VANGUARD - Expressing the viewpoint of the Communist Party of Australia (Marxist-Leninist)
For National Independence and Socialism • www.cpaml.org
For generations, Australia’s natural resources have been plundered by foreign bourgeois interests. As the nation currently playing the largest role in preventing our true independence, it should come as no surprise that the United Sates plays a large hand in this.
Jarrah forest is a unique ecosystem consisting of tall, open forest dominated by the Jarrah tree Eucalyptus marginata. This ecosystem can be found in exactly one location on the entire planet, in the Southwest Botanical Province of Western Australia. American aluminium giant Alcoa, which is based in the state of Pennsylvania, has been mining the land this ecosystem sits on for bauxite since the 1960s. A new scientific review published in the journal Restoration Ecology has revealed that damage to the affected land may be permanent.
Alcoa is officially required to rehabilitate the land it mines, but hasn’t completed this for any of the 280 square kilometres it has cleared. The company claims that the land it has mined can be restored, but the new review casts doubt on this, describing Alcoa’s efforts as “substandard” and on a “poor to declining trajectory”. Endangered species affected include Carnaby's black cockatoos, quokkas, and western ringtail possums.
Jess Beckerling, executive director of Conservation Council WA, stated that it is “absurd” that Alcoa is permitted to continue evading environmental legislation, adding that “once these forests are gone, they’re gone forever”. Of course, none of the company’s key figures in Pittsburgh care about this. Even back in America, Alcoa has been criticised for its environmental record, and in 2008 was ranked 15th among corporations emitting airborne pollutants in the United States. For comparison, Boeing ranked 47th.
At both the state and federal level, Australia’s so-called “leaders” allow the natural ecosystems of our landmass to be torn up and trampled over for the sake of profit, by both foreign and domestic interests. While efforts can and should be made to slow down this ecological tragedy under the current system, only an independent and socialist Australia will be capable of ensuring the permanent preservation and recovery of our environment.