Federal forestries minister Senator Eric Abetz has declared the Wielangta forest fire in south-east Tasmania demonstrates the "folly" of policies that lock-up sections of the wood for protection.

Senator Abetz says the area of the forest affected by fire has been under a moratorium for harvesting and fuel-reduction burns.

"This same area of forest has had a moratorium... over the past few years, while Greens Senator Bob Brown has been taking Federal Court action to stop it being selectively harvested," he said.

"Bushfires don’t abide by forest practices codes. They don’t leave riparian habitat, or wildlife refuges. They burn it all."

The senator said a forest would recover from harvesting in the same way it eventually recovers from bushfire.

"With a much, much lesser impact on native fauna, carbon dioxide emissions and water catchments, as well as, tragically, on property and people," he said.

"If the proposed sustainable selective harvesting and fuel reduction burning had taken place in Wielangta over recent years, there is no doubt that with reduced fuel loads and access tracks, the forest would have stood a much better chance."

"Australians are rightly asking whether everything possible has been done to prevent such fires from being as devastating as they are," he said.