Australian timber industry news

The extraordinary height of the world’s tallest tropical trees does not make them more vulnerable to drought than smaller trees, a new study has revealed. Source: Timberbiz The research overturns a widely held and untested scientific belief that the higher a tree grows, the harder it becomes to move water from the soil to its leaves – potentially increasing its vulnerability to drought stress. The international team, led by researchers at Cardiff University and the University of Exeter, studied five species of dipterocarps in the rainforests of Malaysian Borneo, observing how the trees adapted their woody anatomies as they grew to ensure a regulated water supply from root to leaf. Their findings, published in the Journal Science, reveal the tallest rainforest trees suffer no more than smaller trees during drought events, challenging decades of ecological theory which the team says must now be re-evaluated. Understanding tall trees is vital, because the tallest 1% store more than half of above-ground carbon in forests. These trees are therefore rare and play an important role in the planet’s rainforests capacity to combat climate change by storing and absorbing carbon. “As a tree becomes taller, keeping its leaves hydrated becomes more challenging. Existing predictions suggest an impaired hydraulic system places them at higher risk of dying due to drought. That prediction is included in some models of climate-change impacts, and our study suggests this may not be correct,” said lead author Dr Paulo Bittencourt from Cardiff University’s School of Earth and Environmental Sciences. Reaching heights of up to 100 metres tall, Dipterocarps dominate the rainforests of southeast Asia, storing vast amounts of carbon and helping to protect and shape their surrounding ecosystems. The researchers witnessed how these colossal trees protected themselves against the effects of drought by widening their internal water carrying vessels and adjusting their leaf physiology. “Trees contain lots of thin, hollow vessels and like drinking through a straw they draw water upwards by creating low pressure at the top,” said the study’s co-author Professor Lucy Rowland from the University of Exeter. “Unlike drinking straws, these vessels have evolved intricate adaptations that can maintain the water in liquid form, even under the extreme low pressures required to move it above 10 metres. “However, a widely accepted theory suggests that in tall trees, the sheer length of vessels and the effects of gravity limit water transport, photosynthesis and growth. “Our results challenge this by showing that the hydraulic systems of very tall Dipterocarp trees are perfectly evolved for their height and should not suffer more than small Dipterocarp trees exposed to the same drought conditions.” The researchers examined Dipterocarp trees ranging from 7 to 71 metres tall in Malaysian Borneo and measured a variety of characteristics at multiple positions along each tree. They found taller trees compensate for their height in various ways, including water-carrying vessels that grow wider nearer the ground and leaves which have adapted to withstand greater water stress before wilting. They also measured trunk growth rates before, during and after the strong El Niño drought period of 2023-2024. “As a Malaysian researcher co-authoring this study, showing that even the tallest of these trees are hydraulically resilient to drought is a finding I hope will strengthen the case for protecting these forests under a changing climate,” said co-author Palasiah Jotan, a Malaysian PhD student studying in The Czech University of Life Sciences. The research team included Sabah Forestry Department (Malaysia), the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and the University of Aberdeen, as well as institutions from the Czech Republic, Spain, Brazil and the USA. More research is now needed to investigate the hydraulic systems and drought resilience of other tall trees and so we are expanding this work to test its generality across the tropics, repeating, for example, in the giant Amazon trees.

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Over the centuries, Europe’s forests have been optimised for timber production. The result is often very orderly, uniform stands lacking old, decaying trees or natural clearings. This monotony can pose a problem for biodiversity. Source: Timberbiz Researchers from the Biocentre at Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU) in Bavaria, Germany, together with researchers from the Universities of Marburg and Munich and the Bavarian Forest National Park, have now investigated in the BETA FOR project how targeted interventions to restore a more varied forest structure affect the diversity of bats and birds. The results have been published in the journal Current Biology. The team led by forest ecologist Professor Jörg Müller shows that when humans create gaps in the forest canopy and leave deadwood lying on the forest floor, this increases the diversity of both species groups at the forest landscape level. However, birds and bats react differently to changes in their habitat. Birds behave like homebodies: they occupy fixed territories if they find everything they need there – from nesting sites to food. They benefit when their established forest area has a structure that is as complex as possible, with deadwood and gaps. Bats, on the other hand, are like commuters: in a single night they cover long distances, visiting various ‘specialist shops’ along the way. Sometimes they hunt insects in a dark, dense corner of the forest; at other times they use light-filled gaps as entry corridors. For them, it is important that the individual sections of forest differ spatially from one another. Which species appeared The Würzburg study shows how diversity increases through gaps in the canopy and deadwood. In the case of bats, an average of two new species were found in more disordered forests. “That sounds like a small number, but it is actually significant because there are only 25 bat species in Germany in total,” says PhD student Clara Wild, the study’s first author. The more structurally diverse forests attracted species such as the northern bat or the parti-coloured bat, for example. Both otherwise prefer open terrain and are rather rare in dense, uniform forests. Birds benefited particularly strongly from local interventions, such as artificially created forest gaps with deadwood. In their case, it was primarily so-called functional diversity that increased – that is, species with very distinct lifestyles were added – such as deadwood specialists like various endangered woodpecker species. The researchers conducted the study in six regions in Germany: near Lübeck, in the Saarland, in the University of Würzburg’s forest, near Passau, in the Hunsrück-Hochwald National Park and in the Bavarian Forest National Park. In total, they studied 234 precisely defined forest plots measuring 50 by 50 metres. There, they deliberately manipulated the forest to create more diverse structures: in some areas they created gaps in the canopy, in others they placed deadwood such as tree stumps or fallen trunks. They then studied how species diversity changed over the following four to seven years. To find out which animals live in the forest plots, the researchers used acoustic monitoring. At times when the animals are most active, recorders captured their calls or songs. These invisible spies monitored the forest over a three-month period without the animals being disturbed by human presence. In this way, the research team identified a total of 17 bat and 72 bird species. “Our results show that we can promote biodiversity even in previous monotonous, species-poor forests,” explains Clara Wild. “Through small interventions that increase structural diversity, we can create valuable niches. This makes the forest more diverse and attracts pest controllers such as birds and bats alike.” The new findings provide further guidance for the forestry sector. “A structurally rich forest is much more resilient to climate change thanks to its diversity,” says Jörg Müller. For forestry operations, this means having the courage to leave gaps. “Leaving deadwood in the forest may cost some timber yield in the short term, but it ensures the long-term stability of the entire ecosystem.” Publication: Restoring structural complexity in temperate forests increases bat and bird diversity. Current Biology, 20 May 2026, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2026.04.058

