The government is disappointed by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee’s decision to reject PM Tony Abbott’s request to de-list 74,000 hectares of protected Tasmanian forest that was added late last year.  Environmental groups, Labor, and the Greens are applauding the decision.

“We’ll be carefully looking at the decision and deciding what's best now,” said the Prime Minister.

“Australia accepts and will consider the decision of the World Heritage Committee,” said Environment Minister Greg Hunt.

The UNESCO World Heritage Committee reportedly spent less than ten minutes on Abbott’s request before brushing it aside, specifically labeling Abbott’s reasoning as “feeble”.  Abbott has long expressed a desire to open the area to logging, and says Australia has “too much locked-up forest” protected from the axes, chain saws, and machinery of mechanized logging.