The Bob Brown Foundation (BBF) has been banned from forest protest action across Tasmania and threatened with fines due to what the State Government says are "unsafe" behaviours — but the veteran environmentalist says protesters "will not be coerced" into stopping.

Key points: Protesters from the Bob Brown Foundation gathered in early February after the government-owned Sustainable Timbers Tasmania company began harvesting trees in an area of the Tarkine Forest

Protesters from the Bob Brown Foundation gathered in early February after the government-owned Sustainable Timbers Tasmania company began harvesting trees in an area of the Tarkine Forest The state's Work Health and Safety Regulator has now sent a notice to the foundation warning that alleged unsafe activities by protesters meant they had to "cease the carrying out forest protest activity throughout the state of Tasmania"

The state's Work Health and Safety Regulator has now sent a notice to the foundation warning that alleged unsafe activities by protesters meant they had to "cease the carrying out forest protest activity throughout the state of Tasmania" Failure to comply could result in penalties ranging from $100,000 to $500,000, the foundation was told

The activist group received an advisory from Tasmania's work health and safety regulator Mark Cocker on Thursday afternoon that prohibited activities deemed to be a safety risk until further notice — with the threat of potential fines ranging from $100,000 to $500,000.

Earlier this month, protesters rallied to two sites in the state's north west — at the Boco forest, where the Tasmanian Government-owned Sustainable Timber Tasmania company had announced it was to begin "selective harvesting of specialty timber", and at Que River.

The government said "unsafe workplace behaviours" by Bob Brown Foundation protesters had "caused significant angst in the community". ( Supplied: Bob Brown Foundation )

Protests will go on, Brown says

Bob Brown said WorkSafe's letter was the result of "right-wing extremists dictating to Government and getting Government to take action" against protesters.

"We are in an end game, with forests around the world and wildlife extinctions at record levels, it is expected that those who want to further exploit it and destroy what is left of the natural world will take extraordinary and unprecedented action," Mr Brown told ABC Radio Hobart today.

He accused WorkSafe Tasmania of "doing the Government's political bidding" — but said protesters would not yield.

"I am not going to be coerced by a bureaucratic division which is a political fix by Premier [Peter] Gutwein and his government, which is totally against the spirit of Australia's democratic freedom."

"We know that this is coming but we are going to stand up to it because that is the right thing to do. We'll be seeking legal advice and we'll be continuing our protest."

The ban was an "outrageous intrusion into the rights of every Tasmanian", Bob Brown said. ( Supplied: Bob Brown Foundation )

Mr Brown said the Government's action was a "move that would do President [Vladimir] Putin's Moscow proud" and was a "snub" to the High Court finding over the Tasmanian Government's attempt to introduce anti-protest laws, which were found in 2017 to be unconstitutional because they breached the right to freedom of political communication.

Bob Brown was the face of the Tasmanian No Dams campaign in the 1980s. ( ABC News )

He said the WorkSafe notice would extend to all protest actions across the state, not just those within forests.

"This is an outrageous intrusion into the rights of every Tasmanian … and it goes beyond the Tarkine, [this affects] all environmental protests," he said.

Mr Brown made reference to the infamous Franklin blockade over the dam proposal for Tasmania's Gordon River in the late 1970s and 1980s, which was abandoned after ongoing environmental protests and blockades.

"Had this [WorkSafe letter] been handed to the protesters at the Franklin, [it] would be dammed and dead," Mr Brown said.

A moratorium on logging in specified areas of the Tasmanian forests end in April 2020. ( ABC News: Stephen Smiley )

No prompting from Government, safety boss says

Speaking in response to Mr Brown on ABC Radio Hobart, Mark Cocker said the action taken by him as the state's work health and safety regulator was about the safety risks to protesters and forestry workers.

WorkSafe said the activities of protesters, such as "tree-sits", were unsafe. ( ABC News )

"[The foundation] meets the definition of a business … consequently they have certain duties that they owe to their workers and others in workplaces that they may be undertaking activities within," Mr Cocker said.

He confirmed it was "the first time" such action had been taken against a protest group — but said it was initiated by the regulator, without prompting from the Government.

"I've had no contact from Government, no advice. Nil, none whatsoever."

Mr Cocker said his agency supported the "right to protest", but that it "needs to be done safely" — which meant "not exposing people to the risks of death or injury, not climbing on to items of plant [machinery], not chaining themselves to boom gates, not climbing trees".

He rejected Mr Brown's suggestion the issuing of the letter was a "political fix" and said he had personally visited protest sites in Tasmania.

Mr Cocker said the foundation had "14 days to lodge an appeal" over the matter — and said WorkSafe Tasmania had "assets in the area at the moment" to investigate safety at sites.

WorkSafe Tasmania had "assets in the area at the moment" to investigate safety at sites, the regulator warned. ( Supplied: Dan Broun )



In a joint statement, Attorney-General Elise Archer and Resources Minister Guy Barnett said they were "aware and concerned that the unsafe workplace behaviours of the Bob Brown Foundation have caused significant angst in the community and referred the matter to Worksafe Tasmania".

The Government said it "strongly supports free speech and the right to protest", but "threats, trespassing and endangering workers is completely unacceptable".

A moratorium on logging in specified areas expires in April this year, with some saying they are fearful of a revival of the so-called "forest wars" of Tasmania's 1970s and 1980s.