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Wildfires in recent years have ravaged millions of hectares of forest land, destroyed thousands of homes and claimed hundreds of victims. Globally, nearly all of the worst years for forest fires on record have occurred since 2020. Source: Timberbiz And fires are now the largest driver of forest loss around the world. Urgent and coordinated action is required to prevent further devastation, but with a number of factors fuelling the intensity of the fires – including climate change impacts and human activity – there is no one easy answer. But here’s what we do know: responsible forest management helps mitigate fire risks and protects communities and ecosystems from wildfires’ devastating impacts. FSC’s core principles require that forest managers assess risks related to natural hazards, including wildfires, and that they implement activities that help mitigate those risks. In practice, these activities may look different in each country, depending on the environmental conditions, risks and characteristics of each region. FSC’s national forest stewardship standards for different countries account for these differences. For example, in northern Spain, where the Devesa da Rogueira became the country’s first forest to receive FSC certification in 2020, community members who managed the forest regularly cleared vegetation that could fuel fires. Two years later, a large wildfire scorched more than 11,000 hectares in the area but left the Devesa da Rogueira forest largely untouched. In Guatemala, communities have invested in patrolling the boundaries of FSC-certified concessions, build and maintain fire gaps and consistently monitor the area through GPS technology and the use of drones. A 2018 study found the managed forest lands had practically no fire incidents over the span of a decade. Portugal’s 2017 wildfires, which scorched through more than 500,000 hectares and killed more than 120 people, also highlighted the critical need for enhanced forest management activities and led to a variety of management initiatives since then. In FSC-certified forests there, managers have for years proactively worked on responsible forest management, implementing actions to increase fire resistance and ecosystem resilience, including by controlling invasive species and promoting the regeneration of native species. Forest management practices around the world that can help prevent fires can also include procedures such as controlling visitor activities, removing trash, creating space that firefighters can use in the event of a rapid fire, and maintaining buffer zones between public roads. Across the world, FSC certification means that forests are managed in ways that protect ecosystems and enhance forest resilience – because healthier forests not only help reduce the risks of high-severity wildfires but also allow for ecosystems’ faster recovery.

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Swedish furniture company IKEA says it has ‘nothing to hide’ with its forestry operations and is proud of what it is doing in New Zealand. RNZ reported in December that rural communities were concerned about the extent of new forestry plantings in in Central Hawke’s Bay. Locals pointed to worries about fire risk and the loss of jobs and communities due to the land use change from farming to forestry.Source: RNZ Earlier this month, IKEA gave media and some farmers a tour of two forestry blocks. Ingka Investments Forestland country manager Kelvin Meredith told RNZ that IKEA was proud of its work in New Zealand. “You know, we’re doing something different. We’re doing large set asides, we’re passionate about biodiversity and different species. We’ve got nothing to hide. We’re an open book. “We don’t need to wave the flag how great we are, but we like to think we’re a good neighbour, and we communicate well,” Meredith said. He also addressed concerns about job and community losses, saying IKEA was employing locals for planting and pruning, and on many properties had subdivided off farmland and houses to keep people living in the area. Since August 2021, IKEA’s parent company Ingka Investments has been buying farmland to convert to forestry, and existing forestry blocks around New Zealand as part of IKEA’s sustainability strategy. IKEA owns 500,000 hectares of forests around the world, and 43,000 hectares in New Zealand. In Central Hawke’s Bay, IKEA has converted six farms into trees since 2021, which it believes makes it the largest forestry owner in the district. More than 1.8 million hectares of New Zealand is planted in pine trees with many farms having been converted since 2008 to earn carbon credits after the Emissions Trading Scheme was introduced. However, IKEA told RNZ none of its trees have been planted for carbon credits, although they may look at ‘some form of offsetting in the future’.   The first block on the tour is about 15 minutes from Waipukurau, where IKEA bought 850 hectares in 2025. The forestry site borders a large wetland swamp area, and forest manager Blake Jones told RNZ they were investing in the wetland and also creating a 10 hectare ‘setback’ of native trees. “The long-term vision is to have this whole wetland… planted on the boundaries right around it and have it as a beautiful wetland that serves as a bit of a bit of a sink for this whole catchment. “You’ve just got nutrients, sediment, water retention … the wetland serves as a bit of a filter for the environment,” he said. Further down the road is a 650-hectare block of two-year-old pine trees near Wallingford Station. Ingka Investments forestland country manager Kelvin Meredith said the company has subdivided off some of the best farmland and buildings. “We try and keep, in a lot of situations like this property, 100 hectares that the farm owner still owns. “Wallingford Station, he owned a big chunk of land and he’s still there, his family’s still there. “We’ve subdivided off and kept the houses, another young family’s moved in. Their kids are going to the local schools. “A lot of the angst that’s been created is that we shift the profile of the community – the rhetoric is we destroy the community. We don’t. We change a little bit of the dynamic,” he said. Ingka Investments forestland operations manager Dylan Foster said the company has invested in growing timber in New Zealand because it’s stable, safe and low corruption, and has well researched production capacity for commercial forestry. When asked if IKEA planned to convert more farmland to forestry, Foster said that was not its strategy as IKEA needed a variation of different tree ages in its portfolio. “I wouldn’t say there’s a plan to… I think if the right farm came up, we’d definitely look at, but I can say the focus is more actually on standing forests, just to mix our age class up,” he said. Of the 42,705 hectares of land bought by IKEA in New Zealand, 23,838 hectares was converted from farmland to forestry, while 17,175 hectares was existing forestry. And of the total estate, 31,500 is productive forestry and the rest is in set asides which include riparian, indigenous vegetation, and roading. Foster said 60% of the timber would end up on the export market to China, India or Korea, while the other 40% goes to domestic markets. ‘We are not anti-forestry’ There is no nationwide database showing who owns what land and if its use has changed, so several years ago Beef and Lamb New Zealand began monitoring whole farm sales for conversion to forestry. The organisation said at least 300,000 hectares of sheep and beef was sold to forestry interests since 2017. “Our big concerns are the scale and the pace of change,” Beef and Lamb spokesperson Julian Ashby said. “We are not anti-forestry. We really believe forestry has a legitimate place in New Zealand’s landscape, but that issue is we are seeing whole farm conversions really change the face of New Zealand at a dramatic pace. “You’re not just losing your farmland to grass, you are losing stock numbers, jobs, local spending, processing throughput, full roles, you know, rural services – everything is up for grabs in this kind of current policy incentives that we have.” IKEA said under its business model, that was not the case. Meredith told RNZ it employed 250 staff across its New Zealand forestry operations, but during planting programs that increased to about 800 people. “There’s obviously quite intense around planting for a few years. So planting, coming back to release them. There’s a little quiet period for about two years and then we start into a pruning phase. “We’ll be pruning for the next 10 to 12 years,” he said. The Climate Change Commission estimates another 900,000 hectares of New Zealand will be converted to forestry by 2050, which Beef and Lamb said will cull roughly 20% of current […]

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Mountain bike riders and adventure seekers can explore more of the best riding experiences in NSW through the launch of a new online MTB hub showcasing State forest trails. Source: Timberbiz Forestry Corporation has created a new online resource www.mtbliveshere.com.au promoting the extensive State forest mountain biking network. All trails and mountain bike parks, which operate under forest permits, are featured in the new MTB hub bringing together trail information, mapping and destination imagery to highlight world‑class mountain biking trails and infrastructure in NSW State forests. “NSW State forests are home to an incredibly diverse range of mountain bike experiences, from purpose‑built trail networks to scenic cross‑country rides through working forests,” Visitor Experience Manager Steve Pickering said. “This new hub puts all that information in one place, making it easier for riders to find trails that suit their style and skill level while showcasing the unique landscapes and communities that surround our forests.” The hub features trails and destinations right across the state, including popular riding areas such as Ourimbah State Forest on the Central Coast, the Watagan Mountains near Lake Macquarie and forest‑based trail networks in regional NSW that combine flowing singletrack in scenic natural settings.  Wherever you are, there is bound to be a mountain bike park near you Designed as both a planning tool and a source of inspiration, the MTB Hub helps riders explore the diversity of forest‑based trails from adrenaline‑fuelled descents to family‑friendly loops and long‑distance adventures. Visit NSW State Forests is also calling on the mountain biking community to help showcase these experiences by sharing images captured in State forests. Keen riders are encouraged to submit their photos to story@fcnsw.com.au with selected images featured to promote mountain biking destinations across the state.  

