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Unfavourable economic conditions in the wine industry are leaving some Riverland grape growers with no choice but to start from scratch however, a senior local politician says current State Government solutions to address mass vineyard waste “are not fixing the problem”. Source: Australian Regional & Rural News Chaffey MP Tim Whetstone met with Riverland Barrel Pruners and Harvesting (RBPH) owner Tate Milne last Friday, with conversations centred on the current issues local farmers are facing while transitioning away from grape growing. Tasked with the recent jobs of clearing the land of multiple growers in the region, Mr Milne said struggling farmers are often left with mass amounts of vineyard trellis posts – something which he claims is the “biggest issue” for those attempting to clear their block. Treated with copper chrome and arsenate (CCA), the pine posts cannot be recycled, mulched, or burned, with South Australian laws requiring the waste to be disposed of at licensed landfills. While local farmers can dispose of their pine posts at the Monash-based Cleanaway site, the posts are classed as general waste, and due to their weight, can cost up to $400 per tonne. The Vineyard Post Reuse Pilot, part of The Timber Circularity Project, is developing a practical end-of-life alternative and it is the culmination of trials run by the FABAL Group. Using innovative technology to process the vineyard posts for reuse, it represents a step forward for the Timber Circularity Project in developing pathways for CCA treated timber posts. Between 1.7 and 4.3 million treated timber posts are currently being removed from Australian vineyards annually, representing 15,000 to 38,000 tonnes per year. This initiative is addressing that problem by safely stripping them to be repurposed as fence posts or landscaping materials using a system that can readily be adopted by vineyard managers and farmers. At $3.50 – $5.50 per post, times 600 – 700 per hectare, there’s potential to save up to $3000 a hectare in waste management. Dr Pene Mitchell, Research Fellow from National Centre for Timber Durability and Design Life who is leading the project, puts it plainly. “If we treat timber, we can get 20 plus years out of it. If we change to concrete or steel or plastic, the overall sustainable impact is much more significant: “We really need to find a solution for treated timber in a circular economy,” Dr Mitchell said. “A lot of farmers just want to be able to transform their block to the next crop, of which tends to be almonds or pistachios – crops that don’t need the posts,” Mr Milne said. “Most of the time, farmers are just having to leave them in piles. “I guess it was always going to be an issue. However, now with the industry collapsing, it’s a bigger issue than ever.” Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development Clare Scriven said – while speaking in Parliament last month – it was necessary to increase options for managing removed vineyard posts. “The first stream of the South Australian Wine Recovery Program is focused on vineyard waste management of already abandoned or removed vineyards,” Ms Scriven said. “A range of projects have commenced to position South Australia’s leadership in the management of the nation’s growing stockpile of CCA treated timber posts, including establishment of a national stewardship framework. “This is addressing the reuse, recovery, management and safe disposal of treated timber. “In April 2026, the Product Stewardship Centre of Excellence, a not-for-profit charity, was engaged to develop the framework. A feasibility study has evaluated the viability of establishing dedicated aggregation sites for removed CCA-treated vineyard posts, with 15 high-potential existing waste handling sites shortlisted in South Australian wine regions.” Mr Whetstone said the current actions of the State Government to address the CCA-treated posts “was not fixing the problem”. “There are currently 30 million pine posts sitting in piles and clogging up the system in South Australia’s industry, with majority found in the Riverland,” he said. “We need collection points and designated areas where posts can be responsibility stored until we find a purpose for them. “A lot of the issues we’re dealing with at the moment are government driven – through the pandemic we had political interference – which put China on notice – and (China) put obstacles in our way, concerning agricultural products, and particularly wine. “It is now the responsibility of the government to come in a help people in their current transition.”

