TASMANIA'S PULP MILL 
Forest Management
New Reports available
The Commonwealth Government has released two important reports that demonstrate the sustainable management of Australia’s forests.
The first report is from the Bureau of Rural Science Bureau of Rural Science: The Changing face of Australia’s forests. This publication summarises changes in Australia’s forests and forest industry since the National Forest Policy Statement (NFPS) was agreed in 1992.
Australia's State of the Forests Report 2008 was launched by the Hon Tony Burke MP, and Commonwealth Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry on May 21, 2008.
The Report shows that managed native forests offset about 5.5% of total national greenhouse gas emissions in 2005 and that there are a total of 8.5 million hectares of forest certified as being sustainably managed. There is over 30 million hectares of public forests (20% of the total forest area) is managed primarily for protection, including of soil and water values; most is in nature conservation reserves.
You can download the report here: http://adl.brs.gov.au/forestsaustralia/publications/sofr2008.html
You can also down load an extract from last years review of the Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement that examines the promotion of biological diversity that shows a reservation level of the State’s forests at 47% compared to the international benchmark of 10%.
Fast Forest Facts
Whilst the Department of Environment states the pulp mill will only value add pulp wood available for woodchip export, the greatest controversy has been on Tasmania’s forest Management. The following facts are from the 2nd Anniversary Report of the Tasmanian Community Forest Agreement
Area of Tasmania 6.8 million hectares
Area of Tasmania in reserves 2.9 million hectares (44%)
Area of native forest in Tasmania 3.1 million hectares
Area of native forest in reserves 1.4 million hectares (47%)
Area of old-growth forest in Tasmania 1.2 million hectares
Area of old-growth forest in reserves 970 000 hectares (79%)
% of public native forest harvested each year 1%
Area of plantations in Tasmania 200 000 hectares (2.9% of Tasmania)
Tasmanian forest industry turnover $1.3 billion per annum
Number of people employed in forestry in Tasmania 10,700
Both Gunns Limited and Forestry Tasmania report on Sustainable Forest Management and both are certified by the Australian Forest Standard which is part of the PEFC (Program for Environmental Forest Certification. Forestry in Tasmania must comply with the Forest Practices Act and relevant laws such as the Threatened Species Act and the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Act.
Educational resources about forestry in Tasmania are available from the Forest Education Foundation.
Old Growth Forest
The most controversial aspect of forest management in Tasmania is clear felling of old growth forest.
While Gunns Limited has given a clear and unequivocal commitment not to use old growth forests as feed stock to the mill many arguments against the mill are still based on old growth forests.
The various Federal/State inquiries and agreements of the last twenty years has resulted in a three fold increase in the area of reserved land in Tasmania. Consistent with that trend there has been a ignificant increase in the area of old growth forests reserved.
The current target is to reserve 1 million hectares of old growth forests. The current situation is that 0.97 million hectares are in reserve with the balance being negotiated in private land reserves.
Outside these reserves sustainable forest managent for timber production is permitted. Tasmania's veener and high qulaity sawmilling industries depend on small areas of this mature forest is in high demand for solid timber products. The forest is subject to a range of harvesting methods to produce high quality veneer and saw logs as well as pulp wood arising from that harvest.
In 2006 -2007 11,000 hectares of public native forest was harvested, however only 780 hectares of old growth was clear felled in Tasmania's publicly owned forest.