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Across the Mallee, rehabilitation works have now been completed at all major bushfire sites from the 2025–26 fire season, marking a key milestone in the region’s recovery. Source: Timberbiz More than 63,000 hectares burned across the district, including fires at Baring and Colignan, as well as across Wyperfeld National Park at North–South Track, Boinka and Freeway Track. While these fires were successfully contained, suppression efforts required extensive control lines to help stop the spread of fire and protect communities, infrastructure and environmental values. Control lines play a critical role during bushfire suppression, providing safe access and helping slow or stop fire spread. However, without rehabilitation, these temporary earthworks can leave lasting impacts on the landscape. In recent months, Forest Fire Management Victoria crews and contractors have completed rehabilitation works across all major firegrounds. In total, crews restored approximately 183 kilometres of control lines, including around 70 kilometres constructed during the Boinka fire alone. Rehabilitation is about more than tidying up after fire – it reduces long-term impacts and supports natural recovery. Works included reshaping disturbed ground, returning vegetation and organic material to the landscape and stabilising access points to reduce erosion and prevent unauthorised vehicle access. These activities help to: reduce erosion and dust limit the spread of weeds and pest animals protect cultural heritage values support regeneration of native vegetation.   This program was delivered through close collaboration between operational crews, planners, contractors and Traditional Owner representatives, ensuring works were completed safely, effectively and with respect for cultural heritage values. Completion of these works marks the transition from emergency response to long-term recovery, supporting restoration of fire-affected landscapes while reducing future risks.

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Australian Forest and Wood Innovations (AFWI) is funding Australia’s first material-agnostic embodied carbon platform, measuring one million homes to prove timber can deliver 1.2 million new dwellings and 43% emissions cut. Source: Timberbiz Australia must build 1.2 million new homes by 2030 while cutting national greenhouse gas emissions by 43% and Australian Forest and Wood Innovations (AFWI) is backing new research to prove timber can deliver both at once. The three-year project, titled Timber-Led Decarbonisation of Australian Housing: Evidence and Industry Translation, is funded through AFWI’s Centre for Sustainable Futures at the University of the Sunshine Coast. It will create Australia’s first integrated, material-agnostic platform capable of measuring and comparing the embodied carbon of residential buildings, using as-built data from approximately one million Australian homes built since 2019 rather than theoretical estimates. The project is led by Rhianna Robinson, National Research and Technical Manager at the Frame and Truss Manufacturers Association of Australia (FTMA), with project partner CarbonTrace. Mrs Robinson said the absence of transparent, comparable carbon data was a growing risk to timber’s market access. “We can’t manage what we can’t measure,” Mrs Robinson said. “Timber is uniquely positioned to support both housing delivery and decarbonisation through its low embodied emissions and stored biogenic carbon, but the industry currently lacks a centralised, credible and policy-aligned evidence base to quantify and communicate these benefits at scale.” Embodied carbon, the emissions generated in manufacturing and constructing a building, is climbing the industry’s agenda as homes become more efficient to run and construction materials account for a growing share of a dwelling’s lifetime carbon. Sustainability reporting and ESG requirements are pushing builders, developers and specifiers towards reliable, comparable data, yet no centralised system currently measures those emissions consistently across Australian housing. To close that gap, the project will feed detailed product-level timber data into the national housing database run by CarbonTrace, before building a freely accessible online tool allowing users to compare the carbon performance of competing materials on like-for-like Australian data. CarbonTrace co-founder Tom Petty, a builder and architect, said measurement was the precondition for any credible emissions cut. “Data is key to the decision-making around emissions reduction,” Mr Petty said. “This data needs to flow into design teams without friction and ideally in real-time.” More than 60 industry, government and research organisations co-designed the project, including CarbonTrace, FTMA, the Green Building Council of Australia, CSIRO, Master Builders Australia, Forest & Wood Products Australia, Timber Queensland, Hyne Group, MiTek, Multinail and the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council. The work forms part of a wider AFWI push to connect the full forest-to-market value chain. AFWI Executive Director Dr Joseph Lawrence has described housing as one of the clearest areas where Australian timber can deliver immediate national benefits, giving the $23 billion industry a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity to unite research, manufacturing and construction. “That’s where we see a real opportunity for Australian timber to be ramped up, for engineered wood to be ramped up, to be producing faster, safer and higher-quality housing, all made here,” Dr Lawrence said. “So, we can solve all the potential crises we are facing around shortages.” Over three years, researchers will assemble Australia’s most comprehensive embodied carbon dataset for residential construction, run scenario modelling comparing timber with conventional materials, and translate the findings into practical guidance, policy recommendations and education resources. Project partners estimate the education, and engagement work will reach more than 80,000 industry stakeholders through an online decision-support tool, technical reports, factsheets, webinars, workshops, case studies and a residential decarbonisation roadmap. Mrs Robinson said the long-term aim was to strengthen timber’s adoption, support net-zero housing pathways and secure timber as a preferred material in Australia’s residential market as the country chases its housing and emissions targets. For more information visit: Australian Forest and Wood Innovations: https://www.afwi.au/

