DOCSLIB.ORG

Losing the World's Heritage

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Losing the World's Heritage Losing the world’s heritage – ancient life forms at risk Burnt forest, including rainforest, in canyon, Devils Gullet, Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, February 2016. Rob Blakers. Submission to the Senate Environment and Communications References Committee on the Tasmanian wilderness bushfires April 2016 The Wilderness Society and Greenpeace acknowledge the traditional Aboriginal owners of all Country in Tasmania and pay respect to elders past and present and the Tasmanian Aboriginal Community. We support efforts to progress reconciliation, land justice and equality. We 1 recognise and welcome actions that seek to better identify, present, protect and conserve Aboriginal cultural heritage, irrespective of where it is located. Submission - Senate Inquiry into bushfires in remote Tasmanian wilderness – April 2016 Inquiry into the response to, and lessons learnt from, recent bushfires in remote Tasmanian wilderness The fires are extremely destructive for two main reasons. First, the fires are threatening vegetation that is unique to Tasmania, including iconic alpine species such as the Pencil Pine and cushion plants, as well as temperate rainforests. Second, the fires are burning up large areas of organic soils upon which the unique Tasmanian vegetation depends. It is extremely unlikely burnt areas with the endemic alpine flora will ever fully recover given the slow growth of these species and the increased risk of subsequent fires given the change to more flammable vegetation and the slow accumulation of peat soils, which takes thousands of years. Past fires have resulted in a permanent switch from the unique Tasmanian alpine vegetation to more fire-tolerant vegetation. David Bowman, Professor of Environmental Change Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, 29 January 2016 (Bowman 2016) The Wilderness Society (TWS) and Greenpeace Asia Pacific (GPAP) welcomes the Senate Environment and Communications References Committee inquiry into the 2016 Tasmanian bushfires and offer this submission as a contribution to deliberations, reporting and recommendations. We request the opportunity to appear before the Committee to further explain our observations, analysis and recommendations. This submission is made with respectful recognition of the dangerous and challenging nature of fighting all wildfires, let alone remote area fires. It recognises the professionalism and dedication of fire-fighting staff and volunteers and offers thanks for the efforts expended in the 2016 Tasmanian campaign. It does however raise questions regarding Tasmania’s preparedness in the face of climate change, its willingness to ask for external assistance, prioritisation of fire-fighting effort in certain circumstances and the proposed articulation of fire response policy in statutory management frameworks. It asks these questions in the spirit of a constructive contribution within a process of continual improvement, with the view to identifying opportunities to learn from the events of 2016, to augment and develop current fire-fighting capacity, strategy, policy and funding, particularly for remote area fire-fighting. All observations, analysis and recommendations in this submission are made against the backdrop of an escalating global emergency driven by human-induced climate change. In this context, this submission and its recommendations are made within an overarching call for greater government action to combat climate change. 2 Submission - Senate Inquiry into bushfires in remote Tasmanian wilderness – April 2016 1. Summary In January and February 2016, a spate of fires burnt out of control in Tasmania. At the height of this ‘unprecedented’ crisis, over 80 fires were uncontained, more than 20 of them inside the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA). Others burnt in places of outstanding natural and cultural heritage value that the Wilderness Society has long proposed as formal conservation reserves, including as extensions to the TWWHA. The fires were caused by hundreds of lightning strikes across western Tasmania that ignited natural vegetation enduring the driest conditions on record. Respected local scientists described the event as the direct result of climate change because of the extraordinarily dry conditions and the intensity of the dry-lightning storm. The fires burnt terrain whose natural and cultural attributes constitute