Arabic version: تاسمانيا تراجع تحقيقات إزالة الأراضي الزراعية
According to ABC News, Tasmania’s Forest Practices Authority will independently review how it investigates suspected land-clearing breaches on farms after hundreds of farmers protested outside Parliament House in Hobart. Farmers raised concerns about the regulator’s engagement with landholders and the difficulty of interpreting land-clearing laws.
Tractors and trucks were parked outside Parliament House during the protest, which followed a $100,000 fine imposed on Triabunna landholder William Fergusson. He pleaded guilty and was convicted in the Hobart Magistrates Court after clearing 7.1 hectares of threatened native vegetation, including Tasmanian blue gum, and another 11.5 hectares of forest without approval for a central pivot irrigation system.
Resources Minister Felix Ellis said Mr Fergusson and the FPA had negotiated remediation and rehabilitation of the land, but no agreement could be reached, resulting in the fine. His wife, Melissa Fergusson, called the process unfair. Farmer Lindsay White said landholders felt targeted by the FPA and objected to officers arriving at farms unannounced.
A petition carrying 2,803 signatures was tabled in parliament, seeking a review of land-clearing enforcement and penalties that are “fair and proportionate”. The FPA issued nine fines totalling $96,200 in 2024-25 and progressed 58 investigations, down from 70 in the previous year. Chief Forest Practices officer Anne Chuter said compliance staff had an important role administering laws set by parliament. The authority will also work with TasFarmers on communication of regulations, while a wider review of state forest practices regulations is expected to finish in April.