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Time is running out to save two significant mills in Kaitāia from closure say Northland Regional Council (NRC), Far North District Council (FNDC) and Northland NZ (NNZ) who are calling on central government step in to limit job losses, as NNZ continues to work with potential investors. Source: Timberbiz Juken New Zealand, a Japanese-owned company, announced earlier this year it was seeking expressions of interests to buy its two mills in Kaitāia – Northland Mill and plant. That offer process closed at the end of May. Government investment would see good financial returns, jobs and capability retained in the region, and it would protect our forestry industry, while closing the Northland Mill and Triboard plant would devastate the Far North town and Te Tai Tokerau Northland, says Head of Investment at NNZ, Tui Rutherford. “Conservative modelling predicts that investing right now will generate a good return over five years on an initial government investment. Acting soon also avoids economic damage and disruption which will cost the government dearly in the long term,” Mr Rutherford said. Northland NZ understands that while no outright buyers were found for either mill before the offer deadline, the Triboard plant did receive an expression of interest in continuing its operation and an expression of interest was received for the Northern Mill site, from an experienced operator. Interest in the Northern Mill centres on site plans to upgrade equipment and modernise the operation to fulfil their target market. NRC, along with FNDC, is backing Northland NZ to facilitate discussions that firm up both deals, says Pita Tipene, Chair of NRC. “This includes working on a consortium of investors to back the commercial upgrade plans for the Northland Mill site. That model would require investment by the government,” Mr Tipene said. The proposed Northland Mill redevelopment would make use of skilled staff, the existing site, site permissions and some existing infrastructure. The opportunities presented by the Northland Mill site are underpinned by a strong and sustainable forestry resource, experienced workforce, and access to domestic and export markets, says Far North Mayor Moko Tepania. “There is a significant opportunity to build on these assets, which are supported by experienced operators and well-established infrastructure,” Mr Tepania said. Alongside the modernised mill, a second operation is proposed – turning the waste and low-grade wood into woody biomass biofuel. This operation is also expected to employ some of the existing workforce. Early government investment in both proposals would help secure a successful transition of the milling operations, retain jobs, and provide a financial return to the government, says Mr Rutherford. “The regional economic agency is working alongside the councils to ensure potential investors understand the strategic value of the operations within Northland’s wider forestry system, along with the robust returns forecast.” Investors interested in this project can contact Head of Investment at NNZ, Tui Rutherford directly at – tui.rutherford@northlandnz.com

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A recent community meeting in Bombala to address a growing concern of local farmland sales to corporate entities for carbon forestry projects (both environmental plantings and plantation forestry methods) featured guest speaker, forestry industry expert, Rob de Fegely. Source: Monaro Post Other speakers at the June meeting were local farmers John Murdoch, John Jeffreys and Ben Mooney. Together they spoke to the community about concerns relating to a loss of productive farmland, reduced rural employment, outside corporate involvement and uncertainty about long-term impacts. Mr de Fegely provided an insight into the regional forestry hubs established under the National Forestry Industry Plan 2018. Mr de Fegely is the manager of the South East Forestry Hub, which supports forestry industries in southern NSW and the ACT to help grow a positive future for the region’s communities and environment. He also sits on the board of Forestry Corporation NSW and chairs the Public Forest Agency in Tasmania. There are 11 regional forestry hubs across Australia. These hubs work with industry, state and local governments, and other key stakeholders to prepare and provide the government with strategic planning, technical assessments and analyses that aim to support growth in the forest industries in their region. Mr de Fegely began his career on the Monaro in 1980 growing radiata pine in the Coolangubra, Bucky Springs, Pericoe and Rockton areas. “In my time as a career forester over 40 years, the challenge between farming and forestry has been around for a long time and its history that we haven’t actually blended together,” he said. “In Scandinavian countries and parts of Europe, you’ll find that forestry and farming are very close neighbours and they work together really well.” He recalled however the years he spent in Bombala were productive and produced good outcomes. “In the eight-and-a-half years I was here, when we were planting blocks that were basically cleared as farmland under early development in the late 1800s and early 1900s and for a raft of reasons those farms had become quite marginal mainly due to rabbits, the first World War, the loss of a generation of farm workers and then the Depression and again the second World War … those poorer quality farms fell away and were purchased by a corporate entity from the Philippines. “That was an interesting process as when re-developing those old farms in the mid-80s – by clearing all the tea trees and wattles – it suddenly looked like a farm again, but it was all granite soil and very low nutrient, so turning it back into forest was probably a sensible land use decision. “I don’t think in the eight-and-a-half years I was here, anyone seriously said to me I shouldn’t be planting that pine. So pine and forestry and Bombala and farming had worked together really well in those early years,” he said. Mr de Fegely then pointed out challenges within the industry. “The challenge has always been, despite the fact Australia is the seventh most forested country in the world, it is a net importer of wood products,” he said. “We import more than $7 billion worth of wood products a year. A lot comes from New Zealand, particularly pine framing. We get hardwood, particularly from Malaysia and the tropical rain forest, and we import paper products as well because all our paper mills have shut.” He said there are two drivers pushing the carbon debate. The first is a demand to be self-sufficient and secondly, achieving net zero such as carbon credits and cheap wood. As South East NSW Forestry hub manager, Mr de Fegely said this government funded scheme is designed to improve wood production, as Australia is not producing enough. He said within the South East hub, 60% of the land is forest and 50% of those forests are in national parks, by international standards a very high percentage.

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Tasmanian farmers have reacted with anger and disbelief at the Federal Government’s decision to allow 22,000 hectares of prime dairy and beef country in the state’s north-east to be transformed into a pine plantation. Source: Timberbiz Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers last week announced the approval of the sale of Tasmania’s largest farm, Rushy Lagoon, to UK-based forestry investor Gresham House. The 22,000-hectare property will be converted from an agricultural estate into a $142 million pine plantation and carbon project. The Australian Forest Products Association has welcomed the sale, saying the plantation project will expand Australia’s sovereign capability in sustainable timber production. However, TasFarmers President Nathan Cox said the decision was a betrayal of Tasmanian agriculture and a breaking of the social contract between government and the Australian people by greenlighting the use of taxpayer money against Australian farmers. “This is a disgraceful outcome for Tasmania and for Australian food security,” Mr Cox said. He said the Federal Government had broken its covenant with the Australian people by agreeing to turn productive farmland into a monoculture pine plantation “so a foreign investment fund can tick a carbon abatement box”. Tasmanian Forest Products Association Chief Executive Officer Nick Steel said while there has been public debate surrounding the transaction and the Foreign Investment Review Board process, the conversation also provides an opportunity to recognise that agriculture and forestry are not mutually exclusive industries. “Tasmania’s future prosperity is dependent on evidence-based land use decisions that recognised the strengths of both industries,” Mr Steel said. “Agriculture and forestry are not competing land uses they are complementary industries that have successfully coexisted across Tasmania for generations.” “Farmers make practical decisions every day based on soil capability, rainfall, topography, market conditions and the long-term sustainability of their businesses. In many cases, integrating forestry into farming operations provides additional income, strengthens business resilience and ensures land is used according to its natural capability.” Mr Steel said the guiding principle should remain simple: the right tree, in the right place, at the right scale. “Highly productive agricultural land should continue producing food and fibre, with suitable areas supporting forestry without compromising agricultural output,” he said. “That balanced approach delivers multiple benefits, including regional employment, investment certainty, environmental outcomes and diversified income streams for landholders.” As a renewable industry, forestry also plays an increasingly important role in supplying sustainable timber products to meet growing demand for low-emissions building materials. “Our forestry sector is built on renewal where forests are grown, harvested and regrown, supporting a renewable biodegradable resource that’s increasingly important as markets shift toward lower emissions materials,” Mr Steel said. “The discussion surrounding Rushy Lagoon reinforced the need for balanced and informed land use policy. “A strong future for regional Tasmania depends on recognising that agriculture and forestry can coexist successfully. They operate side by side, supporting regional communities, creating jobs and contributing to the state’s long-term prosperity,” Mr Steel said. Rushy Lagoon, together with the neighbouring East Wyambi, spans almost 22,000 hectares between Gladstone and Musselroe Bay and has run dairy and beef cattle at a capacity of around 85,000 DSE, supported by 1,170 hectares of developed irrigation and more than 12,500 megalitres of water entitlements. Gresham House’s reported offer of more than $100 million sits well above TasFarmers’ own estimate of the property’s $70–80 million market value, a gap the organisation says points squarely to government-backed financing tilting the paddock in favour of a foreign buyer using everyday Australians ‘ money. “We have real, unanswered questions about why funding was committed to this deal before the sale and why a foreign forestry fund could outbid every Australian farmer at the table,” Mr Cox said. “The treasurer’s excuse relating to the classification of farmland holds no water, as highly productive dairies have operated on Rushy for many years; any good farmer knows that cannot happen on poor or second-rate land. These comments are a smoke screen for his poor decision-making. “TasFarmers has raised the glaring conflict at the heart of this process: the Clean Energy Finance Corporation stands to benefit financially from carbon plantations like this one, and a CEFC director sits on the very Foreign Investment Review Board that was supposed to assess it independently. Tasmanian farmers cannot compete against their own government. “Our community survey found 99 per cent of respondents opposed this sale. Dorset Council has warned it creates an unfair playing field for local farmers and puts regional dairy pick-up runs and beef processing jobs at risk. Coalition members from Senator Colbeck to Senator Askew to Shadow Agriculture Minister Darren Chester have all raised the alarm. The only people who seem untroubled by any of this are the ones who signed off on it.” Mr Cox said TasFarmers would now demand the public release of the full FIRB assessment and financing arrangements behind the sale, and called on the Government to explain what safeguards, if any, were applied. “Tasmanian farmers deserve transparency, not a sneaky decision snuck out the back door during the winter recess. We will be pursuing this through every avenue available, including calling for a parliamentary inquiry into how a foreign carbon-forestry fund was allowed to outbid Australian farmers for our largest and most productive farm.” “TasFarmers and local interested parties and politicians have reached out over and over again to our federal Agricultural Minister, FIRB, and the Treasurer only to be stonewalled by meaningless responses. “For something that is so important, these responses and today’s announcement demonstrate the Treasurer did not have the national interest at heart, and that ideology drove this decision”.

