Timber Towns Victoria (TTV), Media Release, 9 April 2026

Timber Towns Victoria (TTV) the peak body representing the local councils whose communities depend on forest industries, has condemned the Federal Government’s decision to list Alpine Ash and White Ash forests as endangered, warning the listing rewards ideology over evidence and risks making the forest management that these ecosystems most urgently need harder, slower, and more dangerous.

TTV President Cr Karen Stephens said the focus must be on genuine stewardship, not political posturing.

“The primary focus should be on genuine stewardship of the landscape rather than ideological posturing,” Stephens said.

“These forests face real and immediate threats from excessive fuel loads and repeated wildfire. So, this listing actually leads to less management, not more, and will do nothing to protect them.”

The listing took effect on 20 March 2026 under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth), has drawn sharp criticism from forest scientists and the supply chain of timber products. The Federal Government’s own Draft Conservation Advice released for public consultation in December 2024 recorded that less than five per cent of Alpine Ash Forest distribution has been lost since 1750, leaving approximately 95 per cent of pre-settlement communities intact across a 720,000-hectare range throughout south-eastern Australia.

In its formal submission to the government, TTV warned that the conservation advice was biased, rushed, and overly reliant on the work of a single researcher, while ignoring other scientific research and recent field evidence. The submission cited a stark example of declining management capacity: where 70 personnel were once stationed at Connors Plain north of Licola during summer months in the 1960s and 1970s, today one or two staff in an office in Heyfield are responsible for overseeing tens of thousands of hectares of forest.

TTV’s submission also flagged the critical importance of seed collection, noting that Alpine Ash seeds require 15 to 25 years to mature, leaving younger trees entirely unable to regenerate after fire. The Mt Buffalo area, now a national park, has experienced five intense fires since its designation a century ago. Each fire occurring roughly a decade apart, resulting in the loss of all existing seed trees and a dramatic alteration of the ecosystem. TTV warned this pattern is the direct consequence of a lock-up-and-leave approach applied to some of the most fire-prone country on earth.

The submission also drew on findings from the 2024 International Fire Behaviour and Fuels Conference in Canberra, which found the current split between preparation and response sits at roughly five per cent planning and prevention against 95 per cent firefighting and recovery, a ratio TTV described as completely inverted from what is needed to protect Alpine Ash forests in the face of a changing climate.

“We wish to extend an invitation to the Threatened Species Scientific Committee panel members to participate in a tour of the Alpine Ash forests in Eastern Victoria and gain a real understanding from within the forests of what is actually happening on the ground.” — Cr Karen Stephens, President, Timber Towns Victoria

TTV is calling on the Federal Government to provide public land managers, Traditional Owner groups, researchers and regional communities with clear guidance on how the listing will operate in practice; and to guarantee it will not slow, restrict or complicate the active management on which both the forests and the communities surrounding them depend. Stephens said TTV stands ready to facilitate that engagement on the ground.

About Timber Towns Victoria

Timber Towns Victoria (TTV) is the peak local government body representing councils across Victoria whose communities are sustained by the forest and timber industries. TTV advocates for policy settings that support sustainable forest management, regional employment and the long-term prosperity of the towns and families that depend on working forests.

Quick links

• Timber Towns Victoria Welcomes 58c Fuel Relief for Timber Haulage – Timber Towns Victoria – 2 April 2026
• World First Glulam Made from Aussie Blue Gum a Win for Victoria’s Timber Towns – Timber Towns Victoria – 10 March 2026
• Timber Towns Victoria Welcomes Qantas-Backed Plan to Turn Green Triangle Forest Waste into Jet Fuel – Timber Towns Victoria 6 March 2026