Australia’s new plantation establishment has doubled, with more than 4,500 new hectares of forests added. That is according to a statement attributed to Julie Collins, Australia’s new Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, who spoke of the importance of boosting plantation size as part of Australia’s National Forestry Day.
“The Government is today announcing funding worth $5.65 million for eight new plantation projects through round 2 of the Support Plantation Establishment program,” Minister Collins said. “The projects will provide long-rotation softwood plantation forests, bolstering Australia’s future timber supply while contributing to meeting Australia’s carbon emission targets.”
“The projects will establish softwood plantations ranging from 40 to 1671 hectares across NSW, Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania. In addition to the 19 projects from round 1 worth over $10 million, these eight new projects bring the total funding awarded through the program to more than $15.7 million.”
Last year, Wood Central reported that at a time when demand for timber was surging, Australia’s plantation estate was in decline, with the national estate now the smallest it had been for more than 20 years.Â
At the time, ABARES —Australian Bureau of Agricultural Economics reported that the decline in plantation size “was due to ongoing conversion of hardwood plantations to other land uses,” with the total plantation area contracting by 28,000 hectares to 1.716 million.
In addition to boosting plantation size, the Albanese government announced that ForestWorks Ltd. will deliver the Forestry Workforce Training Program.
“The Government has invested $10 million to deliver the Forestry Workforce Training Program,” Minister Collins said.
“ForestWorks Ltd will deliver a suite of activities over the next two years to improve access to required qualifications and credentials for the forest and wood products sectors.”
“The program will include a number of pilot projects and trials, including developing and applying stackable micro-credentials, a new school-to-work traineeship transition program, creation of specialised mentorship for Indigenous Australians and women, and improved ways to deliver training to employees in remote and regional Australia.”