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The Asia-Pacific Network for Sustainable Forest Management and Rehabilitation (APFNet) has funded over 50 demonstration projects across more than 20 Asia-Pacific economies, with total investment exceeding US$45 million. Source: China Daily Gong Yumei, director of the APFNet Coordination Centre — an affiliate of China’s National Forestry and Grassland Administration — revealed the figure at a press conference. The briefing was held in the lead-up to the APEC Ministerial Meeting on Forestry, which is scheduled to take place in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, from July 27 to 28. Under the theme “Building a Green Asia-Pacific, Sharing Ecological Well-being“, the high-level gathering will bring together regional leaders to discuss sustainable forest management and ecological governance. “In recent years, China has actively supported and participated in forestry exchange and cooperation under the APEC framework, promoting practical collaboration among member economies in key areas such as forest restoration and sustainable management, ecosystem conservation, community livelihood improvement and capacity building,” Gong said, highlighting APFNet as an example. She said these demonstration projects represent APFNet’s efforts, under the administration’s support, to explore effective models for forest restoration, focusing on the needs of developing member economies — with a focus on degraded forest rehabilitation, multifunctional forest enhancement and community livelihood improvement. One of the projects, she said, is an urban forestry demonstration initiative in the Bang Kachao area of Bangkok, Thailand, which seeks to explore effective ways to protect and restore the “urban lungs” of densely populated cities. “These projects act both as ‘test beds’ for locally tailored forest restoration and as ‘green seeds’ that spread ecological civilization concepts and technologies across the Asia-Pacific — generating ecological gains, community prosperity and sustainable development,” she emphasized. Officially launched in September 2008, APFNet is a nonprofit international organization dedicated to advancing sustainable forest management and rehabilitation in the Asia-Pacific region. The establishment of APFNet, proposed by China, was endorsed by the 15th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders’ Meeting in September 2007 in Sydney, Australia.

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As Europe experiences another summer of extreme heat and wildfire warnings, one tree imported from Australia is coming under renewed scrutiny across the world: eucalyptus. Source: DW Each year, more than 400,000 hikers descend on Galicia for the Camino de Santiago pilgrim walk, crossing misty hills and dense green woodland. But much of the forest surrounding the route is no longer native. Instead of indigenous oak and chestnut, large parts of northwestern Spain are now dominated by eucalyptus. That transformation is not unique to Galicia. Prized by the pulp and timber industries for its rapid growth and profitability, vast monocultures of the Australian tree have been planted in places such as Brazil, Chile, California, India and South Africa. Globally, eucalyptus plantations now cover 22 million hectares across more than 90 countries, and in many regions, they have become a cornerstone of rural economies. But hiding beneath the seemingly tranquil canopies are landscapes vulnerable to extreme wildfires because scientists regard the trees as highly flammable. Europe has already been sweltering this summer, with concerns that the unusually early heat waves could intensify fire risk. Parts of the southern continent have been hit in recent days. Last year was the worst wildfire year on record, with more than 1 million hectares burned — much of it on the Iberian Peninsula. Researchers say that while eucalyptus trees aren’t to blame for igniting these infernos, they can significantly intensify fires once they start. “Eucalypt forests are clearly one of the more flammable forests that we have in the world,” Tim Curran of Lincoln University in New Zealand told DW. “If you put a eucalypt in a new environment, you’re very likely to change what we call fire regimes. So, things like fire intensity, fire frequency; how hot the fire gets and how often you get fires.” The trees’ leaves contain highly flammable oils, and strips of bark can ignite into burning embers. In extreme conditions, those embers can travel huge distances to start secondary fires, as happened during Australia’s devastating 2009 Black Saturday fires. “There was evidence that embers were blown more than 30 kilometres ahead of the fire front to start a new fire,” Curran said, adding that it was not a one-off. In Galicia, plantations can easily outgrow their original borders because while native oak and chestnut can take more than 80 years to reach maturity, eucalyptus needs just 15. As a result, they bounce back quickly when fires decimate landscapes, giving them a competitive advantage over native species. That creates a self-reinforcing cycle that ultimately allows monocultures to expand further, increasing wildfire risk. The plantations in Galicia date back to the 1970s but really took off two decades later. In 1992, the regional government released a forestry plan projecting eucalyptus would reach 250,000 hectares by 2030. It took them 30 years to update that plan, during which time eucalyptus ran rampant. “It’s now around half a million hectares, which is a massive amount of land,” local community leader Joam Evans Pim said. Though the regional government has since introduced a moratorium on new eucalyptus plantations, campaigners say enforcement remains uneven, and illegal planting persists. On the one hand, there is money in eucalyptus — the Galician plantations, which predominantly feed the pulp and timber industries, generated €167 million in 2024 alone. But there is also mismanagement. As younger generations ditch rural lifestyles for urban centres, they are leaving behind uncontrolled plantations. “[Eucalyptus growth] is happening both because of plantations, many of these plantations being illegal, but also because of land abandonment, because of forest fires, because of the invasive nature of the species. So, it’s a mix of all these that has led to this result.” Critics accuse regional authorities of failing to control expansion for too long. Luisa Piñeiro, director general of forest management for the Galician government, told DW there had been failures in the past. “Back then [in the 1990s], there probably wasn’t adequate forest management. There wasn’t as much control over the plantations or the species being planted,” she said. Nevertheless, the government does not classify eucalyptus as invasive, and Piñeiro rejects calls for blanket bans. She argues instead for improved management and greater species diversity. “Rather than banning things, we should first have a forest management plan,” she said. “We believe forests should have the species diversity they’re meant to have.” Galicia starts to reckon with eucalyptus legacy Looking over his community’s land in Froxán, about 40 kilometers west of Santiago de Compostela, Evans Pim recalls the wildfires that reshaped the surrounding hills. “This is an area that was affected by a very large fire in 2006. All the woodlands around the village burnt down, and after that it became invaded with eucalyptus,” he told DW. It was when another fire struck ten years later that the community decided to act.  They set up the De-Eucalyptus Brigades volunteer group, working to raise awareness around species like eucalyptus and remove them from community-owned land. What began as a team of 50 people has now grown to1500 operating across Galicia. “We’ve been eliminating eucalyptus and allowing native trees to take that space,” Evans Pim said. “We want to create a green fire break… and eventually we’re aiming to have a land which manages itself. Where we don’t have to intervene, and that is resilient to fires and climate change and prolonged drought.” The devastating Portugal wildfires in 2017, in which people died trying to escape, serve as a warning. “Portugal lived the experience a few years ago; people died, burnt in their cars,” he said. “We would really hope we don’t have to get there for real change in terms of applying existing laws and improving all the laws to be taken seriously.” That message is increasingly echoed by scientists, forestry groups and activists who say unmanaged land is becoming one of the biggest fire dangers, not just in Europe but around the world. Researchers say the economic benefits of eucalyptus increasingly need to be balanced against rising […]

