Tarkine
Encyclopedia
The Tarkine is a large wilderness
area in north-west Tasmania
, Australia
. The area has a high concentration of Aboriginal sites and has been described by the Australian Heritage Council
as "one of the world's great archaeological regions". The Tarkine is not formally recognised and in recent decades has featured prominently in the Australian media as a subject of contention between conservationists, and mining and logging interests.
of the name "Tarkineer", which is the Anglicised pronunciation of the Aboriginal tribe who inhabited the Western Tasmanian
coastline from the Arthur River
to the Pieman River
before European colonisation.
, to the south by the Pieman River, and to the west by the Southern Ocean
. The wilderness area covers approximately 3,800 km². It can be entered from several points, with the most common being via Sumac Road from the north and Wynyard
from the north-east, which has an interstate airport and a sealed road into the Tarkine.
wilderness dominated by rainforest in Australia. It contains approximately 1,800 km² of rainforest, around 400 km² of eucalypt
forest and a mosaic of other vegetation communities, including dry sclerophyll forest, woodland, buttongrass moorland, sandy littoral communities, wetlands, grassland and sphagnum communities. Significantly, it is has a high diversity of non-vascular plants (mosses, liverworts and lichens) including at least
151 species of liverworts and 92 species of mosses. Its range of vertebrate fauna include 28 terrestrial mammals, 111 land and freshwater birds, 11 reptiles, 8 frogs and 13 freshwater fish. The Tarkine provides habitat for over 60 rare, threatened and endangered species of flora and fauna.
The large wilderness area comprises a number of wild rivers, exposed mountains, globally unique magnesite and dolomite cave
systems and the largest basalt plateau in Tasmania to have retained its original vegetation.
There are also large sand dune areas extending several kilometres inland. Some of these contain ancient Aboriginal
midden
s.
, which has enabled the State-controlled department Mineral Resources Tasmania to release mining exploration licence areas and grant licences for mining in the Tarkine. The combined result is that the Tarkine has seen decades of logging and mining operations. Aside from this, the Tarkine remains largely pristine. The relatively small number of private properties clustered around the isolated town of Waratah
, and the few private properties that skirt the wilderness area are, generally, not considered significant environmental threats.
From the late 1990s, the area came under increasing national and international scrutiny in a similar vein to the environmental protests surrounding Tasmania's Franklin River
and Queensland
's Daintree Rainforest
. The case for protecting the Tarkine was significantly advanced with the Federal Government’s Forestry Package in 2005. However, no additional part of the Tarkine was formally protected.
allowed the emergency listing to lapse in the face of numerous mining proposals in the Tarkine. This was despite recommendations from the Australian Heritage Council to permanently list the Tarkine. The Australian Heritage Council is due to report on the suitability of the Tarkine as a National Heritage location by the end of September 2011.
of the Tarkine National Coalition, to see the status of the Tarkine elevated to national park
. The prospect of a Tarkine National Park remains likely in light of the Tasmanian Forests Intergovernmental Agreement, which was signed on 7 August 2011, by Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard
and Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings
. The agreement established a $276 million package to transition Tasmania out of native forest logging, while conserving large areas of high conservation value vegetation. Julia Gillard stated that the Agreement would better protect the Tarkine, describing the wilderness area as "very important".
According to the deal, Professor Jonathan West of Australia's Innovation Research Centre will, by the end of 2011, independently assess areas currently considered to be of high conservation value. Legislation will then, possibly, be passed through the Tasmanian Parliament by the end of June 2012 to convert high value areas into formal reserves, such as national parks.
Wilderness
Wilderness or wildland is a natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by human activity. It may also be defined as: "The most intact, undisturbed wild natural areas left on our planet—those last truly wild places that humans do not control and have not developed with...
area in north-west Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The area has a high concentration of Aboriginal sites and has been described by the Australian Heritage Council
Australian Heritage Council
Australian Heritage Council was established on 19 February, 2004 as the Australian body responsible for advising the Australian Government on cultural heritage matters...
as "one of the world's great archaeological regions". The Tarkine is not formally recognised and in recent decades has featured prominently in the Australian media as a subject of contention between conservationists, and mining and logging interests.
