DECEMBER 14 - 20, 2022
New president takes the reins By SHANE DOUTHIE
SIXTH generation ‘mountain cattleman’ Cass McCormack was elected president of the Mountain Cattlemen’s Association of Victoria (MCAV) last week. Cass has hit the floor running, already coming out in support of the native timber industry - who have been ordered to cease harvesting after a Supreme Court ruling. “My first message as president is to urge people from regional Victoria to stand up in support of those who continue to be devastated by developments hampering the timber industry,” she said. VicForests ordered the stand-down late last month after Justice Melinda Richards ruled the preharvest surveys were inadequate. Injunctions imposed on harvesting last December had already locked contractors out of many coupes, with hundreds of jobs on the line. ‘’Timber harvesting as conducted in Victoria is fully sustainable while supplying vital resources for the needs of Victorians,” Cass said. “Sustainable public land management has always been the cornerstone of MCAV policy, and this will not change - this includes timber harvesting.” Cass has had to dip her newly minted president’s boots into political waters early in her role but is focused on making a positive change both within her organisation and farther afield. “The management of the High Country has been heading in the wrong direction for years and the Mountain Cattlemen’s knowledge should be utilised to change direction before this opportunity is lost,” she said. “Right now, the bush is green and lush, and most aren’t considering the bushfire danger this will create as the weather dries.
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◆ NEW PRESIDENT: The Mountain Cattlemen’s Association of Victoria has welcomed sixth generation grazier, Cass McCormack, to the role of president. She is pictured with her father and outgoing president, Bruce McCormack. PHOTO: Zoe Philips
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