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Greece has become the first country in the world to integrate a dedicated satellite constellation into its national firefighting system, launching four suitcase‑sized nanosatellites designed to spot new wildfires within minutes and transmit real‑time alerts to incident commanders. Source: Timberbiz The system, developed with German company OroraTech, (A CTIF Associate Member) uses thermal sensors capable of detecting hotspots as small as 4×4 metres, far surpassing conventional satellites that typically identify fires only once they reach the size of a cruise ship. The satellites scan Greece’s fire‑prone mainland and more than 100 inhabited islands, feeding imagery into AI models that instantly analyse heat signatures, filter out false alarms such as solar panels or hot factory roofs, and send verified alerts directly to fire‑service command units. When multiple fires ignite simultaneously — a growing challenge during Europe’s increasingly severe heatwaves — the system provides commanders with location, size, intensity, and predictive spread simulations to help prioritize resources. Officials say the technology is a critical response to Greece’s escalating wildfire threat. A 2018 blaze east of Athens killed more than 100 people, and in 2023 the Alexandroupolis fire became the largest wildfire ever recorded in the European Union, burning roughly 96,000 hectares. With hotter, drier summers now the norm, Greece’s satellite‑AI network is being closely watched by other European nations seeking faster, more autonomous wildfire‑detection capabilities.

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New research from the Bioeconomy Science Institute Maiangi Taiao aims to improve New Zealand’s wildfire preparedness and response. The institute has developed national-scale wildfire hazard potential data layers to help communities, businesses and wildfire managers better understand the areas that are more likely to burn under high-risk conditions, and how severe fire behaviour is likely to be. Source: Timberbiz The data was developed by simulating more than 500,000 potential ignitions and wildfire growth around New Zealand. Fire scientist Laura Kiely, who led the work, says the team modelled potential fires under set conditions – not actual fires that have happened. “We’re not saying this is the number of fires that will happen at any time. Rather, we’re considering if we have an ignition occurring, then what happens? What does that look like? Combining data from a high number of simulations allows us to consider the potential fire behaviour and the probability of it occurring,” she said. The data combines information about likely ignition drivers, fuel and weather conditions and potential fire behaviour to provide a consistent, documented baseline for planning, prevention, preparedness and risk communication. The team is designing these layers so they can be shared and reused in operational tools and scientific workflows. “This will help identify what parts of New Zealand burn repeatedly under historical locally extreme weather conditions in our simulations and what parts have high- or low-intensity fires – to give an indication of what a wildfire could look like in a particular area if a fire were to occur there,” Ms Liely said. “This can enable safer wildfire management, resilience planning, better-prepared responses and more transparent conversations about mitigation. Knowing the potential hazard that could occur allows us to better prepare for a wildfire.” Consistent hazard layers can help explain why defensible space, building design choices and protection of evacuation routes matter, supporting resilience. The team is working with councils and risk analysis companies that have already expressed interest in using this data. The data layers can be accessed here:  Wildfire Hazard Potential Data WebExperience https://gis.scionresearch.com/portal/apps/experiencebuilder/experience/?id=8458963e54dc42ac958f0e5f3dda2c71&page=Home&views  

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A simple idea is making a practical difference at Five Mile Wetland in New Zealand, where Kaingaroa Tipu and Abodo have teamed up to support predator control, enhance biodiversity and give timber offcuts a useful second life. Source: Timberbiz The collaboration centres on a new network of pest traps that will support predator control, building on years of community-led restoration work including planting, weed management and habitat care in one of Rotorua’s best-known public wetland sites. Kaingaroa Tipu GM Sustainability Colin Maunder said the partnership reflects the organisation’s wider commitment to caring for the forest beyond the trees it grows. “Protecting places like Five Mile takes ongoing effort, and predator control is a big part of that, especially in wetlands where threatened bird species live,” he said. “This is about long-term stewardship – supporting healthier ecosystems as well as productive forests.” What makes this project especially fitting is the role timber plays in it. Timber manufacturer Abodo has repurposed offcuts from its manufacturing process into wooden pest trap boxes for use at the wetland and Whakarewarewa Forest, creating a simple example of circular forestry in action. Sustainably grown timber harvested from the wider Kaingaroa Forest Estate is returning to help protect the landscape from which it came. Abodo Sustainability Lead Jade Harris says this practical action makes partnerships like this meaningful. “It’s a simple idea, but it shows how the right partnership can take a useful construction material into something that protects biodiversity as well,” she says. “Instead of becoming waste, these offcuts are going back into the forest to do a job.” The traps, hand-crafted by the Men’s Shed, have been installed in the forest with Kaingaroa Tipu staff among those making weekly checks to monitor and report on the various pests captured. In the first four weeks, 220 pests were caught, including rats, hedgehogs and mice. Because Five Mile is a popular public site, the use of safe, toxin-free trapping methods is an important part of the approach. Red Stag near Waipa is one of many supporters of biodiversity protection in and around Whakarewarewa Forest and Five Mile Wetland. Red Stag’s Anthony Gare also serves on the Whakarewarewa Pest Free Trust and says the collaboration is an example of what can be achieved when organisations work together. “No single organisation can do this alone – biodiversity protection works best when efforts are connected. We know that small actions that are sustained can have a big impact.”