part of the Outstanding Universal Value of the TWWHA. Of particular concern was a complex of fires immediately north (up-wind) of the heart of Tasmania’s alpine country, a spectacular glaciated landscape of jagged peaks, lakes, plateaux and ancient vegetation. The world’s biggest stands of pencil- pine trees were under threat of permanent damage for over two weeks. Pencil pines are members of the genus Athrotaxis, a life form with a lineage of over 150 million years, limited range restricted to Tasmania’s alpine country and no evidence of regeneration after fire. Fortunately, a period of cooler and wetter weather occurred, subduing the fires that were causing the most serious threat to Outstanding Universal Value. The efforts of Tasmanian fire-fighting agencies – augmented by over 1200 personnel from other states and New Zealand over the course of two months – were also a major factor in containing the fires. In retrospect, it appears that the TWWHA was extremely lucky that hot, windy, northerly conditions (common in January and February in Tasmania) did not occur, that resources were not required to tackle fires in major population centres, and that no major fire emergencies were occurring on the Australian mainland at this time. The incident has raised several issues of concern to the management of the TWWHA. These include: The state of preparation of fire agencies, given that a bad fire season had been predicted; The response time of the Tasmanian Government in calling for resources from outside the state; The future of ancient fire-sensitive life-forms within the TWWHA given that this event is part of a clear trend towards more dry lightning strikes and hot, dry summers; The resourcing of Tasmanian fire-fighting agencies by the Tasmanian Government, which has been criticised by the fire-fighters’ union for budget cuts and restructuring; The level of remote-area fire-fighting and coordination expertise, both within the Tasmanian Fire Service and at the federal level; The inadequacy of public communication about the crisis (particularly wuith regard to natural values) on the part of the Tasmanian Government; 3 Submission - Senate Inquiry into bushfires in remote Tasmanian wilderness – April 2016 The inadequacy of the draft new Management Plan for the TWWHA in recognising the need for rapid-response capabilities and prioritising the protection of fire-sensitive vegetation over built infrastructure (as provided for in the current (1999) Management Plan. TWS and GPAP recommend the following actions by the Australian Government: The Australian Government should recognise the role of climate change in exacerbating the threat to the Outstanding Universal Value of the TWWHA as bushfire seasons lengthen and intensify; The Australian Government should state the seriousness of the fire threat to the Outstanding Universal Value of the TWWHA to UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee and its advisory bodies (the IUCN and ICOMOS) and report on the issue of wildfires in all future State of Conservation reports; The Australian government should recognise the catastrophic threat to key Outstanding Universal Values of the Tasmanian Wilderness posed by wild fires and ensure it is articulated in all relevant UNESCO reports, management plans and fire plans; The Australian Government should oversee the review of the Management Plan for the TWWHA to ensure wildfires and their threats to Outstanding Universal Value are adequately addressed, including by retaining and expanding the capacity for rapid response to tackle remote-area fires, by ensuring that the protection of fire- sensitive vegetation is a higher priority than protecting infrastructure within the World Heritage Area, and by improving remote-area detection of fires by utilising the best available technology; The Australian Government should offer adequate and immediate financial backing for the suppression of the uncontrolled fires that threaten the TWWHA and other irreplaceable environmental and cultural attributes (such as the takayna/Tarkine rainforest, Tyndall Range and Western Tasmania Aboriginal Cultural Landscape); The Australian Government should provide adequate funding to the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service, through the Tasmanian Government, to: o properly resource all aspects of management of the TWWHA; o bolster remote area fire-fighting capacity; o restore its education program about fire (including campfires) for outdoor recreationalists using the TWWHA; The Australian Government should provide coordination and financial support to enable the Tasmanian Government to develop and implement a long-term bushfire response plan designed to protect Outstanding Universal Value and other environmental and cultural attributes in the TWWHA and across Tasmania; The Australian Government should provide financial resources for additional research (including by the CSIRO) into the relationship between climate change, bushfires and ecology in Australia; 4 Submission - Senate Inquiry into bushfires in remote Tasmanian wilderness – April 2016 The Australian Government should bolster its efforts to research, model and tackle climate
