The New South Wales Government has agreed to stop logging activities in sections of some Riverina state forests after a five-day protest. Primary Industries Minister Ian Macdonald says Forests New South Wales will refrain from logging 11 forest compartments nominated by the National Parks Association (NPA).
The NPA says those areas are home to a number of endangered species and it recently took court action and won approval to carry out more scientific surveys.
Mr Macdonald says today's deal will end the court action and redgum harvesting will be halted in those areas for two years, but it may resume.
"Well it's not permanently locked up. It will be subject to an environmental impact statement," he said.
The agreement also comes after a week long protest by environmental activists in the Moira State Forest near Deniliquin where logging has been halted since Monday.
An environmental impact assessment will be carried out in those areas and Naomi Hodgeson from the Redgum Forest Action group says it is overdue.
"We're also very pleased the New South Wales Government has admitted that in actual fact, logging operations in the region have been illegal in the last 10 years," she said.
"Finally, they are going to apply planning law and undertake an environmental impact statement." © 2007 Australian Broadcasting Corporation
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