Zoos Victoria management have been forced by the Department of Primary Industries representatives to either dump or alter its eco-friendly ‘Wipe for Wildlife‘ campaign that encouraged visitors to buy sustainably-sourced paper products.

With the campaign emanating last year from the Healesville Sanctuary, the modus operandi of the project was to build awareness around sustainability. Advising consumers to switch to recycled toilet paper and other paper products that had been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, a voluntary, international sustainability standard for timber has not been met well by authorities.

The problem that has arisen is that the campaign’s message controverts Victorian premier Ted Baillieu’s timber industry action plan, released in December 2011.

Under the plan, the government has heavy-handedly stated that it will not “fund or endorse any organisation that does not also equally recognise an alternative timber certification scheme – the Australian Forestry Standard.”

With protocol not met, Agriculture Minister Peter Walsh reiterates: ‘”Zoos Victoria’s promotion of one forestry standard to the exclusion of another contravened COAG policy.”

Zoos Victoria chief executive Jenny Gray has conceded that, “As an agency of the Victorian Government, Zoos Victoria now follows this policy and is in the process of amending messaging accordingly.”

‘Crapman’, the face of the campaign will spruik no more, and the Zoos Victoria campaign, nominated for a local award from the Australian chapter of the council, has been withdrawn and the website altered to reflect the non-alliance.