Latest News

July 19, 2015

Environment East Gippsland's (EEG) Court case concerning protection of Owl habitat reached an out of Court settlement late last week. This has resulted in 2000 hectares of forest being set aside in Owl habitat reserves. Some areas to be set aside are forests where...

July 16, 2015

Last month VicForests proposed to add about 300 areas (coupes) to their logging schedule or Timber Release Plan (TRP). 172 in the Central Highlands and 127 in East Gippsland. The additional Central Highlands coupes are in some of the last remaining habitat for the...

July 13, 2015

Confidential documents reveal the VicForests has been exporting whole logs to China for rock bottom prices. In the absence of a viable market for so called 'residual' timber, after the collapse of the export woodchip market, VicForests are stopping to new lows here by...

June 10, 2015

In less than a week the federal Senate will decide whether to include native forest biomass burning in the Renewable Energy Target! Please call, tweet and email the Senate cross benchers now! We urgently need your help! In less than a week the Senate...

June 06, 2015

Earlier this month GECOs Citizen Science Program was nominated as a finalist in the 2015 United Nations of Australia World Environment Day Awards. We were urged to apply by the UN for the biodiversity and habitat restoration award, which recognises community groups who have...

May 29, 2015

Originally published on the ABC website By Gregg Borschmann and Sara Phillips Updated 29 May 2015, 8:40am The revised Renewable Energy Target (RET) currently before Parliament would provide a market for otherwise unsaleable timber, according to a document from Victoria's state-owned forestry business, VicForests,...

May 27, 2015

Jaala Pulford seems to have lost the plot this week! She was asked questions in parliament about her department (The Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources) threatening to prosecute us for entering a logging area where we exposed dodgy rainforest logging, and...

May 20, 2015

The Victorian government has written to members of GECO who did the survey that exposed recent illegal rainforest logging, threatening to prosecute them for entering the logging area! Unbelievable but true, the government has stooped to new lows here in an attempt to silence...

May 18, 2015

Environment Minster Lisa Neville MP has slammed VicForests conduct in the logging coupe where GECO reported illegal rainforest logging last month. The Minister said she was 'disturbed' by the logging, labeling it 'extremely poor practice'. The investigation into our allegations concluded VicForests retained 'a...

May 17, 2015

We were thrilled to tour Senators Janet Rice and Scott Ludlam through Kuark forest last weekend. Kuark forest is rapidly making a name for itself and the Senators wanted to see some of the spectacular forests that need urgent protection and bear witness to...

May 13, 2015

We launched our beautiful new film "Saving Kuark" at Bar 303 in Northcote this week. The film by Melbourne based cinematographer David Franjic was shot at the Camp Kuark citizen science camp in March this year and tells the story of our community based...

May 08, 2015

Endangered Large Brown Tree Frog (Litoria littlejohnii), has been  rediscovered by GECO volunteer ecologist Rena Gaborov!   The tree frog hadn't been seen for 20 years and was through to have gone extinct until Rena recorded it during a survey for Gliders in April....

May 07, 2015

We have great news! Logging in the contentious area where we reported rainforest logging has finally stopped! Thanks for contacting Environment Minister Lisa Neville MP and Agriculture Minister Jaala Pulford MP! Our reporting and lobbying combined with the pressure you applied to her office...

April 02, 2015

GECO volunteers discovered an illegal rainforest logging operation at Hensleigh ck on the Errinundra Plateau this week. The state owned logging company VicForests have destroyed an entire cool temperate rainforest gully in breach on Victorian law. Rainforest is supposed to be protected under Victorian...

March 11, 2015

Camp Kuark threatened species survey weekend was a great success! 40 enthusiastic and energetic people from across Victoria and interstate attended and took part in forest walks, flora surveys, rainforest identification workshops, nocturnal spotlighting and Owl surveys. It was great to meet so many...