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Conservation Photography Wilderness Values Wilderness Education Tanzania, Italy, Russia, Guianas INTERNATIONAL Journal of Wilderness
    Conservation Photography Wilderness Values Wilderness Education Tanzania, Italy, Russia, Guianas INTERNATIONAL Journal of Wilderness APRIL 2005 VOLUME 11, NUMBER 1 FEATURES INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES (continued) EDITORIAL PERSPECTIVES 31 The Ruaha National Park, Tanzania 3 Can We Let Wilderness Just Be Wilderness? BY SUE STOLBERGER BY CHAD P. DAWSON 35 Wilderness Is More Than “Nature” SOUL OF THE WILDERNESS BY FRANCO ZUNINO 4 A Wilderness Challenge BY MICHAEL FROME 38 Plant Community Monitoring in Vodlozhersky National Park, Karelia, Russia STEWARDSHIP BY RALPH DUNMORE 8 Conservation Photography Art, Ethics, and Action BY CRISTINA MITTERMEIER WILDERNESS DIGEST 43 Announcements and Wilderness Calendar SCIENCE AND RESEARCH 14 A GIS–based Inductive Study of Wilderness Values Book Reviews BY GREGORY BROWN and LILIAN ALESSA 46 The Enduring Wilderness: Protecting Our Natural Heritage through the Wilderness Act PERSPECTIVES FROM THE ALDO LEOPOLD by Doug Scott WILDERNESS RESEARCH INSTITUTE REVIEW BY JOHN SHULTIS, IJW BOOK EDITOR 19 The Fire Effects Planning Framework BY ANNE BLACK 46 Wildland Recreation Policy: An Introduction, 2nd ed. by J. Douglas Wellman and Dennis B. Propst REVIEW BY CHAD DAWSON EDUCATION AND COMMUNICATION 21 Wilderness Education 46 Wildlife Tourism: Impacts, Management The Ultimate Commitment to Quality and Planning Wilderness Stewardship edited by Karen Higginbottom BY GREG HANSEN and TOM CARLSON REVIEW BY SARAH ELMELIGI INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES 26 Conservation Planning in the Tropics FRONT COVER A photographer’s dream day at Mount McKinley, Lessons Learned from the Denali National Park, Alaska. Photo by Cathy Hart. Guianan Ecoregion Complex INSET Cristina Mittermeier looking a dung beetle in the eye, BY G. JAN SCHIPPER Tembe Elephant Reserve, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa.
    [Show full text]
  • Tasmanian Creativity and Innovation Tasmanian Historical Studies. Volume 8. No 2 (2003): 28-39
    Tasmanian Creativity and Innovation Tasmanian Historical Studies. Volume 8. No 2 (2003): 28-39. Rambling in Overdrive: Travelling Through Tasmanian Literature CA Cranston Two years ago I published an anthology of original and published writings about Tasmania titled Along these lines: From Trowenna to Tasmania1 — a mistake it turns out (as far as the title goes) as readers generally assume that Trowenna is some other place, rather than some other time. The idea was to situate various texts about Tasmania into context, so that when traveling the arterial highways of the heart- shaped island one was presented with stories and histories (time) that live on the sides of the road (place). This paper will address the theme of the conference (‘Originally Tasmanian. Creativity and Innovation in the Island State’) with a methodology similar to that ‘driving’ the anthology. It will examine the relationship between context (the origin) and text (the representation), and by implication, the relationship between natural and symbolic worlds. The ramble, which textually refers to the discursive — ideas, like automobiles, that ‘run about’ — will be accommodated, and as such will occasionally disrupt normal expectations of chronology, the historian’s purview. The motivation for the anthology came out of a need to experience at first hand niggling doubts about the textual construction of the island. I was a migrant so (in terms of the conference theme) I’m not ‘Originally Tasmanian’. I was living in a biotic community I knew nothing about and for which I had no language. I was presented with a textual culture I knew little about, and I was hungry for island stories.
