Former Greens leader and environmentalist Bob Brown says the residents who have blocked the bulldozers tearing down the Gelorup woodlands south of Perth are the new-age Noahs the world so badly needs in this extinction crisis.

“While the ministers for the environment in Perth and Canberra back the needless flattening of these woodlands, which contain five species threatened with extinction, these good, ordinary Australians have had the guts to make a stand for the planet’s future. They, not weak-spined environment ministers, are the heroes of the environment in this age of extinction. Millions of Australians will applaud their stand,” Bob Brown said.

A poll last week showed that a big majority of Perth motorists want the woodlands saved and an alternative route taken for the Bunbury bypass

In a day of remarkable contrast, the Minister for the Environment, Tanya Plibersek, placed an eastern Australian black cockatoo on the endangered list just as she was getting Federal Court backing for her decision to bulldoze the habitat of three rare black cockatoos in Western Australia.

Inexplicably, within the hour of winning Federal Court backing for her approval of the demolition of WA’s Gelorup woodland, which is critical habitat for three western species of black cockatoos, to facilitate the Bunbury bypass south of Perth, Minister Plibersek announced she would list the south-eastern glossy black cockatoo, on the other side of the continent, as ‘vulnerable’ to extinction. The minister also listed the mountain skink of south-eastern Australia as ‘endangered’.

Ms Plibersek said the new listings “will ensure the prioritisation of recovery actions to protect both species and offer conservation guidance on a national scale”.

“Ms Plibersek’s first piece of conservation guidance was to give the go-ahead to the bulldozers now smashing down the Gelorup woodlands in WA which, besides the three black cockatoos, contain critically endangered western ringtail possums and an internationally listed rare native fish. There were options for the bypass but none for this woodland and its wildlife. The Minister for the Environment is accelerating the progress to extinction of these species,” Bob Brown said. “Her actions have contradicted her words.”

Today’s Federal Court decision to reject the Friends of the Gelorup Corridor’s effort to stop the destruction of the Gelorup woodlands, south of Perth, highlights Australia’s official determination to send its unique species to extinction, Bob Brown said today.

“This horror show of environmental vandalism began with Tanya Plibersek, Australia’s Minister for the Environment approving on 29 June the WA Main Roads’ plan to bulldoze the corridor’s woodlands and wildlife habitat. It was Plibersek’s first decision and means that the crucial habitat of the critically-endangered Western Ringtail Possum, rare Black Cockatoos, and the native Black Striped Minnow will be destroyed forever. The so-called offsets to accommodate this ecological destruction are a scam. They will not work. The species are now a giant step closer to extinction.”

“There are alternative routes for the Bunbury bypass but no alternative habitats for the displaced species and now the certainty of the destruction of giant tuart and WA mistletoe trees as well. Like the minister, the judge flagged the dollar value of the roadworks but gave no value to the woodlands and their species. This is an environmental disaster on Plibersek’s watch. It is indicative of the Albanese government’s intention to smash any precious piece of national heritage which gets in the way of so-called ‘development’.

“I laud the Friends of the Gelorup Corridor. They are locals who have been completely ignored by the Albanese government and this minister. She has been cruel to their entreaties. Plibersek has failed to acknowledge them let alone hear their side of the story. This is another dark day in Australia’s abysmal environmental history,” Brown said.

The Bob Brown Foundation has lauded Tanya Plibersek’s decision to knock back Clive Palmer’s coal mine project near Rockhampton.

“It is a good second decision. Congratulations Tanya. Palmer’s coal mine plan was an environmental disaster waiting to happen. His equally appalling proposal to undermine the Bimblebox Nature Reserve near Alpha must also get the thumbs down,” Bob Brown said.

Contrary to media reports, this was the minister’s second decision. Her first, on 29 June, was a shocker: Plibersek gave the nod to bulldozers which are now destroying the Gelorup corridor woodland south of Perth. “There can be few more habitats of this size on the planet so important to rare and endangered creatures. They are now headed closer to extinction because the minister ignored alternatives to the Bunbury bypass,” Brown, who visited the site of the woodland demolition on Sunday, said.