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National Tree Day is Australia’s largest community tree-planting and nature care event, coordinated annually by Planet Ark. Schools Tree Day takes place on Friday 24 July and National Tree Day on Sunday 26 July.  Source: Timberbiz Since its inception in 1996, Australians have planted more than 28 million native trees. With the recent announcement of Coles as the major sponsor of National Tree Day 2026, one of Australia’s biggest retailers will now help expand that impact by supporting communities across the country to take part in local environmental action. Coles kicked off its support planting seedlings at a site near the company’s Store Support Centre in the east of Melbourne. The site, which runs along Gardiners Creek trail, was originally mostly weedy grasses. The revegetation of the trail provides an important wildlife corridor with native vegetation seamlessly incorporated into suburbs as an excellent example of biodiversity in an urban area. Seedlings planted were a mixture of natives, including local Acacias, Poas and Dianellas. Coles staff were also joined by members of the Planet Ark team, including Planet Ark CEO Adam Culley. “National Tree Day has inspired millions of Australians to take positive environmental action over the past 30 years, and we’re thrilled to welcome Coles as Major Sponsor during this landmark anniversary year,” Mr Culley said. “The practical support Coles is providing to communities around the country will help local organisers plant more seedlings, engage more volunteers and create lasting environmental benefits in their local areas.” As part of its sponsorship, Coles will equip five National Tree Day hero sites across Australia, with one site in each participating state receiving a comprehensive support package to help deliver successful community planting events. The support includes a $2,500 seedling contribution for each site, a $500 Coles voucher for refreshments, site coordinator resources and event materials, helping local organisers welcome volunteers and maximise the environmental impact of their planting activities. In addition to supporting local planting events, Coles is providing a prize for a nationwide National Tree Day giveaway hosted by Planet Ark to celebrate the efforts of volunteers. Australians who take part in National Tree Day activities will have the chance to enter by sharing a photo from their event on Instagram using the hashtag #NationalTreeDayGiveaway. Ten winners will each receive a $250 Coles gift card. You can register to volunteer at a site near you at www.nationaltreeday.org.au/find-a-site  

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The votes are in, and New Zealand has spoken. The iconic Bucket Tree in Tawa has been crowned New Zealand Tree of the Year 2026 following an outstanding level of public support throughout this year’s competition. Source: Timberbiz Organisers, the NZ Notable Trees Trust, said the result reflected not only the tree’s remarkable history and distinctive appearance, but also the tremendous enthusiasm shown by the Tawa community and supporters across the country. “The Bucket Tree captured people’s imagination from the outset,” said Trust Chair Brad Cadwallader. “Its success was driven by an extraordinary level of community engagement through local media, social media, schools, community groups and residents who proudly got behind their local tree.” The tree was planted in the 1850s on Boscobel Farm in Tawa and is named after the property’s original owner, William Earp as the ‘Earp Macrocarpa’ or ‘Bucket tree’. Since around 1879 it has been regularly trimmed into the form of an upturned bucket, creating a silhouette instantly recognisable to locals. Mr Cadwallader says the tree represents an important piece of Wellington’s heritage. More than just a competition, Tree of the Year aims to celebrate New Zealand’s remarkable trees, their histories, and the communities that care for them. “The real winners are all six finalists,” Mr Cadwallader said. “Each of these extraordinary trees has enjoyed national exposure, with thousands of New Zealanders discovering their stories, histories and significance. That’s exactly what Tree of the Year is about, connecting people with the trees that shape our landscapes, communities and heritage.” The Trust said it was delighted with the exceptional public response to this year’s competition, which generated strong engagement across traditional and social media, while attracting widespread support from local councils, community organisations, elected representatives and several mayors who enthusiastically championed their local nominees. “It has been fantastic to see communities embracing their trees with such pride. The competition has sparked conversations about the value of trees, encouraged people to learn more about their local natural heritage, and inspired many to visit these remarkable living landmarks.” The six finalists represented a diverse cross-section of New Zealand’s arboreal heritage—from ancient native giants and historic heritage trees to unusual specimens with fascinating stories spanning generations. The NZ Notable Trees Trust thanked everyone who nominated trees, voted, shared stories and helped promote this year’s competition. “Tree of the Year continues to grow each year, and that is thanks to the passion New Zealanders have for the special trees that enrich our towns, cities and countryside. We look forward to doing it all again next year.” Final Placings The Bucket Tree – Tawa The Sangro Survivor – Pukekohe Old Goff – Hobsonville   Established in 2007, the NZ Notable Trees Trust documents and celebrates New Zealand’s arboreal heritage. It maintains the NZ Tree Register, an open-access online database showcasing notable and historic trees throughout Aotearoa.