    [Show full text]
  • TEXTO.04.Forestfire.Pdf
    DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.72498 Provisional chapter Chapter 1 Ruling Frameworks and Fire Use-Conflicts in Tropical ForestsRuling Frameworks of Chiapas, Mexico: and Fire A Use‐Conflicts Discourse Analysis in Tropical Forests of Chiapas, Mexico: A Discourse Analysis Francisco Guevara-Hernández, FranciscoLuis Alfredo Guevara-Hernández, Rodríguez-Larramendi, LuisFredy Alfredo Delgado-Ruiz, Rodríguez-Larramendi, Julio Díaz-José, FredyRené Pinto-Ruiz,Delgado-Ruiz, Leopoldo Julio Díaz-José, Medina-Sanson, René Pinto-Ruiz, Leopoldo Medina-Sanson, Alejandro Ley-de Coss, Alejandro Ley-de Coss, Rady Alejandra Campos-Saldaña, Rady Alejandra Campos-Saldaña, Luis Reyes-Muro, MiguelLuis Reyes-Muro, Angel Salas-Marina, Miguel Angel Salas-Marina, José Apolonio Venegas-Venegas, Martín de Jesús Ocaña-Grajales, Carlos Ernesto Aguilar-Jiménez, Jesús Ovando-Cruz, DebJesús Raj Ovando-Cruz, Aryal and Vidal Deb Hernández-García Raj Aryal and Vidal Hernández-García Abstract The use of fire within tropical forests to settle agriculture and livestock systems has long been causing a bottle-neck for governmental and environmental development agencies, especially in natural forested areas with local population. An international strategy followed since many years ago is the decree of special territories with vast forests as natural protected areas (NPA). In Mexico, environmental laws can run contrary to customs and practices of natural resource-dependent communities which still use fire to farm their lands as unique livelihood activity. The chapter examines two conflicting frameworks of resource management (forest and soil) and governance in a forest village's efforts to comply with federal policies against fires in a NPA of Chiapas, Mexico. Forest and soil management is a key locus in California village, where gover- nance structures come into conflict with hierarchical State power.
    [Show full text]
  • TYNDALL Scale: 1:25 000 DIGITAL GEOLOGICAL ATLAS 1:25 000 SCALE SERIES 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500M TYNDALL, SHEET 3835
    Department of Infrastructure Energy and Resources MINERAL RESOURCES TASMANIA TYNDALL Scale: 1:25 000 DIGITAL GEOLOGICAL ATLAS 1:25 000 SCALE SERIES 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500m TYNDALL, SHEET 3835 380000mE 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 390000mE 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 400000mE 5360000mN 5360000mN 65 80 NEWTON Geor 80 70 Creek 60 PEAK 70 85 50 80 65 85 ge 60 75 78 45 55 28 55 20 81 60 Newton 80 70 20 68 75 70 Anthon 20 55 87 35 55 80 50 22 75 10 20 38 70 78 72 y 70 45 Creek 20 25 20 35 70 40 45 23 26 RANGE 37 48 65 River 80 40 18 70 46 17 10 18 59 80 59 65 50 16 16 12 20 20 55 70 5 25 57 27 10 83 75 77 26 35 80 80 37 30 27 73 80 60 57 10 50 30 46 67 46 70 48 12 60 15 53 60 83 11 80 65 38 40 70 36 25 70 42 67 65 50 7 70 87 32 72 68 85 7 50 75 34 13 11 4 33 75 74 70 50 66 5 80 STICHT 15 80 70 60 40 12 40 58 16 20 58 68 33 9 52 LAKE 80 70 35 25 85 2675 80 42 55 75 32 ROLLESTON85 65 75 80 20 83 30 65 10 89 80 72 10 80 17 67 12 30 70 85 65 27 5 68 22 57 70 10 10 85 65 45 50 80 52 23 50 78 75 63 75 6 13 88 80 33 12 65 80 30 75 75 68 25 55 64 85 54 86 27 30 80 57 26 30 50 26 33 15 30 70 70 40 40 10 30 35 25 3 75 57 28 18 74 65 57 5 17 17 20 88 70 70 32 11 30 30 18 80 42 75 10 40 80 23 22 2550 40 86 35 60 15 45 15 85 53 30 13 10 10 33 8 9 10 70 62 15 MT 25 70 82 10 25 88 32 TYNDALL 25 82 80 30 7 1745 65 30 85 67 3 28 15 21 50 42 50 17 45 25 11 20 27 65 WALFORD RIVER 20 25 9 13 60 PEAK 58 23 13 65 ELDON 7 15 25 LAKE 75 80 70 80 20 12 56 7 WHITHA 78 85 56 40 60 HUNTLEY 50 M 28 17 11 77 ROAD 10 85 56 60 15 17 4 72 68 60 67 27 8 8 65 47 38 45 56 75
    [Show full text]
  • The Geology, Geochemistry and Structure of the Mount Darwin - South Darwin Peak Area, Western Tasmania
