the Tarkine

It is characterised by spectacular rainforest scenery, mountain peaks, wind swept coastline, tall eucalypt forests and wild rivers.

The entire area of approximately 450,000 hectares should be dedicated as a National Park reserve.

Already some natural, cultural and historic values of the Tarkine have been recognised by National Estate Listings including the Savage River and Sumac rainforests, the Meredith Range, the Norfolk Range and western coastal region.

"Tarkine" is derived from the name of the original inhabitants of the area, the Tarkiners-an Aboriginal band.

The proposed Tarkine Wilderness Rainforest World Heritage Area covers approximately 350,000 hectares, and contains a wide range of biological, wilderness, geological, landform characteristics, and archaeological sites of outstanding universal value.

These include:

• The largest single tract of rainforest and rainforest wilderness in Australia; incorporating the global stronghold of myrtle-beech.

• Unique geomorphological features; including a magnesite karst system.

• one of the worlds greatest archaeological regions;

• diverse flora and fauna with Gondwanic affinities;

• endemic and threatened species;

• extensive wilderness areas-the context for many of the above.

To qualify for World Heritage Listing an area or site must possess characteristics, qualities and values which can be shown to be of 'outstanding universal value'. The Tarkine is one of those special places which satisfies all four criteria for natural World Heritage listing.

Listing of the Tarkine Wilderness region as World Heritage will ensure the outstanding qualities of this area will be acknowledged and protected.

Landforms and landscape

The varied topography and diversity of vegetation of the Tarkine gives rise to a landscape of great variety and beauty-including coastal dunes, dissected moorlands, river gorges and rainforested mountains.

The Tarkine contains many important landform features. Of particular importance and international significance are the karst (caves etc) developed in magnesite.

The region also contains an outstanding geological display of joint control drainage in the Meredith Range.

Flora

The Tarkine area is rich in flora diversity, including rainforest, tall eucalypt forest, buttongrass moorlands and heathlands. Many of these communities are large enough to be ecologically self-sustaining and they provide essential habitats for threatened species such as the Grey Goshawk and Wedge-tailed Eagle.

It is an outstanding biological resource and a major refuge for Nothofagus (myrtle-beech) dominated rainforest. The finest expression of callindendrous or open rainforest in Tasmania is located on the rich basaltic soils within the Tarkine region.

Fauna

The Tarkine contains a number of animals which have suffered population decline elsewhere such as the Long-nosed Potoroo, Swamp Antechinus, Hooded Plover and the Brown-striped Frog. The area is important as a migratory path for birds such as the Orange-bellied Parrot and the Swift Parrot. The Tarkine is a continuation of the Western Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area and is an important reservoir of species and sub-species vulnerable elsewhere.

Numerous unique invertebrates inhabit the Tarkine region. One outstanding example is the freshwater crayfish, (Asticopsis gouldi) which is the largest freshwater crayfish in the world. This impressive creature can grow up to a metre long, weighing over four kilograms, taking several decades to reach this maturity. Only within a securely protected habitat can this species continue to reach these proportions.

Cultural

There are over 240 known recorded Aboriginal sites in the Tarkine. Each represents an irreplacable record of the activities of the area prior to European invasion. Each site is also valued highly by today's Aboriginal community for a number of reasons including educational, spiritual and cultural values. The fact that many Aboriginal sites have survived the rapid changes to the landscape and environment since Europeans came to Tasmania, is a source of pride and cultural focus for the Tasmanian Aboriginal community.

A number of unique and distinctive site types occur which are rarely found elsewhere. Among these are hut depressions more commonly known as "doughnut middens" which represent the remnants of villages, where bands of up to 50 people lived. Other site types include shell middens, artefact scatters, rock engravings, and stone quarries and arrangements.

Aboriginal sites are non renewable. The Aboriginal community is concerned that sites within the Tarkine may be threatened further by continued development of the area.

The full extent of Aboriginal sites in the Tarkine is unknown at this stage.

Threats

The entire Tarkine region is threatened by inappropriate and exploitative development.

• Logging: under Resource Security Legislation most of the rainforest and eucalypt forest could be logged. Woodchipping and cable logging pose the threat of ongoing destruction to the magnificent forests of the Tarkine and threaten the integrity of the area.

• Fire: the threat of fire from logging and associated roading would be potentially devastating to this sensitive area, and could destroy the natural values of the Tarkine.

• Mining and mineral exploration: in the view of the Wilderness Society the Savage River Mine operations have already disrupted the landscape, contaminated the lower Savage River and increased the risk of fire. Ongoing mineral exploration activity continues in parts of the region.

• Further development of the Heemskirk link road, from Smithton to Zeehan, will destroy the wilderness values of the Donaldson River/Norfolk Range region, provide additional access to extractive industries and increase the risk of fire.

• Continued activity of off-road vehicles is causing further erosion, degradation of archaeological sites, dunes and coastal wetlands.

• Cattle in coastal agistment pose serious threats to dune structures and cultural sites, encouraging the introduction of weeds, pollution of streams and destruction of native vegetation.