Forestry

The world’s first glue laminated timber made from Australian Blue Gum (Eucalyptus globulus), processed in Warrnambool, Victoria, has been unveiled at Mount Gambier’s new Forestry Centre of Excellence, marking a major breakthrough for plantation forestry and the communities that depend on it.

Australia’s cotton industry ... celebrating its contribution to the milestone set to be reached by Australian agriculture this year, with gross production value to exceed $100 billion – four years ahead of the 2030 target.

Australian agriculture is set to reach a record $101.4 billion in grosspproduction value in 2025-26 before easing in 2026–27, with both prices and output expected to soften. ABARES is forecasting combined agriculture, fisheries and forestry value to top $107.4 billion in 2025-26 – also a record - underscoring the strength of Australia’s primary industries. 

Australian agriculture is growing, adaptable, more productive, and well placed to take advantage of the transition to net zero, according to the latest ABARES Snapshot of Australian Agriculture 2026 Insights paper.

A wildfire burning over five days would do more damage to vegetation and biodiversity in the northern jarrah forest than five decades of climate change has done ..."This forest has survived for some four to five million years. I am confident it can survive for a few decades longer. We humans must recognise that the ecosystem is never static, and be able to live with and accept some level of change": Frank Batini, professional forester and environmental consultant.

Forestry Corporation of NSW has deployed 10 firefighters to South Australia to support firefighting operations following several weeks of assistance in Victoria ... In recent weeks, Forestry Corporation deployed 20 firefighters to Victoria to assist with the Walwa River Road fire in both Field and Incident Management (IMT) positions.

For the purposes of Australia's GHG inventory, bushfires are treated as a event about which we can do nothing and the emissions they produce are not counted. However, perversely, emissions from prescribed or cultural burning and other land management done to minimise bushfire risk are counted and so count against Australia's Net Zero goal.

Michelle Freeman. Victorians are living through another black summer, with fires burning through more than 400,000 hectares of forest and farmland and leaving communities from Natimuk to Walwa confronting loss. The scale of the damage underscores the need to continue evolving how we manage our landscapes to better prepare for fire.

Mat Dalby. More than 120 people rallied in Denmark on Saturday, calling on the State Government to halt a planned summer prescribed burn in the Walpole–Nornalup National Park. The rally of people from Walpole, Denmark and across the Great Southern followed days of escalating concern of the Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attraction's plans threatening the last remaining ancient red tingle forest.

A radiata pine grown in a Southern Highlands State forest is taking pride of place in the foyer of Government House continuing a grand NSW Christmas tradition. For decades, real Christmas trees selected from State forest pine plantations have delighted guests and visitors at the Governor’s residence ... Forestry Corporation has also supplied a 3.5-metre pine to feature at Vaucluse House.

Australia’s combined agriculture, fisheries and forestry production is on track to reach a record-breaking $106.4 billion in 2025–26, according to the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) December quarter reports.

Enough structural timber is expected to be available to build Australian homes until at least 2050, according to an ABARES Insights paper.

A Notice of Motion (NoM) put forward by Clarence Valley Councillor Allison Bryant last week which called for the local government body to formally oppose the Minns Government’s September 7 announcement to end native forest harvesting and establish the Great Koala National Park during the Monthly Ordinary Meeting of Clarence Valley Council (CVC) was carried 7-2.

Tasmanian farmers manage almost a million hectares of forest and are responsible for its fire safety, ecological integrity and long-term health. TasFarmers maintains that private native forests must be actively managed through fuel reduction, cool burns and evidence-based forestry practices that support their natural ecology and community safety.

Timber Towns Victoria (TTV) has visited the Wellington Shire Council region for a 3-day members forum incorporating their annual general meeting and tours through several businesses featuring timber processing, innovation, and economic development.

The Murray Region Forestry Hub recently hosted its managers, representatives from relevant government agencies and industry groups at a conference. A number of items were listed for discussion as well as a packed field trip including the Visy Pulp and Paper Mill, Hyne Timber, Fire impacted plantation regrowth sites and a trip to Ardrossan to see first hand some of the fire infrastructure investment.

The latest national koala population estimates from CSIRO’s National Koala Monitoring Program (NKMP) have revealed a staggering leap in koala numbers that upends years of alarmism. The 2025 CSIRO report estimates the listed population between 398,000 and 569,000, a dramatic rise from the 2024 estimate of just 95,000 to 238,000.  

Forest Fire Management Victoria’s (FFMVic) newest recruits are gearing up for the summer bushfire season, undertaking intensive training camps across the state.

Matt Canavan’s exposé at the recent Senate Estimates, which had the Department of Agriculture’s executives sweating in their seats, deserves wide circulation ... “There’s lots of talk about the need to increase reforestation—effectively, the conversion of agricultural land to forests ..." ... If Matt Canavan is the Senate’s zealot hunter, then Western Australia’s Senator Matthew O’Sullivan is its Maremma the Sheepdog that protects its flock ... In committee, O’Sullivan’s questioning tore open the government’s $139.8 million Sheep Industry Transition Assistance Package ...