    The Geology, Geochemistry and Structure of the Mount Darwin - South Darwin Peak Area, Western Tasmania. by Andrew Thomas Jones B.App.Sci.(RMIT) A thesis submitted in partial fulfihnent of the requirements for the degree ofBachelor of Science with Honours. CE:-iTRE FOR ORE DEPOSIT A:"/D EXPLORATION STUDIES Geology Department, University ofTasmania, November 1993. Abstract The Cambrian Darwin Granite intrudes calc-alkaline rhyolites of the Central Volcanic Complex on the Darwin Plateau, western Tasmania. Two distinct granite phases are recognised, an equigranular granite and a granodiorite. A biotite grade contact aureole is preserved in the Central Volcanic Complex immediate to the Darwin Granite. Debris flow deposits of volcaniclastic conglomerates and sandstones, and coherent dacite lavas of the Mid - Late Cambrian Tyndall Group unconformably overlie the Darwin Granite and Central Volcanic Complex, and are in turn overlain unconformably by pebble to boulder conglomerates of the siliciclastic Owen Conglomerate. Stratigraphic and structural evidence recognise three deformation periods within the Mt Darwin - South Darwin Peak area: the Mid - Late Cambrian, Late Cambrian - Early Ordovician, and the Devonian Tabberabberan Orogeny. Mid - Late Cambrian deformation, evidenced by granitic and foliated volcanic clasts in basal Tyndall Group conglomerate, indicates catastrophic uplift and subsequent unroofing of the granite prior to Tyndall Group deposition. This unconformity represents a significant Cambrian hiatus in the southern Mount Read Volcanics. A second unconformit)r between the Tyndall Group and the Owen Conglomerate marks cessation of Tyndall Group deposition with the onset of deposition of large volumes of siliceous detritus. The two Devonian Tabberabberan-related deformations are characterised by, NW and N­ trending dextral strike slip faulting and locally intense N-trending cleavage development.
    [Show full text]
  • The Lake Pedder Decision
    Hrasky, S. , & Jones, M. J. (2016). Lake Pedder: Accounting, environmental decision-making, nature and impression management. Accounting Forum, 40(4), 285-299. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.accfor.2016.06.005 Peer reviewed version License (if available): CC BY-NC-ND Link to published version (if available): 10.1016/j.accfor.2016.06.005 Link to publication record in Explore Bristol Research PDF-document This is the accepted author manuscript (AAM). The final published version (version of record) is available online via Elsevier at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.accfor.2016.06.005. Please refer to any applicable terms of use of the publisher. University of Bristol - Explore Bristol Research General rights This document is made available in accordance with publisher policies. Please cite only the published version using the reference above. Full terms of use are available: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/red/research-policy/pure/user-guides/ebr-terms/ Lake Pedder: Accounting, Environmental Decision-Making, nature and impression management Sue Hrasky and Michael Jones University of Tasmania, University of Bristol Acknowledgements We wish to thank participants at the 15th Financial Reporting and Business Communication Conference, Bristol, July 2011, the 23rd International Congress on Social and Environmental Accounting Research (CSEAR), St Andrews, September 2011 and the 10th CSEAR Australasian Conference, Launceston, December 2011, for their helpful comments and suggestions. My thanks also to Claire Horner for her help collecting data. Finally, I would like to thank Glen Lehman and an anonymous reviewer Corresponding Author Department of Accounting and Finance University of Bristol 8 Woodland Road, Bristol BS8 1TN, UK Email: [email protected] Phone: +44 (0)117 33 18286 Lake Pedder: Accounting, Environmental Decision-Making, Nature and Impression Management Abstract This paper looks at the role of accounting in a major environmental infrastructural project the flooding of Lake Pedder in Tasmania in the 1960s.
