Today Bob Brown Foundation protesters dressed as Swift Parrots, alongside a giant swiftie named Lathamus, to stage a vigil outside the offices of Forestry Tasmania. Forestry Tasmania continues to log Swift Parrot habitat despite warnings from experts about ongoing habitat loss.
Dr Colette Harmsen, wildlife defender, and forest activist stated “The continued logging of Swift Parrot habitat and invasion of their homes is completely unacceptable. I condemn the ongoing logging of native forests by the Tasmanian government and Forestry Tasmania. Swift Parrots need every chance they can get to avoid extinction.”
Protests have ramped up recently in southern forests where logging continues in Swift Parrot habitat. The Bob Brown Foundation has had 10 arrests in a logging coupe south of Geeveston where Swift Parrot nesting trees have been documented. Security has been hired on that site to ensure that the destruction of habitat forest goes unhindered.
“Current legislation under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act) fails to protect endangered species in forestry gazetted land, and the Forestry Practices Authority (FPA) prescriptions do not stop the destruction of endangered species habitat. Protests will continue as long as the government sits on its hands while species head for extinction,” said Dr Harmsen.
“It’s about protecting Swift Parrots and their families from logging threats, disruption, and ongoing persecution by the Tasmanian government and Forestry Tasmania,” she said.
The Bob Brown Foundation has written to forestry, the FPA, and the state government about the plight of the swift parrot but has yet to have received a reply.
