Public encouraged to participate in developing new forest management plan

6/7/01
The State Government today invited the Western Australian community to become involved in the development of a new management plan for forests in the South-West.
Environment and Heritage Minister Dr Judy Edwards said the new process was part of the Government's commitment to encouraging greater community involvement in decisions regarding the environment, particularly future forest management.
"The State Government has listened to the community's desire to protect our old-growth forests - and that has been delivered," Dr Edwards said.
"Now we are inviting the community to play a role in decisions regarding how the forest is managed.
"The new plan will provide direction on how the forests will be managed for nature conservation, recreation, tourism, timber harvesting and other activities such as wildflower picking and mining.
"The plan will focus on the principles of ecologically sustainable forest management in line with the Government's commitment to conserving the State's biodiversity.
"It will also include guidelines for monitoring implementation and auditing compliance by the Department of Conservation and Land Management and the Forest Products Commission."
Dr Edwards said the new forest management plan and the public participation process were being carried out by the Conservation Commission of WA.
"The Conservation Commission has engaged an independent consultant to manage the public participation process and a series of public consultation opportunities have been planned," she said.
"This will foster greater community involvement and ensure that public comment is considered during the preparation of the plan."
Dr Edwards said the community could become part of the public participation process in a number of ways including -