    [Show full text]
  • Internal Review of Operations During the 2015–16 Bushfire Season
    Internal review of operations during the 2015–16 bushfire season “A lesson learned isn’t a lesson until it brings about change” Dr Christine Owen Contents Internal review of operations during the 2015–16 bushfire season .................................................. 1 1 Executive summary .............................................................................................................. 4 1.1 The 2015–16 bushfire season in Tasmania ........................................................... 4 1.2 Bushfire management in Tasmania ........................................................................ 4 1.3 About this review ................................................................................................... 5 1.4 About the recommendations .................................................................................. 6 1.5 Summary of recommendations .............................................................................. 7 2 Purpose and scope of review ............................................................................................. 13 2.1 Purpose ............................................................................................................... 13 2.2 Scope .................................................................................................................. 13 3 The 2015–16 bushfire season in Tasmania ........................................................................ 15 3.1 Extreme weather, a record number of fires and an unprecedented response ...... 15 3.2
    [Show full text]
  • The Journal of the Australian Speleological Federation AUSTRALIA
    CAVES The Journal of the Australian Speleological Federation AUSTRALIA MW-1 Arrakis Revisited Arthur River Magnesite Deposits Personal Protective Equipment Inspection Tom Robinson • Andrew Skinner Boulder Caves of Mount Nicholas No. 186 • SEPTEMBER 2011 F COMING EVENTS S New editor for This list covers events of interest to anyone seriously interested in caves and karst. The list is just that: if you want further information A e-speleo the contact details for each event are included in the list for you to contact directly. The relevant websites and details of other eeT Ian Binnie, the new international and regional events may be listed on the IUS website Meditor of e-speleo. Ian caves http:///www.uis-speleo.org/ or on the ASF website http://www. with Highland Caving Group (HCG) caves.org.au. For international events, the Chair of International and was previously a member of the Commission (Nicholas White, [email protected]) Macquarie University Caving Group may have extra information. This list only covers events in 2011 (MUCG) for some years. Ian is now and the first half of 2012. retired but in a former life was a tele- On the other hand 2013 looks very busy with the next ASF communications planner, working S Conference TAGalong in January at Galong NSW, the ACKMA for Optus. He was a planner for the i rt Conference in May at Waitomo Caves, NZ and the international 3G phone network. (UIS) congress in July at Brno, Czech Republic. Caving and computers seem a good ian cu match for Ian who, under interrogation, confessed to Tuglow being his favourite cave and to ‘… just like being in caves … the magic 2011 takes over.’ September & October Ian foresees little change in e-speleo, and is planning to bring out Jenolan & Wombeyan Caves Volunteer Weekends, 2011: Sycamore War 3-4 four issues a year, to come out between the Caves Australia issues.
    [Show full text]
  • Stud Y Guide
    JO FLACK ISSUE 32 GUIDE AUSTRALIAN SCREEN EDUCATION Wildness STUDY 1 Morning light on Little Horn, Cradle Mountain. (Photo Peter Dombrovskis) © Liz Dombrovskis INTRODUCING WILDNESS What would the odds be of two men from Baltic states, each of them finishing up in Tasmania, being top wilderness photographers, each dying out there, each devoted one to the other? Max Angus, artist ISSUE 32 ISSUE 32 SYNOPSIS of progress. Olegas is renowned for campaign to save it from a similar fate. his slide presentations which, over 20 His photograph of the Franklin’s Rock AUSTRALIAN SCREEN EDUCATION AUSTRALIAN SCREEN EDUCATION Olegas Truchanas and Peter Dom- years, brought ever-increasing atten- Island Bend became a national icon, brovskis were two of Australia’s greatest tion to the island’s unique landscape. establishing him as one of the country’s wilderness photographers. Their work In particular, he captured on film the most influential photographers. became synonymous with campaigns to pink quartz beach and tea-coloured protect Tasmania’s natural heritage. water of Lake Pedder before it was Olegas and Peter shared many things, drowned by a fiercely protested hydro- including a bond that was more like From the 1950s to the 1980s, Olegas electric scheme. that of father and son. Both migrated and then Peter used photography to to Tasmania from Baltic Europe. And galvanise public opinion as the Hy- Ten years later, Peter’s magnificent pho- both died alone doing what they loved 2 dro Electric Commission cut swathes tographs of the Franklin River were used - photographing the wild. They left be- 3 through the wilderness in the name to spearhead the successful national hind a legacy of extraordinary images - contributing not only to their art but to CURRICULUM LINKS humanness of man.
