Logging to Resume Near Mountain Biking Trails in Tasmania
The High Court of Australia has dismissed a challenge from environmentalists against the resumption of logging near world-famous mountain biking trails in north-east Tasmania. This decision clears the final hurdle for logging to resume in two coupes near Derby, which have been the subject of legal challenges since April 2022.
The injunction against logging in these coupes, located alongside mountain bike trails that have hosted Enduro World Series events, was lifted last week. The High Court's refusal to grant leave to appeal today marks the end of legal obstacles to the resumption of logging activities.
Environmental group Blue Derby Wild had challenged the approval of logging in the 80-hectare native forest coupes, arguing that the system of self-regulation in Tasmania's native forest logging sector created "apprehended bias." They argued that the Forest Practices Authority (FPA) officers who certified the logging plans were also employees of Sustainable Timber Tasmania (STT), the public forestry company responsible for carrying out the logging. This, they claimed, could lead to an unconscious tendency to facilitate logging rather than refuse or limit it.
However, the FPA argued that the laws expressly allow for a self-regulating system and complying with the law cannot amount to bias. The Supreme Court agreed, stating that self-regulation is a feature of Tasmania's native forestry sector and that systems emphasizing self-regulation inherently involve balancing competing considerations and potential conflicts of interest.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court ruled that Blue Derby Wild did not have standing to bring the appeal, as they could not prove they held an interest in the specific logging operations beyond opposing logging and litigating. The High Court agreed with this assessment, stating that the obscurity of the evidence concerning the nature and extent of Blue Derby Wild's activities made an appeal unsuitable for reconsidering the principles of standing at general law.
Therefore, the matter of apprehended bias was not considered by the High Court. The decision paves the way for the resumption of logging in the coupes near Derby, despite ongoing concerns from environmentalists and mountain biking enthusiasts.