Members of the South Brooman community and Greens councillors are disappointed debate over logging in fire affected areas was shut down at a council meeting on Tuesday night.
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At the Shoalhaven City Council development and environment committee on Tuesday, October 6 Greens Cr Kaye Gartner brought forward a motion calling on council to write to MP Shelley Hancock and the NSW Environment Minister Matt Kean about community concerns over logging in fire affected forests.
But several councillors, Crs Andrew Guile, Mitchell Pakes, Bob Proudfoot, Patricia White and Cr John Well, voted to indefinitely deffer debate on the motion.
Mayor Amanda Findley said there was a number of issues deeply concerning the community.
"Forestry want to close down Sheep Track Road, a major road which leads to the Blueberry Farm," Cr Findley said.
"It was absolutely trashed over the summer, they basically lost a whole years production, they're coming back into their busy season and closing down the major road is a real issue for them."
She said it was "appalling" that animals and those that rely on the forest are being hammered.
"The NSW Government once again needs to take control of the situation - do a stock take around the ecological damage that has been done, look at a rescue package for the workers of those industries and not let them work in dangerous burnt forests that need to be retained.
Cr Findley said there was also a human cost to the logging.
"We've got a very small population of people who live there, who stayed, fought in the bushfires, looked after the forests and they really feel deeply the mental anguish of seeing the logging trucks turn up to destroy what is left of the forest that may be alive.
South Brooman resident Takesa Frank said the community wants to give time for the forest to recover.
"12 months ago 85 per cent of the bush land was burnt there and now forestry is coming in and logging it," she said.
"Our first aim is to stop logging until the forest can regenerate, because the forest hasn't recovered from the fires.
"And yes you may go into the forest and see regrowth but that regrowth doesn't mean that tree will survive.
"Our long-term goal is to stop native logging in the South Brooman area because in the Shoalhaven we don't have much bushland left and this is one of our biggest bushland areas and it's getting taken away for firewood."
She fired back at councillors who voted to prevent debate on the issue and they had brought motions in the past advocating to the NSW Government.
"They say they're not an advocacy group but there have been numerous motions that have been put up just like ours but on different issues," she said.
"It's disappointing the council won't support the community in the Brooman area."