Today, there are reports of a fire at Tassal's salmon farm pens near Badger Creek on the Tasman Peninsula.

The Bob Brown Foundation has seen pictures of black smoke pouring from one of the pens.

The Bob Brown Foundation is calling on the company to detail what has happened especially in relation to any environmental or animal welfare issues.

“We know that the Tasmanian Salmon industry is reckless in their care for the environment. This fire looks big and looks serious and we want to know what damage has occurred to the marine environment because it can't be nothing,” said Alistair Allan, Fish Farm campaigner at the Bob Brown Foundation.

“Tassal has been met with a huge backlash from the Tasman Peninsula community for their plans to put salmon back into pens at Long Bay, near Port Arthur, due to a complete lack of transparency amongst grave environmental concerns.”

“We need to know what has happened at Badger Creek.”

Brown labels woodland destruction as ‘senseless, needless vandalism’.

Former Greens leader Bob Brown has labelled today’s bulldozer invasion of the Gelorup woodland corridor near Bunbury, WA, as “senseless, needless official vandalism”.
Brown, who visited the woodlands with local residents on the weekend, said that the new federal Minister for the Environment, Tanya Plibersek, has licensed the bulldozers which are smashing down the wildlife-rich woodland.

“It is outrageous that she can be aiding and abetting this destruction of habitat rich in federally-listed birds, animals and fish and yet so recently expressed shock at Australia’s State of the Environment Report, saying “our environment is not getting the protection it needs.” She turned down all requests to go and see the woodland: she so obviously had a responsibility to see and understand the woods before she condemned them to death.”

The Albanese government has environmental blood on its hands here. There are options for the road builders but not for the critically endangered species. The only retrievable good out of this is the courage and selflessness of the Friends of the Gelorup Corridor and other locals whose dedication and commonsense have been so heartlessly ignored. I applaud those who are now taking such risk and discomfort in defending the woodland against the invading machinery: there will be millions of Australians who will have their hearts with these people doing the job the ministers failed to do.”

“An ancient, fragile pocket of Tasmania’s takayna rainforests has been reclaimed for breeding Tasmanian Masked Owls. Leaving takayna / Tarkine forests for the owls is a wise move,” Bob Brown Foundation’s Campaigns Manager Jenny Weber said today from takayna while witnessing the forced removal of machines.

Tasmanian Masked Owls in southern takayna / Tarkine are safe again after mining company MMG complied with a Federal Court order to remove their machines from the site.

Bob Brown Foundation Campaigners and defenders supervised the removal of the machines today. Walking out behind the machines ensuring they were removed from the fragile ecosystem.

“A nineteen-month delay to the destruction of takayna / Tarkine has been successful. 89 people have been arrested defending these forests, with a Federal Court victory ultimately forcing miner MMG’s machines out of the forests,” Bob Brown Foundation takayna / Tarkine Campaigner Scott Jordan said from the forests.

“The fate of these forests are now in Minister Tanya Plibersek’s hands. Wild ancient forests of takayna / Tarkine, including 500-year-old myrtle rainforest and critical breeding habitat for Tasmanian Masked Owls and Wedge-tailed Eagles, habitat for Tasmanian Devils and Spotted-tailed Quolls,” Scott Jordan said.

“It’s a rare moment in history to witness the removal of Earth destroying machines from wild places. It’s a momentous occasion for the forests, the wildlife and the thousands of citizens who have defended takayna with us. We remain vigilant for takayna. If Minister Plibersek condemns this place and allows MMG’s mine waste dump to proceed, we will be here in the forests to defend and protect them,” Bob Brown Foundation Campaigns Manager Jenny Weber said.

Bob Brown calls on Albanese to save threatened creatures

Peaceful local defenders have halted the approach of a bulldozer and an excavator moving in the demolish the contentious Gelorup Corridor woodland and wildlife near Bunbury in Western Australia.

It is understood that police have been called by the machinery operators.

