Rex Patrick (SA, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise tonight to speak about Australian timber. Proper plans require careful consideration of the variables, setting measurable outcomes, meaningful participation from stakeholders and commitment to implementation. Plantation timber and forestry is a long game. There's a saying: it takes nine months to have a baby. Well, it takes 25 years to grow a tree to the point at which it can be harvested and processed. So in the timber industry knee-jerk reactions can't change anything, catchy slogans can't change things and even lots of money can't change things. Growth of a properly managed and sustained timber industry brings a whole range of benefits to Australia. The timber industry is manufacturing. It's an industry where Australia adds value taking raw products through each of the processing stages. Trees are good for the environment, with carbon sequestration, and provision of transpiration and shelter.

In 2018 there were about 70,000 Australians directly employed in the industry. The sector generates $23 billion of economic activity. Growth of the Australian forestry sector is not new. It has been a policy objective of successive Australian governments for some time. Go back to 1992 where we had the National Forestry Policy Statement. In 1997 we had Plantations for Australia: the 2020 Vision. Of course, 2020 has passed. In March 2020, at estimates, the government was asked about the final assessment of this program. The answer was: 'A report is being prepared and should be available by the end of the year.' We haven't seen that.

In 2018, there was another program: Growing A Better Australia—A Billion Trees for Jobs and Growth. A key theme of the 2018 plan was that, over the next decade, a billion new trees were to be planted in forestry plantations. If you do the sums over 12 years to 2030, that's about 83 million trees per annum. On top of that, we need to add about 70 million trees per annum to replace the trees harvested from the plantations. The program was intended to boost the Australian economy and drive jobs and growth. Announced in 2018, there was $20 million over four years out to 2021-22. Nominally, we're about 65 per cent of the way through that period of funding, but there's no evidence of increased planting.

In March 2020, when asked how many trees had been planted under the program to date and where the new trees had been planted, the department responded with: 'The 2019-20 bushfires have had significant impacts on plantation forests in some regions. In these areas, it's likely that plantation owners will be investing in plantation re-establishment initially. The full detailed assessment, analysis and planning by the individual companies is still underway.' That's Sir Humphrey Appleby speaking, if I've ever heard it—basically covering up the fact that 'I don't think anything has been done.' I'll be asking questions at next month's estimates to see what's happening.

Of course, I understand the bushfires did have an impact. In terms of commercial plantations affected by the fires, about 130,000 hectares were impacted. In South Australia, there were 15,275 hectares of forestry lost, with an economic cost in excess of $140 million. Just understand that when we're planting trees we're trying to get about 83 million new trees a year, plus 70 million to replace what's being harvested, but we also have to deal with the fact we lost a lot of trees in the fires. I've recently been told that some plantation owners are not replanting, because they can't secure access to water. That'll be a further hit to the industry and those who work in it, with a flow-on effect to the market, with the reduction of products. There's a huge disconnect; there's a disconnect between announcements and delivery, and we have to think very carefully about this. In terms of shortages, the previously alluded to forecast shortages are, for a variety of reasons, being felt by our population, with potentially worse to come.

We all recall HomeBuilder. I'm not going to be critical of the program. Stimulation of the building sector is a good concept. People need houses, building trades need work, it's good for training, and it puts more money into the economy. However, what if this drives us into a shortage of materials? Are we setting ourselves up to fail? In June 2020, the forecast was that residential construction would decline, expected to be about 37 per cent lower than the previous forecast, despite the fact that there were more than 3,100 homes destroyed in the bushfires. The ABS issued a media release on 3 February this year, which said:

Private sector house approvals rose for the sixth consecutive month in December …

  …   …   …

Dwelling approvals rose across all states, in seasonally adjusted terms. Tasmania led the way, rising 66.5 per cent, followed by Queensland (24.0 per cent), South Australia (16.7 per cent), Victoria (8.6 per cent), Western Australia (7.8 per cent) and New South Wales (1.8 per cent).

In December 2020, dwelling approvals were up 10.9 per cent. Private sector houses had increased by 15.8 per cent—a record high. So we've got lots and lots of demand but access to timber is down. Timber merchants can't get timber. Builders can't get the timbers. Carpenters can't get timber. Domestic sawmills are running at capacity. Australia is a net importer of timber and there's been an impact on those supplies. We're being outbid by our colleagues, our friends, in the United States. So we're now in a situation where we're pushing businesses who can't source timber, who have work but simply can't get the product necessary to do the job, into operating and, ultimately, into financial stress.

We've got this fragility in our supply chain, so we need action. In the first instance, the government needs to extend the period to commence construction for the HomeBuilder program. This would provide some immediate relief, and I note the Senate passed a motion to that order last week. But this is clearly going to be an issue for the longer term. We'll have to look at mechanisms to better utilise our timber with alternate building constructions such as double brick, product variances, use of laminated or structural timbers. What can we do to advance timber recycling? Let's stimulate investment in the timber industry.

Of further concern is the government's plan for manufacturing that repeatedly overlooks the timber industry. Australians, individuals and businesses are fed up with studies and the launch of plans or strategies. They want to see a plan that's implemented with measurable milestones which actually work towards realistic goals. Lip service and slogans but no meaningful actioning of plans is not a good way forward.