Conservationists from the Goongerah Environment Centre (GECO) continue to maintain the peaceful blockade of old growth forest at Granite Mountain in far East Gippsland that was established on Monday morning. As the blockade enters its second day a person remains suspended from a tripod structure that is attached to forestry road gate, preventing access to the old growth logging site.

Forest conservationists from Goongerah Environment Centre (GECO) have established an old growth forest blockade this morning at Granite Mountain, near the Errinundra National Park in far East Gippsland. A person is suspended 10 metres above the ground, hanging from a tripod structure that is blocking access to the logging operation.

For twenty years the native forest logging industry has been exempt from complying with Federal environment laws. The exemption is granted through the Regional Forest Agreements (RFAs).

Old growth forest on Granite Mountain in far East Gippsland is under imminent threat. VicForests has listed coupes 889-506-0032 and 889-506-0017 as "Harvest Pending", a sign that logging coupe commence any day.

We conducted  a half day survey of the old growth forest in the coupe and documented many very large old growth trees. We've submitted this report to the environment department and Environment Minister Lily D'Ambrosio calling on them to protect this area.

VicForests is pursuing Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification for the third time in decade. The internationally recognised certification label regards itself as having strict environmental standards.

Today we joined FSC's independent auditors from SCS Global to show them the impacts of logging on threatened wildlife and old growth forest that is non compliant to the FSC standards.

Great news! Logging was set to commence in old growth forest in the Goongerah Creek catchment this summer, but it has been given a temporary reprieve as it is now the subject of the Kuark forest old growth Supreme Court Case, brought by the Flora and Fauna Research Collective (FFRC).

Support the case with a donation here

Here's the latest update from the FFRC website with about the case.

Forest conservationists who established a blockade of old growth forest in East Gippsland are celebrating today after environment groups secured a legal injunction that has stalled the logging operation.

Controversy erupted last week when VicForests constructed a road into the forest to commence logging. Goongerah Environment Centre launched an online petition calling on Environment Minister Lily D’Ambrosio to step in and protect the old growth forest, the petition has so far attracted over 6500 signatures.

Lawyers from Environmental Justice Australia  acting for Fauna and Flora Research Collective secured a Supreme Court injunction this morning to halt the logging arguing that the government has not protected the minimum required area of old growth forest in East Gippsland.

Twenty conservationists have established a forest blockade in East Gippsland to prevent logging machinery entering an area of old growth forest due to be logged this week by the Victorian state government logging agency VicForests.

A road has been pushed into the ancient Kuark forest and logging could commence any day.

The forest is one of the most significant stands of old growth forest remaining in Victoria.

Logging has not yet started, so there's still time to stop it

To mark National Threatened Species day, we've teamed up with Friends of the Earth Melbourne to release a report documenting 27 unlawful native forest logging operations in protected threatened species habitat and rainforest. 

These logging operations have occurred under the Andrews Labor government.

Read the report here.

Cold weather and the official start of winter didn't deter fifty enthusiastic citizen scientists from attending GECO's winter forest survey camp in Goongerah over the long weekend.

GECO's 12th citizen science camp attracted a diverse crowd of people from Melbourne, Gippsland and Sydney who took part in old growth forest walks, remote fauna camera surveys, rainforest identification and mammal spotlighting surveys.

The Victorian Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) has made a final recommendation to list the greater glider as a protected species on the Flora and Fauna Guarantee (FFG) Act.

The greater glider was nominated for listing last year, the SAC final recommendation has now been forwarded to Environment Minister Lily D'Ambrosio who has 30 days to decide whether the species will be listed.

Listing the greater glider on the FFG Act must be swiftly followed by measures to strengthen protections for the species in state forests subject to logging.

Originally published on the The Age website

Two environmentalists who entered an East Gippsland logging coupe to document the destruction of rainforest have had charges against them dismissed.

The court decision is the final chapter on what has been a two-year saga for Ed Hill and Joe Henderson, whose actions led to the state government conceding it needed to bolster timber harvesting rules – but who were then charged on summons with illegally entering the logging zone.

A giant cut-tail ash tree logged and left behind on the edge of rainforest gully. Photo: Goongerah Environment Centre

Two conservationists from Goongerah Environment Centre (GECO) had charges dismissed in the Orbost Magistrates Court today. Ed Hill and Joe Henderson were prosecuted for entering a logging area where they documented and reported logging of protected rainforest in East Gippsland in April 2015.

Hill and Henderson submitted a report documenting the logging breach to the Department of Environment Land Water and Planning (DELWP). The DELWP investigation found a rainforest area that was consistent with the minimum requirements to trigger legal protection, had been subject to ‘unwarranted destruction’ by loggers under the control of VicForests. Despite this conclusion the Department decided not to take any regulatory action.