to the protected Snowy River,
is an unusual example of a dense rainforest that includes stands of
both mountain ash and alpine ash trees. “It is better, in the face of
climate change, to maintain the integrity of the parks system so it is
not fragmented and nature can be more resilient with species able to
move, water flows more intact,” Ms Reynolds said. She said the Labor
state government had broken a 2006 election promise to protect 41,000
hectares of old-growth and iconic forests in East Gippsland.
http://news.theage.com.au/national/vic-police-arrest-two-in-forest-protest-20090113-7fou.html
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POLICE arrested a man on Monday at Chester Block after he chained himself under a Department of Environment and Conservation vehicle to protest them allegedly spreading dieback on the block.
Bunbury DEC officers had parked their car on the intersection of Dennis Road and Brockman Highway to carry out work for an environmental review prior to proposed logging.
DEC regional leader, Sustainable Forest manager Jason Foster said the officers, including senior dieback staff, were undertaking a routine vegetation assessment in accordance with hygiene management requirements.
“They were looking to confirm areas of suitability for the Forest Products Commission’s proposal for logging,” he said.
He said they had cleaned their boots before entering the block on foot.
However, the Forest Rescue Group at the site claimed the DEC was spreading dieback by walking along a creekline after rainfall.
“We approached them to say they would spread dieback,” Chester Forest Rescue spokesperson Simon Peterffy said.
The group contacted the Busselton DEC but was told it was not that division’s responsibility before one of the forest rescuers chained themselves to the vehicle.
Mr Peterffy said the protesters were “trying to keep the DEC abiding by their own regulations”.
“We’re the Green Police,” he said.
The forest rescuers also gave the DEC officers “infringements”, a 40-hour tree planting “penalty” and “impounded” their vehicle.
Margaret River police arrived at 1.30pm and used boltcutters to free the protester from the undercarriage of the vehicle in the first arrest of the ongoing Chester Block campaign.
Justin “Rooster” Adams (25), of no fixed address, received one charge of obstructing a public (DEC) officer, one charge of obstructing a police officer, and one charge of unlawful interference with the mechanism of a motor vehicle. http://margaretriver.yourguide.com.au/news/local/news/general/chester-block-protester-arrested/1407092.aspx
More people should be doing what they can to stop the wholesale destruction of our natural areas. We need them.