Eco-politics spells unemployment in the Eurobodalla

Forestry expert and SETA secretary, Peter Rutherford

Peter Rutherford is a Forest & Wood Communities Australia Director as well as Secretary for South-East Timber Association.

This article, published in Australian Rural & Regional News, is in response to a Greens-led motion to end native timber harvesting in the Eurobodalla Shire on the NSW Far South Coast.

On Friday 5 August, a NSW South-East Timber Association member raised the alarm on a motion to be voted on by Eurobodalla Shire councillors. The motion was titled “Eurobodalla Shire Council supports an end to native forest logging in Eurobodalla Shire.”

As no SETA member was available to participate in the public forum to present on behalf of the SETA membership, a presentation was emailed to all Eurobodalla councillors on August 3. It is not known if any councillors made time to read the submission.

In the lead up to and on August 9, the Eurobodalla Shire Councillors had spent significant time dealing with the Greens Party deputy mayor, Alison Worthington’s motion to end native forest harvesting in the shire.

The motion had initially been considered at a council meeting on April 12. Following the debate, a number of interested parties briefed councillors on June 12 and 22. Presenters included two academics from the Australian National University and a principal from Frontier Economics.

The three presenters have been high-profile advocates for the closure of the native forest industry. Two of these presenters have refused, on multiple occasions, to respond to SETA concerns about flawed economic analysis contained in a report advocating for the closure of the native forest industry in southern NSW, released on November 30, 2021.

SETA members believe that council time would be better spent on bushfire and Covid recovery projects and ensuring that the number of full-time jobs in the council area are not further eroded.

SETA secretary Peter Rutherford said “figures from the 2016 census showed the percentage of full-time jobs in the Eurobodalla Shire was 46.4 per cent, compared to the state wide regional average of 55.2 per cent.”

Mr Rutherford went on to say “the fall in the percentage of full-time jobs in the shire from 47.3 percent in 2011 to 46.4 per cent is a concerning trend. Having a Greens councillor pursuing an eco-political campaign, that eliminates full time jobs from the local economy seems to run counter to good governance.”

“Total employment in the Eurobodalla Shire has grown from 12,529 in 2011 to 12,979 in 2016, an average increase of 90 jobs per year. This provides potential employment for less than half the high school leavers each year, let alone other job seekers moving into the shire.”

For over 30 years, activists campaigning to stop native forest harvesting across NSW have promised lost jobs would be replaced by new jobs, particularly in eco-tourism.

Small regional communities from Urbenville to Mathoura and Eden have suffered the social and economic impacts, as the promised replacement jobs failed to materialise.

The councillor’s motion does not fit well with the legislative requirement for councils to act fairly, ethically and without bias in the interests of the local community.

“Modern councils have a broader role than roads, rubbish and recycling. However, being drawn into an activist councillor’s pursuit of an eco-political agenda appears to fall outside the role of councils set out in the NSW Local Government Act 1993” he said.

In conclusion, Mr Rutherford stated “it is the view of SETA members that the deliberate transfer of the impacts of our hardwood consumption offshore, to less regulated operations is selfish, unethical and immoral.”