“I’ll put a girdle ‘round the earth in forty minutes”
William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream
While travelling around the country, I came across yet another little-known wartime story which again highlights the heroics of Australians. This time it involves midget submarines and divers cutting underwater telegraph cables to thwart the Japanese communication efforts towards the end of World War II.… Read more
Because the forestry profession is far from simple and the work highly variable, I have tried to describe what a forester does by outlining the development of the profession in Australia. In Part 1, I outlined the broad principles of forestry and the development of the forestry profession up until WWII.… Read more
What does a forester do? (Part 2) Read More »
While working in Tasmania in the forest industry, I met many people who had competed, or were still competing, in woodchopping events. It is a popular sport, and many chopped competitively as a hobby. It originated in Tasmania and it has produced a lot of world champion axemen, so it was no surprise that many in the state competed regularly.… Read more
Origins of woodchopping as a sport Read More »
There is an interesting 4,000-hectare forestry reserve located just outside Esperance called the Helms Forestry Reserve. It protects one of the largest areas of sandplain heath near Esperance, known as kwongan. It is dominated by banksias, hakeas, grevilleas and woollybush.
Within this reserve is an 800-hectare arboretum named in honour of Andy Helms, a well-respected forester and academic.… Read more
“That lethal cloud rising above Montebello marks the achievement in science and industry in the development of atomic power. [For] good or evil, for peace or war, for progress or destruction. The answer doesn’t lie with Britain alone, but we may have a greater voice in this great decision if we have the strength to defend ourselves and to deter aggression.… Read more
The atomic age arrives in a cloud of dust at a sleepy coastal town Read More »
“Surely there can be no greater cathedral as forests such as those of the karri.” Vincent Serventy
“If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools” Rudyard Kipling
The “defenders of the South West forests” are celebrating the recent announcement by the Western Australian Premier to cease native forest logging by January 2024.… Read more
Who are the real forest saviours in Western Australia? Read More »
This month’s guest blog is by Leigh Titmus, who worked at Surrey Hills between 1978 and 1986.
Leigh grew up as a kid in Devonport through the 1950s and 60s. His father built one of the earliest shacks at Sisters Beach, so almost every weekend, the family would head off there, and they would drive past the Burnie Pulp and Paper mill very often.… Read more
During our travels to the Top End and following on from my earlier blog, ‘Some War Stories’, I have learned more about northern Australia’s involvement during WWII, particularly the bombing of Darwin in February 1942. Growing up in Sydney, I learnt about the Japanese submarine raids in the harbour. Still, I never heard anything about the broader invasion threats to Australia during the war.… Read more
Some more war stories – when war came to Australia Read More »
This blog focuses on two Victorian bush fire disasters 70 years apart. It highlights a failure of governance, a failure to heed fire expert advice, a preoccupation with an emergency response model that has failed in North America and is failing forests and residents in Australia, and an arrogant contempt towards previous bushfire inquiries.… Read more
70 years of bushfires – have the lessons learnt been ignored ? Read More »
