Gavin Pearce (Braddon, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Health, Aged Care and Indigenous Health Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

PEARCE () (): I've always been a strong and vocal supporter of Tasmania's and, indeed, the nation's world-class sustainable forestry industry. Forestry is the art and science of growing, managing, using and caring for our forests. Nowhere in the world is this done better than in Australia. It's an industry that's good for the economy, it's good for jobs and it's good for the habitat that call our native forests home. It allows the broader community to prosper and to connect, whether that's through the honey industry, for instance, tourism businesses or individual recreational pursuits.

But this vital industry is under imminent threat. The recent decision by the Victorian government to accelerate the cessation of selective and sustainable native forest harvesting is making the broader industry extremely nervous. The motivation appears to be nothing more than waving the white flag to militant environmentalists. There are no winners in this ill-conceived decision, although, on the face of it, Victoria's decision to end native forest harvesting would appear to be a win for the environment. I believe in my heart of hearts that this is naive, and it will, of course, have unintended consequences. I admit that the changes facing our forests are complex, but they will not be solved by having a mass exodus of our forest management specialists, their expertise, their knowledge and, indeed, their equipment.

Ongoing effective management of our forests is absolutely crucial, and this management should be based on three things if it is to be effective. Firstly, we need a better understanding of traditional knowledge and practices of our First Nations people in the forestry industry. Secondly, decisions need to be based on science and facts. Finally, we need to harvest the lived experience of the people who have dedicated their lives to this evidence based care of our forests. I therefore join with the Australian Forest Products Association, AFPA, and say that we need a coordinated national plan, and we need it urgently. Our dependence on imported product is growing, while our sovereign capability simultaneously shrinks. We cannot allow this to happen. Stopping native forestry in one state is one thing, but what often happens and what will happen now is we'll simply import it from another one. All it does is significantly add to our $5½ billion worth of exports that comes predominantly from developing nations around the world with lesser environmental standards than our own. This is not a solution. It will neither preserve Australian forests nor holt global deforestation.

It's easy to get entrapped by the emotional rhetoric of militant environmentalists. Older Tasmanians will still remember the devastation of the Labor-Green Tasmanian forest agreement, the peace deal. This devastated every two out of three jobs in regional towns. Towns were devastated. These are the facts of the Tasmanian world-class forest, and these are undisputed: Tasmania has a total land mass of 6.81 million hectares; 3.5 million hectares, or 49 per cent of that, is forested; and 53 per cent of all Tasmania's forests and 58.2 per cent of Tasmania's native forests are protected in reserves. This includes 87 per cent of Tasmania's old-growth forests. These forests are diverse in their nature. They provide habitat for plants and animals, offer recreational spaces, produce essential forestry products and provide employment opportunities and sustainable living for regional communities. Tasmania has one of the highest percentages of protected forests of any jurisdiction by size in the world. Ninety-nine per cent of Tasmania's high-quality wilderness areas on public land are protected, and over 85 per cent of our old growth forests are protected. Native forestry in Tasmania is sustainable. It provides timber to build houses and fibre for plastic-free furniture and is the lifeblood of local communities, providing important jobs in regions right across the electorate of Braddon. With the world's increasing demand for sustainable wood and fibre, Tasmania is in the box seat to leverage from this demand.

Victoria's decision to shut down native forestry did not meet any of these factors. For the sake of our sovereign capability, our environment and local jobs, I ask the federal government to support our crucial native forestry industry, particularly in the great state of Tasmania.