A third anti-logging protester has been arrested in a Western Australian forest in less than a month. Logging preparations in part of Helms Forest near Nannup in the South West were stopped when Claire Anderson, 23, sat on a treetop platform that was tied to machinery. Source: ABC News
Specialist police officers and equipment were sent from Perth to remove the protester, who was suspended 13 metres off the ground for 12 hours.
South West District Police Inspector Geoff Stewart said the woman refused to cooperate.
“Once we lowered her down she’d also locked herself into a device, so we also had to cut her out of that,” he said.
Anderson has been charged with being a nuisance on crown land and obstructing police.
Police are concerned the woman had put her safety at risk because the equipment was not safe.
“It was more hardware material rather than roping material,” Inspector Stewart said. “We’d certainly hate to see anyone fall from height.
“We’ve given the people involved some feedback about how unsafe the equipment they were using was.”
Simone van Hattem from Helms Forest Protection Group said the group wants to end logging in all native forests.
“It really is an outdated practice, native forest logging, it’s very destructive to the forest because of the heavy machinery used,” she said.
“All other avenues have failed, so without these sorts of peaceful protest actions forest and wildlife would be lost.”
Ms van Hattem said the group held particular concerns for wildlife in Helms Forest.
“The neighbouring black cockatoo rehabilitation centre, Jamarri… [has] released over 100 cockatoos into that site,” she said. “They need a lot of trees for feeding of the nuts and also for breeding.”
Anderson’s charges followed the arrest of two other anti-logging protesters in Helms Forest in December, including an Army reservist. Anderson is due before Busselton Magistrates Court at a later date.
The Forest Products Commission’s (FPC) general manager, Vince Erasmus, said harvesting in Helms was being carried out in accordance with the Government’s forest management plan.
Mr Erasmus said while the agency recognised the right of people to make their views known about timber harvesting, it did not sanction unsafe or illegal activities.
“The FPC remains concerned that individuals entering harvesting coupes with dangerous heavy equipment without authorisation or proper approval, are compromising the safety of both themselves and workers,” he said.