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Tasmania’s Zanetto Builders dominated the 2026 HIA Australian GreenSmart Awards, taking home three national titles, including the coveted HIA Australian GreenSmart Home of the Year, partnered by Clipsal by Schneider Electric, for the exceptional Bluebush Passivhaus. Source: Timberbiz Designed to perform in Tasmania’s cool temperate climate, the 287sqm Passive House Classic-certified residence combines contemporary architecture with exceptional building performance. Thoughtfully oriented to capture natural light and expansive views, it features super-insulated timber-framed walls, an approximate R11 roof assembly and a measured airtightness result of just 0.5 ACH@50Pa, making it one of the tightest residential buildings ever tested in Tasmania. Triple-glazed European windows, balanced mechanical ventilation with heat recovery and a fully electrified design work together to deliver exceptional thermal comfort, indoor air quality and energy efficiency. Complemented by rooftop solar PV, heat-pump hot water, rainwater harvesting and low-VOC materials, Bluebush demonstrates how advanced building science, architectural design and sustainability can combine to create a healthy, resilient and remarkably comfortable family home. This project was also awarded HIA Australian GreenSmart Custom Built Home, partnered by Bondor. Continuing their outstanding success, Zanetto Builders claimed the HIA Australian GreenSmart Multi Dwelling Development for two all-electric coastal homes that challenge the convention of a single oversized dwelling. Inspired by Tasmania’s traditional east coast shacks, the homes combine passive solar design, high-performance construction and carefully selected materials, while responding sensitively to their coastal setting. This category is partnered by Toyota for Business. Presented as part of the HIA Future Homes Forum, the HIA Australian GreenSmart Awards brought together builders, designers, manufacturers, suppliers and sustainability leaders from across Australia to celebrate excellence and explore the latest innovations shaping the future of residential construction. GJ Gardner Homes Warragul, Victoria won the HIA Australian GreenSmart Display/Project Home. Designed to operate independently of the grid, this display home showcases a holistic approach to sustainable living. Solar, integrated battery storage and smart energy management technology work together to significantly reduce reliance on traditional electricity sources. This category is partnered by The Australian Reinforcing Company. Davies Design & Construction, Tasmania won HIA Australian GreenSmart Energy Efficiency, partnered by Clipsal by Schneider Electric, for one of Tasmania’s few Certified Passive House Plus homes. Behind its understated rural appearance, the home combines a high-performance building envelope, triple-glazed windows, heat recovery ventilation and rooftop solar to achieve exceptional energy efficiency and year-round comfort. Joe Mercieca, of Blue Eco Homes, NSW was named HIA Australian GreenSmart Professional, partnered by HIA Insurance Services, recognising more than four decades of leadership in sustainable residential construction and his ongoing commitment to advancing high-performance building practices across the industry. Shepherd Homes, Victoria won the HIA Australian GreenSmart Renovation/Addition Project, partnered by Electrolux, for the thoughtful transformation of a heritage miner’s cottage, blending careful restoration with a contemporary, energy-efficient extension to preserve the character of the home while enhancing its performance and liveability. Nulook Homes and Solar Dwellings, Western Australia won the HIA Australian GreenSmart Sustainable Home for a 10 Star NatHERS-rated, carbon-negative home. Through passive solar design, high-performance insulation, rooftop solar and water-saving initiatives, the home achieves exceptional environmental performance on a standard suburban site. This category is partnered by ForestOne. HIA Managing Director Jocelyn Martin said the HIA Australian GreenSmart Awards set the benchmark for the latest in environmental design excellence, industry innovation and sustainable building practices. “Consumer demand for practical, affordable, smart, connected and durable environmental solutions for residential housing continues to grow. “Our commitment to sustainable building outcomes and leading housing innovation has not altered for more than 25 years since the HIA GreenSmart program was introduced. Our members demonstrate that quality building and design, comfort, and ongoing value for money can co-exist in a sustainable built environment. “The HIA GreenSmart Awards highlight our members who excel at delivering year-round comfortable homes into the market. Each winner and finalist is congratulated for achieving success at a national level,” Ms Martin said.