Etymology
The term "Tarkine" was coined by conservationists in the 1980s. The word is a diminutiveDiminutive
In language structure, a diminutive, or diminutive form , is a formation of a word used to convey a slight degree of the root meaning, smallness of the object or quality named, encapsulation, intimacy, or endearment...
of the name "Tarkineer", which is the Anglicised pronunciation of the Aboriginal tribe who inhabited the Western Tasmanian
West Coast, Tasmania
The West Coast of Tasmania is the part of the state that is strongly associated with wilderness, mining and tourism, rough country and isolation...
coastline from the Arthur River
Arthur River, Tasmania
Arthur River is the name of both a river and a small township on the northern part of the West Coast of Tasmania, Australia. At the 2006 census, Arthur River and the surrounding area had a population of 121.It is south of the town of Marrawah...
to the Pieman River
Pieman River
The Pieman River is a river on the West Coast of Tasmania, Australia. It was dammed with the 122m high Reece Dam in 1986 - creating Lake Pieman.-Name:...
before European colonisation.
Location
The Tarkine is, on the basis of high conservation values, roughly bounded to the north by the Arthur River, to the east by the Murchison HighwayMurchison Highway
The Murchison Highway runs from the West Coast of Tasmania to Burnie, and was opened on 13 December 1963. The part of the Highway from Waratah to Burnie was known as the Waratah Highway until 1973 at the latest....
, to the south by the Pieman River, and to the west by the Southern Ocean
Southern Ocean
The Southern Ocean comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60°S latitude and encircling Antarctica. It is usually regarded as the fourth-largest of the five principal oceanic divisions...
. The wilderness area covers approximately 3,800 km². It can be entered from several points, with the most common being via Sumac Road from the north and Wynyard
Wynyard, Tasmania
Wynyard is a rural town on the north-west coast of Tasmania, Australia. It lies west of Burnie on the Bass Highway at the mouth of the Inglis River....
from the north-east, which has an interstate airport and a sealed road into the Tarkine.
Natural and archaeological values
The Tarkine represents Australia's largest remaining single tract of Gondwanan rainforest and is the largestwilderness dominated by rainforest in Australia. It contains approximately 1,800 km² of rainforest, around 400 km² of eucalypt
Eucalyptus
Eucalyptus is a diverse genus of flowering trees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Members of the genus dominate the tree flora of Australia...
forest and a mosaic of other vegetation communities, including dry sclerophyll forest, woodland, buttongrass moorland, sandy littoral communities, wetlands, grassland and sphagnum communities. Significantly, it is has a high diversity of non-vascular plants (mosses, liverworts and lichens) including at least
151 species of liverworts and 92 species of mosses. Its range of vertebrate fauna include 28 terrestrial mammals, 111 land and freshwater birds, 11 reptiles, 8 frogs and 13 freshwater fish. The Tarkine provides habitat for over 60 rare, threatened and endangered species of flora and fauna.
The large wilderness area comprises a number of wild rivers, exposed mountains, globally unique magnesite and dolomite cave
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
systems and the largest basalt plateau in Tasmania to have retained its original vegetation.
There are also large sand dune areas extending several kilometres inland. Some of these contain ancient Aboriginal
Tasmanian Aborigines
The Tasmanian Aborigines were the indigenous people of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Before British colonisation in 1803, there were an estimated 3,000–15,000 Parlevar. A number of historians point to introduced disease as the major cause of the destruction of the full-blooded...
midden
Midden
A midden, is an old dump for domestic waste which may consist of animal bone, human excrement, botanical material, vermin, shells, sherds, lithics , and other artifacts and ecofacts associated with past human occupation...
s.
Political History
The vast majority of the Tarkine is administered by the State-controlled entity Forestry TasmaniaForestry Tasmania
Forestry Tasmania is a Tasmanian state government-owned corporation. It runs the state-owned forestry for tourism and logging including the Tahune Airwalk and Upper Florentine Valley.-Controversy:...
