Janet Rice (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

Minister, in my last question I actually asked you two questions and I want to return to both of them. In answer to the first question, you said that the higher value test would apply because the level of revenue from the wood being sold for energy could not exceed the level of revenue from the sawn timber or the higher value purpose. Of course, this depends on the price that is achieved for that wood that is sold for energy. As I have said, in the past we have seen woodchips being sold at the rock bottom price of 7c to 9c a tonne. So even if you are only getting $100 from the sawn timber it would meet the higher value test because of the tiny amount that has been achieved for those woodchips. What is to stop that from occurring in this situation where we are selling the wood for biomass?