Following yesterday’s on-site by hundreds of locals opposed to the demolition, Main Roads moved their machinery in this morning. “This is appalling. This woodland and its critically endangered Western Ringtail Possums and cockatoos should not be destroyed when there are options for the state government’s Bunbury Outer Ring Road to be built across nearby cleared land. The Albanese government has ultimate responsibility here. Minister for the Environment Tanya Plibersek should intervene to save the wildlife and rare plants in these woods,” former Greens leader Bob Brown, who has spent the weekend at Gelorup, said in Perth this morning.

“There are 20 people on site stopping machinery at the precious and threatened Gelorup corridor. People are determined to protect this woodland habitat and the critically endangered Western Ringtail Possums and other creatures who live here,” said Terri Sharp who is a local resident.

Hundreds of people rallied beside WA’s doomed Gelorup woodland today calling on the Albanese government for a stay of execution. After the Minister for the Environment, Tanya Plibersek, gave written approval of the demolition of the wildlife-filled woodlands last week, it is expected the Main Roads bulldozers will arrive as early as tomorrow.

The crowd gave speakers, including former Greens leader Bob Brown, a rousing ovation for their appeals to PM Albanese and Ms Plibersek to urgently reverse the decision and protect the rare and endangered species, including the critically endangered Western Ringtail Possum and three species of black cockatoos, now facing those bulldozers.

“I call on Anthony Albanese to do as Labor Prime Minister Bob Hawke did in 1983 when he intervened to save the Franklin River,” Brown said. ”Because, as with the proposed Franklin Dam, there are perfectly good alternatives here – this short section of highway can go across already cleared land nearby.”

“Tanya Plibersek gave an impassioned speech at the Press Club just a fortnight ago about Australia’s shocking record of environmental destruction and extinction. Surely her first move as minister can’t be to make that shocking record worse,” Brown said.

The rally MC, Dr Sue Chapman announced that the locals are seeking urgent legal advice. Brown said Minister Plibersek’s approval of the bulldozers moving in should fail insofar as it was riddled with uncertainties and assertions about protecting the critically endangered possums. “It is simply impossible for the Gelorup woodland to be demolished and the endangered species to be protected”.

The Federal Court has ruled that former Environment Minister Sussan Ley’s unlawful decision is to be set aside and the new Minister for Environment and Water is to make a new decision in Bob Brown Foundation’s landmark case.

Work on the project has now been halted, with all machinery to be removed on Monday, 1 August 2022.

Federal Court judge Justice Moshinsky has handed down his final orders today with costs yet to be determined by the court. Federal Environment and Water Minister Tanya Plibersek has been ordered to start again in assessing Chinese state-owned mining company MMG’s proposed heavy metals tailings waste dump in takayna / Tarkine.

“It is time for Minister Plibersek to clear the deck after the failure of Sussan Ley who made an unlawful decision for the environment. Australians across the nation are counting on Minister Plibersek to protect this ancient rainforest, the resident breeding Tasmanian Masked Owls and all of its threatened wildlife and ecological communities,” Bob Brown Foundation’s Campaigns Manager Jenny Weber said.

“This proposed tailings waste dump will cause irreversible harm to the environment. It must be halted and MMG needs to choose their feasible alternative on their mine site outside takayna / Tarkine,” Jenny Weber said.

“MMG’s machinery should never have been there and now the company will remove them. Our campaigners will be there on Monday to supervise. The ancient rainforests will be left to the Tasmanian Masked Owls and all the other rare and endangered species that depend on this place being left intact. It’s now over to Minister Plibersek to halt the heavy metals tailings dam in takayna,” Jenny Weber said.

“There is now a critical precedent in law that will extend across Australia to its threatened wildlife and environment. The court has affirmed that the precautionary principle in our national environment law is mandatory,” Jenny Weber said.

“This momentous win is thanks to the thousands of environmental citizen heroes who protested in these forests for the past 20 months and who stood firm when the minister and government failed them and the law,” Jenny Weber said.

We have invited Minister Plibersek to see takayna / Tarkine herself before her decision is made.