    [Show full text]
  • The Philosophers' Tale
    1 Photo: Ollie Khedun Photo: THE VISION THE CONCEPT THE PROPOSAL The Philosophers’ Tale is The West Coast Range consists The Next Iconic Walk – The of 6 mountains on a north south Philosophers’ Tale 2019 proposal more than just an iconic walk, ridge. The ridge is trisected by the – Chapter One: Owen, takes it is made up of a series of Lyell Highway (between Mt Lyell people on a journey over 28km in iconic walks to be developed and Mt Owen) and the King River 3 days and 2 nights experiencing Gorge (between Mt Huxley and Mt mountain peaks, incredible views, over a period of time. There Jukes). This makes for three distinct button grass plains, cantilever are an abundance of coastal regions, each with their own part platforms and suspension bridges walks – the Overland Track to play in telling the bigger story. over deep river gorges down into All areas have been impacted cool temperate rainforest, majestic is now mature, and people by mining exploration or other waterfalls along the tranquil King are looking for the next development in the past 100 years. River on the incredible West Coast of Tasmania. With the option to option – The Philosophers’ The area is naturally divided into finish via train, hi-rail, raft, kayak, four zones, or in story telling Tale is just that. People will helicopter or jet boat, making it a parlance, ‘Chapters’. The Chapters be drawn locally and across truly unforgettable experience. (outlined on page 8), let’s call them the globe to experience these Owen, Jukes, Lyell and Tyndall lead View West Coast video iconic walks, returning time easily to the staged construction of any proposed track works.
    [Show full text]
  • TWWHA Wilderness Value Assessment 2015.Pdf
    Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area Assessment of Wilderness Value Stage 2: Entire TWWHA Martin Hawes & Roger Ling September 2015 TWWHA Wilderness Value Assessment Stage 2: Entire TWWHA Summary Two computer-based methodologies, the National Wilderness Inventory (NWI) methodology and a revised version of this, were used to assess wilderness value across the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA) and contiguous wild areas based on input geodata that was (mostly) current in 2015. The results were used to assess the current status of wilderness across the region and the changes in wilderness value relative to the results of similar studies undertaken in 1995 and 2005. The 2015 results were broadly similar to those obtained in 2005, although substantial losses due to post-2005 roading were observed in several areas, particularly the Counsel River area. Gains in wilderness value due to the closure, downgrading or revegetation of roads and vehicle tracks were observed in the area west of Macquarie Harbour, the middle Hansons River area and the area north of Victoria Pass. Numerous apparent changes (mainly losses) in wilderness value were observed due the inclusion in the 2015 data set of features such as residences and areas of disturbed land that were overlooked in the 2005 analysis. Comparison using the NWI methodology of current wilderness value with the results obtained in 1995 revealed numerous gains and losses, some of which had already been observed in 2005. Substantial gains in wilderness value, mostly due to the closure, downgrading or revegetation of roads and vehicle tracks, were observed in the area southwest of Macquarie Harbour, Moores Valley, Alma Valley, the northern half of the Jane River Track and Little Fisher Valley.
    [Show full text]
  • Verification of the Heritage Value of ENGO-Proposed Reserves
    IVG REPORT 5A Verification of the heritage value of ENGO-proposed reserves Verification of the Heritage Value of ENGO-Proposed Reserves IVG Forest Conservation REPORT 5A 1 March 2012 IVG REPORT 5A Verification of the heritage value of ENGO-proposed reserves IVG Forest Conservation Report 5A Verification of the Heritage Value of ENGO-Proposed Reserves An assessment and verification of the ‘National and World Heritage Values and significance of Tasmania’s native forest estate with particular reference to the area of Tasmanian forest identified by ENGOs as being of High Conservation Value’ Written by Peter Hitchcock, for the Independent Verification Group for the Tasmanian Forests Intergovernmental Agreement 2011. Published February 2012 Photo credits for chapter headings: All photographs by Rob Blakers With the exception of Chapter 2 (crayfish): Todd Walsh All photos copyright the photographers 2 IVG REPORT 5A Verification of the heritage value of ENGO-proposed reserves About the author—Peter Hitchcock AM The author’s career of more than 40 years has focused on natural resource management and conservation, specialising in protected areas and World Heritage. Briefly, the author: trained and graduated—in forest science progressing to operational forest mapping, timber resource assessment, management planning and supervision of field operations applied conservation—progressed into natural heritage conservation including conservation planning and protected area design corporate management—held a range of positions, including as, Deputy Director
    [Show full text]