Comment
Vince Hurley
The state government has announced the immediate closure of native forestry, fulfilling one of their key objectives.
The campaign has been driven with military precision by the environment minister, with every aspect aligned to the objective. This includes picking and choosing the science and economics that are used and promoted, the results of surveys and workshops, the media they align with and exploiting the complexity of forest management to broadcast simple negative messages for media consumption.
The result is the decimation of a recognised world-class industry that contributes significantly to Victoria’s economy and employment.
Soon Victorians will be unable to have high-quality hardwood products available at an affordable price.
The growth of manufactured imports from countries with significantly less environmental and social requirements and the exposure to quality, availability and price fluctuations is inevitable. COVID showed sovereign capability should be improved not destroyed.
How different it could have been if the Victorian Government’s objective was to ensure Victorians could continue to have their home-grown timber products. The research they promoted would not use selective assumptions to arrive at predetermined outcomes. Instead, it would reach a conclusion that was complete and balanced. It would show native forestry is only active in 0.04 percent of the forest per annum. All activity takes place in regrowth forests as a result of past harvesting and regeneration and fire events. This activity includes the replanting of all areas.
The forests are managed on a landscape basis to ensure biodiversity, water, soil and environmental values are protected. Forest management is good for climate change by continually building the store of carbon in growing trees and timber products. Without having huge legal and other unnecessary costs, native forestry is a positive contributor to government revenue; and the forest industry is a large contributor to Victoria’s economy.
The media release accompanying the announcement is another example of manipulation of words to achieve the shutdown objective. Delivering certainty for timber workers, that timber is unavailable, and the Government cannot conduct regulatory reform is entirely incorrect. The opposite is true.
Timber workers now do not know what their future is; there is forest resource to enable the current industry to keep producing their quality timber products for Victorians in perpetuity, and regulatory reform is entirely achievable and a key task of governments. This is particularly so when the original intention of the regulation is able to be misinterpreted to achieve an unintended consequence.
Every Victorian is hurt by this decision. People will lose their livelihoods in regional Victoria and in joineries, furniture manufacturers and other metropolitan businesses and the flow-on effects are enormous. Victorians lose access to their own timber products at great cost.
The government’s objective is not environmental, economic, or social. The closing of native forestry is fulfilling a political objective and hurting Victorians for no good reason.
Vince Hurley is the Managing Director of Australian Sustainable Hardwoods, Heyfield.