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Recent Australian bushfire seasons demonstrate that current fire regimes dominated by long fire free intervals and heavy fuel accumulation are unsustainable. Source: John O’Donnell Prescribed burning remains the only practical, landscape scale tool for reducing fuel hazards, moderating fire behaviour, protecting communities and maintaining forest resilience. Across Australia, a suppression heavy, mitigation light posture has repeatedly failed under severe conditions, whereas jurisdictions with sustained prescribed burning programs show markedly better preparedness and suppression outcomes. This review synthesises research, case studies and operational experience to demonstrate the decisive benefits of prescribed burning for bushfire preparedness, suppression, safety and cost effectiveness. The review can be downloaded here. Shifting from suppression heavy to suppression and mitigation focused A central theme is the need to move away from reliance on suppression, which collapses under extreme weather and heavy fuels. Heavy fuels in SE Australia have repeatedly driven uncontrollable fires. Fuel reduction lowers fireline intensity, rate of spread and spotting, expands tactical options, improves firefighter safety and increases initial attack success. Reduced bushfire fuel risks Prescribed burning reduces surface litter, elevated fine fuels, bark fuels, shrubs and coarse woody debris, directly lowering intensity, spread and spotting potential. Fine fuels accumulate rapidly in eucalypt forests; without regular mild burning they reach levels that support fast moving, high intensity fires. Fuel is the only determinant of fire behaviour that land managers can modify at scale and decades of research confirm that reducing fine fuels reduces intensity. Studies show that reducing biomass from 24 to 16 t/ha can halve the likelihood of large fires, and fuels younger than six years markedly mitigate intensity. Heavy, continuous fuels in NSW forests (60–100 t/ha) have driven unprecedented fire behaviour. Fuel reduction also improves access, escape options and reduces reliance on expensive aerial fleets. Enhanced bushfire preparedness Preparedness across SE Australia remains inadequate due to very low prescribed burning rates (0.6–2% annually), these levels are insufficient to manage accumulating fuels.  In contrast, SW Western Australia historically treated 6–8% of forest annually, maintaining 40% of bushland in fuels 0–5 years old and achieving strong reductions in wildfire extent. Long term WA data show that when prescribed burning declines, uncontrolled bushfire area rises exponentially. Standing dead trees and hazardous fuels along roads further undermine preparedness and firefighter safety. Improved suppression efficiency Prescribed burning provides a decisive suppression advantage by modifying the fire environment before ignition. Lower fuel loads slow fires, reduce flame height, widen suppression windows and expand viable tactics. Research shows fuel reduction increases the proportion of the perimeter where direct or parallel attack is safe, improves access and egress, increases resource productivity, reduces holding time and expands the weather window for successful initial attack. Case studies from WA (1978, 2023) demonstrate that lightning ignited fires in younger fuels spread slowly and were easily contained, whereas fires in older fuels required concentrated effort. Across states, fuel reduced areas consistently slow spread, lower intensity and provide anchor points for backburning, containment and firefighter safety. Suppression benefits across jurisdictions Western Australia’s 50 year program shows that prescribed burning reduces flame height, rate of spread, spotting and intensity, with effects lasting 8–20 years. Victorian studies show prescribed burning most effectively assists suppression within 4–10 years, after which bark and elevated fuels rebuild. Case studies from Victoria, NSW, SA, Tasmania and ACT consistently show that fuel reduced areas slow or halt fires, reduce spotting, provide safer tactical positions and prevent fires from reaching towns. Safety benefits Prescribed burning improves firefighter and community safety by reducing flame heights, moderating behaviour and creating safer access and escape routes. Fuel reduced areas beside roads lower evacuation risks and support safer backburning. Examples from Queensland, NSW and Victoria show that prescribed burning beside key roads and tracks significantly reduces firefighter danger. Long term community based programs, such as Kurrajong Heights, demonstrate the effectiveness of mosaic burning for maintaining low fuel buffers around towns. Cost benefits Case studies show prescribed burning reduces suppression costs by enabling quicker control, reducing resource needs, lowering reliance on aerial fleets and decreasing chemical suppressant use. US modelling shows suppression costs will rise steadily through 2100 due to warming climates and accumulated fuels, reinforcing the need for expanded mitigation. The Dixie Fire example illustrates that proactive fuel management would have cost a fraction of the $700 million spent on suppression. Reduced bushfire extent Long term WA data show prescribed burning explains up to 71% of variation in annual wildfire extent, with strong inverse relationships between treatment levels and wildfire area. Studies from WA, Victoria and NSW confirm that fuel reduced landscapes limit fire size, reduce severity and prevent megafires. Without expanded prescribed burning, SE Australia will continue to experience escalating bushfire disasters. Enhanced training and readiness Prescribed burning provides critical training environments for developing suppression capability, improving situational awareness, understanding fire behaviour and practising tactics such as backburning, edge management and mop up. These skill sets strengthen operational readiness and improve safety during bushfires. Conclusions Across decades of evidence, prescribed burning consistently delivers decisive benefits for bushfire preparedness, suppression, safety and cost effectiveness. Fuel reduced landscapes slow fires, lower intensity, expand tactical options and protect communities and firefighters. To avoid repeating suppression dominated failures, governments need to expand and stabilise prescribed burning programs and embed effective mitigation programs as core land management.

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ForestFit has launched a new technology platform and welcomed ArtesMobius as a Foundation Sponsor. As expectations around safety, environmental performance and supply-chain assurance continue to grow, ForestFit is helping Australia’s forest service businesses translate continual improvement into independently verified performance. Source: Timberbiz The launch of ForestFit’s new website and Forest Services Portal marks an important step in the development of Australia’s Forest Services Standard and Certification Scheme. The platform gives businesses undertaking harvesting, haulage, civil and silviculture operations clearer access to the certification pathway, practical resources and information to strengthen their management systems and demonstrate safer, more sustainable and professionally governed operations. ForestFit CEO Dionne Olsen said the Scheme is designed to evolve alongside the businesses it supports. “ForestFit is built on continuous improvement. Our role is to keep strengthening the Forest Services Standards and Certification Scheme so forest service businesses can strengthen their own systems, manage critical risks more effectively and demonstrate measurable progress over time,” she said. “The credibility of the accredited Scheme provides confidence in the integrity of the ForestFit Standards, while independent certification gives growers, workers and the broader supply chain confidence in the capability, governance and performance of certified businesses.” This commitment is closely aligned with inaugural Foundation Sponsor ArtesMobius. Their support reflects a shared understanding that resilience is built through sustained investment in equipment, workforce capability, management systems, risk controls and appropriate insurance. Chris Thomas, CEO of Artes Specialty, said insurance should be recognised as part of a broader strategy for protecting businesses and supporting long-term continuity. “Insurance is not simply a response when something goes wrong; it is an investment in protecting people, assets and operations,” he said. “Supporting the industry means more than underwriting its risks. It means recognising and encouraging the investment businesses make in modern machinery, operator training, fire suppression technology and safer ways of working. Those investments help prevent losses, strengthen resilience and support the long-term sustainability of the industry.” Tom Richards, Director of Mobius Insurance, said that we see first-hand how forest service businesses are investing in safer equipment, better technology and stronger operating practices. Supporting ForestFit is a practical way for us to recognise that progress and contribute to a more resilient industry. ForestFit will reach another significant milestone later this month when its newly established Board of Directors holds its inaugural meeting to develop the strategic plan for the Scheme’s next phase. Visit the new website at www.forestfit.com.au

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The Housing Industry Association (HIA) has welcomed the decision to extend the lease of CSIRO’s North Ryde fire testing facility by six months, saying the announcement provides valuable breathing space but does not resolve the long-term threat to Australia’s building product testing capability. Source: Timberbiz “The extension was a positive step that acknowledged industry concerns, but the underlying issue remains,” said HIA Chief Executive Industry and Policy, Simon Croft. “HIA has raised concerns with the federal government on behalf of Australian manufacturers and builders about this looming problem, so this extension provides an opportunity to further these discussions. “However, the extension simply buys time. Australia still needs a long-term plan to protect this critical national asset,” Mr Croft said. “It is about ensuring Australia retains the testing capability needed to certify safe, compliant and innovative building products. “The North Ryde facility plays a vital role in testing products used throughout residential construction, including timber windows, doors, plasterboard systems, flooring, façade assemblies and bushfire-rated building materials. “Without it, Australia risks relying on a single private provider for many forms of fire testing. This reduces competition, risking increasing costs and creating uncertainty and longer delays for manufacturers seeking certification. “At a time when governments are focused on lifting productivity and delivering more homes, we cannot afford to lose nationally significant testing infrastructure,” Mr Croft said. “This extension gives governments, CSIRO and industry a genuine opportunity to find a permanent solution. We urge all parties to use this time to secure Australia’s long-term fire testing capability. “If six months passes without a long-term commitment, we’ll simply be back having the same conversation with the same risks hanging over manufacturers, builders and home buyers. “A six-month stay is an opportunity that should not be wasted. The clock is now ticking, and industry will be looking for a positive solution,” concluded Mr Croft.  

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