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Mid North Coast residents of New South Wales are being invited to collect free firewood and learn valuable chainsaw safety skills at a two-day event in Kiwarrak State Forest near Old Bar. Source: Timberbiz Forestry Corporation staff will combine their annual chainsaw refresher training with a community event on Thursday, July 30 and Friday, July 31 designed to help locals prepare for the colder months. Firewood made available to the public has been sourced from timber left following a sustainable plantation thinning operation in Kiwarrak State Forest. The plantation was heavily impacted by the 2019-20 Black Summer bushfires and the thinning operation has removed dead and fire damaged trees, improving forest health, reducing fuel loads and maintaining safe access for recreational users. Forestry Corporation staff will be undertaking chainsaw training on the site and members of the public are welcome to cut and collect a ute or trailer load of firewood free of charge and Forestry staff will be on hand to help pensioners, who need assistance loading firewood. During the event, Forestry Corporation staff will provide practical demonstrations on chainsaw maintenance, sharpening techniques, personal protective equipment and safe operating practices while answering questions from the public about working safely with chainsaws. Forestry Corporation Production Manager Andrew Goodman said the event was an opportunity to support the community while ensuring staff maintained important chainsaw safety skills. “This event allows our staff to complete important chainsaw refresher training while providing something meaningful back to the community by offering chainsaw operating advice and making firewood available to those who need it,” Mr Goodman said. “We know many pensioners and families rely on firewood to keep warm through winter and rising living costs can make that increasingly challenging. Much of the timber available is dry and ready to burn and we’re particularly keen to assist pensioners in the local community who cannot collect firewood on their own from State forests.” The plantation management work also mitigates bushfire risk to the community of Old Bar. “By removing dead and damaged trees and reducing fuel loads, we’re helping create a safer forest environment while improving access for the community and supporting ongoing forest health,” Mr Goodman said. “State forests are managed to provide a range of benefits for local communities, from renewable timber and recreation opportunities through to affordable firewood and bushfire risk reduction. “We encourage anyone who uses a chainsaw, collects firewood or simply wants to learn more about sustainable forestry to come along, meet our team, take advantage of the safety information and take home some firewood.” Visitors will also be able to learn about Forestry Corporation’s low-cost firewood permit system and how state forests are sustainably managed to provide renewable timber products while protecting environmental values. Event details: Community Firewood and Chainsaw Safety Days – Old Bar Thursday 30 July and Friday 31 July from 8am to 3pm daily. Kiwarrak State Forest, 201-225 Saltwater Road, approximately 500 metres past Forest Lane. https://maps.app.goo.gl/8TdbprayZgA6NEa28?g_st=i&utm_campaign=ac-im

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The quarterly Timber Market Survey (TMS) report presents Australian timber price movement data collected through the quarterly surveying of a representative range of timber product traders in eastern Australia. Source: Timberbiz The TMS collects data on the movement in buying price of a wide range of domestic and imported timber products purchased and stocked by survey participants. The TMS does not collect participants’ quarterly product volume data. Individual survey results are assigned an overall weighting based on participant business size. Aggregated state-level results are weighted based on TMS state weightings. Price movement data are presented in nominal terms unless otherwise stated. All TMS reports contain price trend results for softwood timber, panels, and engineered wood products. In addition, the June and December quarter reports contain price trend information for a range of hardwood products. Price changes in this report are based solely on TMS survey data; individuals may experience different price movements in their markets. The TMS is prepared by Indufor (Australia). Funding is provided by Forestry Corporation of New South Wales, the Queensland Government Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, HQPlantations, OneFortyOne Plantations, Green Triangle Forest Products, Sustainable Timber Tasmania, Hancock Victorian Plantations, and Southern Cross Forests. Find the latest and past surveys at: https://induforgroup.com/knowledge-hub/timber-market-survey/

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Forest & Wood Communities Australia is calling on Federal Parliament to disallow the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative – Improved Forest Management in Multiple-use Public Native Forests) Methodology Determination 2026, warning that the method risks issuing carbon credits for shutting down sustainable timber production while shifting the environmental, economic and emissions impacts elsewhere. Source: Timberbiz FWCA Chair Steve Dobbyns said the INFM method should be disallowed before any Australian Carbon Credit Units are issued. “Carbon credits should represent genuine climate benefit,” Mr Dobbyns said. “They should not be used to financially reward governments for closing sustainable public native forestry while timber demand simply moves to imports, interstate supply chains or private landholders. “That is not emissions reduction. That is displacement.” ERAC’s own advice