, which has enabled the State-controlled department Mineral Resources Tasmania to release mining exploration licence areas and grant licences for mining in the Tarkine. The combined result is that the Tarkine has seen decades of logging and mining operations. Aside from this, the Tarkine remains largely pristine. The relatively small number of private properties clustered around the isolated town of Waratah
Waratah, Tasmania
Waratah is a town in western Tasmania. It was constructed to support a tin mine at Mount Bischoff. The town is built at the top of a waterfall, and water was diverted from the stream to provide water for mine sluicing and processing. At the 2006 census, Waratah had a population of 227.Tin was...
, and the few private properties that skirt the wilderness area are, generally, not considered significant environmental threats.
Early Conservation Movement
The campaign to protect the Tarkine began in the 1960s. A formal conservation proposal was put forward by the then Circular Head Mayor Horace (Jim) Lane for the establishment of a 'Norfolk Range National Park'. Lane's proposal was not realised.From the late 1990s, the area came under increasing national and international scrutiny in a similar vein to the environmental protests surrounding Tasmania's Franklin River
Franklin River
The Franklin River lies in the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park at the mid northern area of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area. Its source is situated at the western edge of the Central Highlands and it continues west towards the West Coast of Tasmania...
and Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
's Daintree Rainforest
Daintree Rainforest
The Daintree Rainforest is a tropical rainforest on the north east coast of Queensland, Australia, north of Mossman and Cairns. At around 1200 square kilometres the Daintree is the largest continuous area of tropical rainforest on the Australian continent...
. The case for protecting the Tarkine was significantly advanced with the Federal Government’s Forestry Package in 2005. However, no additional part of the Tarkine was formally protected.
Proposed Tarkine National Heritage Listing
In December 2009, the Tarkine was listed as a National Heritage Area following an Emergency National Heritge Listing. The Emergency Listing was in response to a proposed Tarkine Road, which would have coursed through old growth forest and detrimentally affected the natural values of undisturbed areas. In December 2010, the incoming Environment Minister Tony BurkeTony Burke
Anthony Stephen 'Tony' Burke is an Australian politician representing the Labor Party, and the current Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities . He first entered public office in 2003 as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council...
allowed the emergency listing to lapse in the face of numerous mining proposals in the Tarkine. This was despite recommendations from the Australian Heritage Council to permanently list the Tarkine. The Australian Heritage Council is due to report on the suitability of the Tarkine as a National Heritage location by the end of September 2011.
Proposed Tarkine National Park
Significant advances have been made by the conservation movement, headed by Scott JordanScott Jordan
Scott Douglas Jordan is a former English footballer.Jordan played for York City when they beat Manchester United 3-0 at Old Trafford in the League Cup in September 1995...
of the Tarkine National Coalition, to see the status of the Tarkine elevated to national park
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
. The prospect of a Tarkine National Park remains likely in light of the Tasmanian Forests Intergovernmental Agreement, which was signed on 7 August 2011, by Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard
Julia Gillard
Julia Eileen Gillard is the 27th and current Prime Minister of Australia, in office since June 2010.Gillard was born in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales and migrated with her family to Adelaide, Australia in 1966, attending Mitcham Demonstration School and Unley High School. In 1982 Gillard moved...
and Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings
Lara Giddings
Larissa Tahireh "Lara" Giddings is an Australian politician and the 44th and current Premier of Tasmania since January 2011...
. The agreement established a $276 million package to transition Tasmania out of native forest logging, while conserving large areas of high conservation value vegetation. Julia Gillard stated that the Agreement would better protect the Tarkine, describing the wilderness area as "very important".
According to the deal, Professor Jonathan West of Australia's Innovation Research Centre will, by the end of 2011, independently assess areas currently considered to be of high conservation value. Legislation will then, possibly, be passed through the Tasmanian Parliament by the end of June 2012 to convert high value areas into formal reserves, such as national parks.
External links
- http://www.tarkine.org The National Tarkine Coalition's not-for-profit website
- Lysis Films - QuickTime Video of Tarkine
- Landscapes of the Soul - Tarkine photos and prose
- Road to Nowhere A review of the video Manifestations, about protests that took place in the Tarkine in 1994/95.