Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Hansard source

Don’t get me wrong: I am in favour of limiting carbon emissions, including those from old growth forests and other sources. But compare the Weld to a vigorous young plantation forest absorbing CO as it grows. An average one-hectare blue gum plantation extracts almost 30 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere each year. For those that seek to raise funds for themselves, this is the genuine inconvenient truth, but it is a fact. And, if you want to be a friend of the environment in today’s world, you need to be a friend of forestry.