confirms that leakage, additionality and transparency were central concerns raised through consultation. The final method replaced the original flat 5% indirect leakage deduction with project-level assessment, but only within a possible deduction range of 0 to 40%. FWCA says that 40% cap is impossible to justify against Venn et al. (2026), which found that reduced Australian native forest harvesting has driven growing import dependency, with a long-run timber harvest leakage rate of 81.3%. Venn et al. also found that 86.8% of displaced demand was met by countries with elevated illegality-risk profiles. “Venn et al. found a long-run timber harvest leakage rate of 81.3%,” Mr Dobbyns said. “That international leakage estimate alone is more than double the INFM method’s 40% cap, before inter-State leakage or private native forestry displacement are properly accounted for. “The timber demand does not disappear. It is shifted, along with jobs, emissions risk and biodiversity pressure.” FWCA says the contradiction is made worse by advice given directly to Venn et al. during discussions with ERAC. “We understand Professor Karen Hussey, Chair of ERAC, clarified in a meeting with Tyron Venn that ERAC did not have to consider leakage to imports when assessing the method,” Mr Dobbyns said. “If that is correct, it exposes the hypocrisy at the heart of the INFM approval. “ERAC says leakage was a key integrity concern, yet the largest leakage pathway identified by Venn et al. — import substitution — was apparently outside the scope ERAC had to consider. “You cannot claim a carbon method is conservative while excluding the market response most likely to undermine the claimed abatement.” FWCA also says Venn et al.’s import leakage work does not capture inter-State leakage, such as the supply shift from Victoria to Tasmania highlighted by ABC’s Four Corners program Timber Turmoil, nor does it resolve leakage onto private native forests. “For private native forestry, there is no comprehensive, transparent production baseline equivalent to public forest sustainable yield and wood supply records,” Mr Dobbyns said. “You cannot credibly deduct leakage against a baseline that does not properly exist. “Worse still, the Great Koala National Park moratorium has already distorted the market. Pentarch’s State forest log supply was cut off by the NSW Government, and the company has been forced to shift its entire supply focus onto private property. “That means any future private native forestry baseline may already be contaminated by the policy shock.” FWCA says the INFM approval process has also failed to transparently assess the economic and social impacts of the method. “The INFM is not an abstract carbon accounting exercise,” Mr Dobbyns said. “It is a method designed to reward the permanent removal of timber supply from multiple-use public native forests. That has direct consequences for workers, contractors, mills, downstream businesses, private landholders and regional communities.” FWCA disputes the NSW Government’s claim that the Great Koala National Park moratorium and INFM pathway only affect six timber mills and approximately 300 jobs. “That figure is not a serious socio-economic assessment,” Mr Dobbyns said. “It is a narrow political framing of the immediate damage. It does not account for harvesting contractors, haulage operators, roading contractors, mechanics, private native forestry operators, downstream manufacturers, wholesalers, builders, fencing suppliers, firewood operators, farm and infrastructure users, or the regional communities built around those supply chains.” The EY Economic Contribution Study of the NSW hardwood timber industry found that the North East NSW hardwood industry contributes $1.84 billion in gross revenue, $700 million in gross value added and supports 5,700 full-time equivalent jobs. Across NSW, the hardwood industry contributes $2.9 billion in gross revenue, $1.1 billion in gross value added and supports 8,900 full-time equivalent jobs. “The North Coast hardwood industry is not just six mills,” Mr Dobbyns said. “It is an integrated regional supply chain. “Over the INFM’s 15-year crediting period, the North East NSW hardwood industry represents a $10.5 billion regional economic base. Over the 100-year permanence period, it represents a $70 billion economic base. “That does not mean every dollar disappears, but it proves the NSW Government’s ‘six mills and 300 jobs’ line is grossly inadequate.” FWCA says the economics become even harder to justify when the 15-year crediting period is compared with the 100-year permanence obligation. “The NSW Government can receive carbon-credit income for 15 years, but the public is left with the management obligation for the remaining 85 years,” Mr Dobbyns said. “Who pays for fire management, roads, weeds, pests, compliance, visitor infrastructure, cultural heritage management and ongoing administration after the carbon-credit income stops? “The answer is obvious: taxpayers. “The State would be trading a renewable, productive, regionally embedded timber economy for 15 years of carbon-credit income, then leaving future taxpayers to fund the remaining 85 years of management. “How is that rational economic or social responsibility?” FWCA is calling for the INFM Determination to be disallowed until there has been an independent assessment of import leakage, inter-State displacement, private native forestry baseline integrity, the effect of pre-existing moratoria, regional socio-economic impacts and the long-term taxpayer liability created after carbon-credit income stops. “If the carbon benefit cannot survive proper leakage analysis, and the method cannot survive a proper socio-economic assessment, it should not be credited,” Mr Dobbyns said. “That is why this instrument should be disallowed.”

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