Land clearing devastating Qld wildlife, polluting climate

Queensland is still clearing more land than the rest of Australia combined, devastating wildlife habitats and emitting millions of tonnes of greenhouse gas every year.

According to the latest data 235,000 hectares of bush was cleared in 2006-07, about 60 per cent of the estimated national figure and churning out 30 million tonnes of greenhouse gases, about 17% of total State emissions.

Loopholes allow clearing of both recovering and mature forests even if they are endangered vulnerable or ecological sensitive.

Land clearing in Queensland is the main reason Australia is the second worst forest destroyer of the OECD countries after Mexico.

Tens of millions of native animals die every year as their habitats are bulldozed and burnt.

Forest clearing also dumps millions of tonnes of eroded soil into the Great Barrier Reef and the states waterways.

Our position is the Queensland Government must act immediately to:

• - stop all clearing of endangered, vulnerable or threatened re-growth forests
• - stop all clearing in lands subject to erosion, salinity or other forms of degradation
• - stop all clearing near riverbanks, wetlands and State wildlife corridors
• - reward permanent protection of all other vegetation with carbon incentives

Further Information

Press Clippings

- Courier Mail, September 9 - Rare species in danger
- Courier Mail, September 8 - Tree-clearing 'kills millions of animals'
- Courier Mail, September 8 - Clearing's heavy toll on wildlife
- Canberra Times, September 8 - Qld tree-clearing is 'out of control'

Media Releases

- Qld forest clearing out of control, wiping out unique wildlife
- Queensland land clearing leads to heavy climate pollution

Timeline - Land clearing in Queensland

1800s+ Land clearing in Queensland follows the spread of white settlers
Post WWII Clearing rate soars. Twice as much land cleared in 50 years after WWII than in previous 150 years.
1960s First signs of concern about the level of clearing taking place in Queensland.
1970s Conservationists begin campaign to tackle highest rates of clearing in the developed world.
1991 For the first time leaseholders require a permit to clear land.
1999 Beattie Government enacts a new Vegetation Management Act to protect "endangered" forests.
2000 "Panic clearing" across the state, while State and Commonwealth squabble about compensating landholders.
2000 New laws failing to prevent record rates of clearing, huge public campaign condemning the practice. Premier Peter Beattie promises to take action.
2004 Election commitment to strengthen laws to ban broadscale clearing of all remnant clearing, but allowing exemption for recovering forests.
2006 Fodder harvesting code developed to assist farmers in overgrazed areas.
2006 Broadscale ban on remnant clearing becomes law on 31 December.
2008 Queensland DNRW release SLATs report indicating changed pattern of clearing targeting loopholes in the reforms.