Timber

The whole landscape needs maintenance by mild fire. But academics and fire chiefs talk of asset protection zones, strategic zones and management zones with different fire regimes. They just don’t get it. Firebreaks don’t work in extreme weather. They can’t stop firestorms and long-distance ember showers. If you need to reduce accumulated fuel, you haven’t been maintaining the landscape properly.

Peter Rutherford. The Sydney Morning Herald, the Age and other outlets published an article regarding a freedom of information (FOI) request lodged by the South East Timber Association on 28 April 2021. The initial request was for emails and letters between Professor David Lindenmayer and 17 journalists and 4 other parties ... It is flattering that the named journalists and Professor Lindenmayer are so overwhelmed by the FOI request that they have made a national news story. As every single exchange between the Professor and the journalists has been redacted, what is the point of the story?

Renewable energy and renewable timber may soon be produced side-by-side, with the passage today of legislation to enable clean energy developments such as wind energy to be established in State forest pine plantations. NSW Parliament passed amendments to the Forestry Act 2012 as part of the Energy Legislation Amendment Bill to facilitate the opportunity to establish renewable energy infrastructure in State forest pine plantations.

Emerging green energy powerhouse  Sweetman Renewables Ltd  has announced an expansion of its three business divisions after the recent closure of multiple deals, putting it centre stage of the green energy revolution. After a successful pre-IPO raising, the NSW company is expanding its three business divisions of hydrogen production, biomass supply and high-quality timber products.

With just two days’ notice, community volunteers at the heart of the Koondrook Perricoota co-design welcomed a shiny entourage of politicians, bureaucrats and media. The whistlestop tour was part of a $330 million funding announcement with no less than five state and federal politicians ... The Koondrook Perricoota project has been a white elephant of government spending with the $120 million over-designed project sitting idle.

The Tasmanian Government welcomes the announcement by the Federal Government to help grow and incentivise the plantation estate and support jobs in Tasmania ... unlocking the carbon farming market ‘water rule’ in the South of the State will help encourage private forester participants to fully participate in the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) across the State, including making the market more accessible to small scale landholders.

In July 2020, the Government simplified access to carbon funding for forestry projects across five plantation growth regions. The Government is expanding access for four new regions in Tasmania, Gippsland (Victoria), the Green Triangle (Victoria) and Kangaroo Island (South Australia).

Australia’s commercial plantation estate stood at 1.8 million hectares in 2019-20 according to statistics released by ABARES. ABARES Acting Executive Director, Dr Jared Greenville, said the report shows the softwood estate remained relatively stable at about one million hectares. “However, the hardwood estate declined by about 200 thousand hectares compared to the previous estimate for 2014-15," Dr Greenville said.

WA Forestry Minister Dave Kelly has introduced a Bill to amend the Forest Products Act 2000, which will allow the Forest Products Commission (FPC) to trade in carbon assets ... Carbon capture or sequestration in trees such as renewable pine plantations, is one of the most effective ways to remove carbon dioxide, one of the main greenhouse gases causing climate change, from the atmosphere.

New research from the University of Wollongong, a partner at the NSW Bushfire Research Hub, has found climate change will expose larger areas of forest in coastal NSW to higher frequency and more intense fires, amplifying the changes to fire regimes brought about by the 2019/20 fires ... Amongst other findings: Previous timber harvesting did not increase the fire extent or severity of the 2019/20 fires. However, there is potential for cumulative impacts in harvested landscapes that are subject to fire, particularly in the next 5 to 10 years.

There was nothing new or unexpected about the recently announced NSW Natural Resources Commission research on timber harvesting and koalas ... There’s nothing in the NRC report that actually deserves a tick. It’s a well-established historical and scientific fact that koalas are an irruptive species which responds positively to soft new growth ... Declining trees continuously resprout soft young growth until they eventually run out of resources. Koalas breed up in declining forests.

Timber Towns Victoria welcomes a motion calling on the Victorian Government to table all documents relating to the closure of the native timber industry ... “Full, open and transparent information is needed that provides assurances to communities, workers and all sectors of the industry that decisions have been made based on evidence, and in the best interest of all Victorians. This decision has far reaching consequences that need to be fully understood and debated:” TTV President and Glenelg Shire Deputy Mayor Cr Karen Stephens.

Timber NSW welcomes research conducted over three years released by the Natural Resource Commissioner and NSW Chief Scientist, Professor Hugh Durrant-Whyte who states that, “koala density was higher than anticipated in the surveyed forests and was not reduced by selective harvesting.” “This very significant finding totally vindicates the skilful ability of the forest managers to care for the land under their responsibility and protect koalas,” said Timber NSW CEO Maree McCaskill.

Research released into koala response to forestry has found that the nutritional quality of trees is critical for koala survival and selective harvesting did not have an adverse impact upon koala numbers on surveyed NSW north coast state forests ... These findings have emerged from a three-year research program independently overseen by the NSW Natural Resources Commission.

Tania Maxwell MP has opposed legislation that would adversely affect the timber industry in Northern Victoria. The Forests Legislation Amendment (Compliance and Enforcement) Bill 2019 will increase opportunities for prosecution against VicForests contractors in a move Ms Maxwell said was unnecessary and excessive.

The Tasmanian Government is continually monitoring new scientific research to ensure the way we regulate forestry is contemporary and consistent with best practice. The Government takes bushfire management and mitigation incredibly seriously and is taking a number of important steps to manage future risk and keep our communities safe. The Government’s position, that actively managing our forests can markedly reduce fuel loads, is supported by a significant number of scientific publications.

Up to 60,000 tonnes of softwood logs will start to be shipped off Kangaroo Island to support South Australia’s forestry sector and booming housing construction industry, with applications to the Construction Softwood Transport Assistance Program (CSTAP) now open. The CSTAP is jointly funded by the Morrison Coalition Government and Marshall Liberal Government and provides assistance to freight bushfire-affected softwood logs salvaged from Kangaroo Island to the South Australian mainland and then to sawmills with immediate capacity to process structural timber.

Tasmanian fine timber reclaimed from the depths of Lake Pieman and crafted into artistic furniture by London-based Tasmanian designer Brodie Neill, will be on display to around 115,000 people at London Craft Week.

The professional association representing some 1,000 forest scientists, researchers and forest land managers in Australia has welcomed the paper  Indigenous knowledge and the shackles of wilderness  by Associate Professor and Wiradjuri man Michael-Shawn Fletcher. The Institute of Foresters of Australia and Australian Forest Growers President Bob Gordon said the paper provided an opportunity for solution focused dialogue regarding how we manage our forests, and highlighted the need to engage and work closely with Traditional Owners.

There is much debate within the scientific community regarding the relationship between bushfire and forestry but what is not debated is the overwhelming impact climate change is having on the frequency and intensity of severe weather events and resulting bushfires. In the past 50-years there has been a 40% increase in very high fire danger days, and this is set to triple in some parts of Victoria by the end of the century according to the International Journal of Wildland Fire.