As politicians send more Australian jobs overseas, and we produce fewer and fewer manufactured goods, we are going to rely more heavily on primary industry and mining. Get over if, lady, and stick to your day job.

A more scholarly article on this topic of Queensland deforestation appeared on The Conversation last week. After questioning it via the comments forum, its author (Noel Preece) provided some important perspective as follows:

In 2015-16, about one third of the Queensland land clearing was of woody regrowth on areas that had already been formerly cleared one or more times since 1988; another third was of non-woody vegetation (ie. herbland and grassland); and the final third was of remnant forest and woodland.

This latter area of remnant forest/woodland clearing was apparently 138,000 ha. which is pretty significant, but far less that the 1 million hectares implied by this article. Given this reduced figure of never-before cleared forest/woodland, is Australia still in the world's top ten deforesters??

I agree, management of forests is critical for all the obvious reasons. But the predominant clearing in Qld, is in mulga country.

This country is unique, and benefits from clearing. Regeneration supplies stock feed and the mulga forests improve themselves by the process of clearing. But not without strict farming management, that assists the process of regeneration.

It seems the country has to make a decision whether it wants to continue with mass immigration and clearing forests, or reduce immigration to a few thousand a year and have nice rivers and natural forests all over the place.

Australia's population growth, for that 'Big Australia' that the electorate opposes (as if Canberra cares about what happens in the States!), is higher than India's. That is not factoring in the large floating population of 'visitors', who also require housing and other infrastructure.

What about a cut in immigration?
'NOT FULL, BUT NOT FUNCTIONING: Why Australia needs to start talking about its population growth'

https://www.businessinsider.com.au/australia-population-growth-challenges-2017-7

http://dicksmithpopulation.com/

Next, what about the Greens' opposition to dams?