NEW rules that severely limits access to firewood for residents of the Moira Shire, particularly those in the Barmah and Nathalia area, have been imposed.
In further firewood collections rules that came into force on March 1, residents of Moira Shire are now banned from accessing firewood at their nearest designated firewood collection point close to Rushworth.
Instead, residents reliant on firewood to heat their homes and cook their meals in towns such as Barmah face up to a near three and a half hour round trip to collect their wood at Swanpool.
The extra laws have been condemned by The Liberal Member for Northern Victoria Wendy Lovell.
Speaking during the adjournment debate in State Parliament this week, Ms Lovell said the omission of Moira Council as an authorised LGA to collect firewood at points like Rushworth was blatantly unfair considering the lack of conventional energy sources such natural gas throughout the shire.
Ms Lovell said Moira Shire towns like Barmah do not have a natural gas supply and residents have been collecting firewood locally for decades.
Ms Lovell called on the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D’Ambrosio to immediately reverse the new firewood collection rules and allow Moira Shire residents to collect firewood from government firewood collection areas in designated Victorian State Forests
