Native forestry to continue in Tasmania despite government bringing in validating legislation for laws

Resources Minister Guy Barnett confirmed on Wednesday the government would amend the Forest Practices Act after a delegation issue was uncovered that stems back to the mid-1980s.

It could centre on the delegation of the Forest Practices Authority in regards to plans for native forestry coupes, and covers all operations including Sustainable Timber Tasmania and private companies.

Last week, Bob Brown and three other protesters had their charges suddenly withdrawn in court in relation to protests in the Eastern Tiers in 2020, and then two other protesters also had charges dropped this week regarding Wentworth Hills protests.

Dr Brown said the decision called into question the legality of native forest harvesting in Tasmania spanning decades.

"The government should prepare to compensate hundreds of good people who have been wrongfully charged, convicted and even sent to jail for obstructing this illegal logging," he said.

"The law is the law. No ordinary citizen can retrospectively change the law's technicalities, or claim ignorance, to rescue themselves from prosecution or imprisonment."

Both Dr Brown and the Tasmanian Greens have called for all native logging to stop in Tasmania as a result of current legal questions over its validity.

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Parliament will not sit until May 3 as a result of a prorogue requested by outgoing Premier Peter Gutwein for the Bass recount, and it could be until at least the end of May before the Legislative Council had the opportunity to consider the law change.

Tasmanian Greens leader Cassy O'Connor said it would be "unacceptable" for native forestry to continue for the two months that it could take for Parliament to pass it.

A government spokesperson said they were being advised that logging could continue in the interim, however.

Mr Barnett said the validating legislation was intended to "provide certainty" to the industry.

"To be clear, this matter relates to the construction and form of the delegation instrument and does not go to the safety or appropriateness of forestry operations undertaken on-ground," he said.

"This is not the first time that validating legislation has been brought to Parliament and I wish to stress again that this does not go to the safety or appropriateness of forestry operations undertaken on ground."