Nola Marino (Forrest, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Regional Development and Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to acknowledge some of those involved in a critical industry in my part of the world—the South West timber industry. Ian Telfer is with WA Plantation Resources. WAPRES have a large and secure share of the wood fibre industry in WA, managing over 28,000 hectares of sustainable plantations across the South West, and they operate across all phases of the wood fibre production chain.

Warren is in charge at Wespine, located in Dardanup in this hub area. They produce 500,000 cubic metres of timber product every year. They use cutting-edge technology to ensure that every bit of the log is used, creating high-quality, precision-made timber housing, packaging and landscaping products for customers right across Australia. It's a very innovative company.

I also want to talk about Danny Griffin and his crew at Laminex. They've been a proud Australian manufacturer for over 85 years. I their Dardanup facility in WA they manufacture raw particle board and MDF. They certainly use every part of the products they get. It is a real circular economy, our renewable, sustainable industry that is timber. At Laminex, the other day, I met two 40-year-service employees. I was really proud to meet them and to hear about their experiences in their 40 years at Laminex.

I also met again with Geoff Brookes, who is an amazing innovative owner of Preston Chipping. In talking about the forestry sector, we can't forget the logistics and every job behind the wheel of a truck that goes with it.

Also in my part of the world we have the Wellington Discovery Forest centre, with self-walk trails through the forest. You can get information and insight into jarrah forest ecology and how the forest is managed from actual foresters. It's an eco-education excursion offered to school groups. There's also accommodation. It's an exceptional learning experience about the truth around our forests.

Finally I want to mention the Leschenault Hoo Hoo Club. For anybody who understands and is involved in forestry, they had a very good event recently. The hoo-hoo club offers education around forestry for younger generations. They work to build unity across the forest products and timber industry right around the world and provide opportunities for learning across the industry from experts and peers with years of experience. Well done!