Forest industry review

Sue Neales Mercury
THE State Government has begun a major review of the forest industry. The review coincides with continuing tensions between protesters and logging contractors in the Upper Florentine Valley, west of Hobart. Resources Minister David Llewellyn yesterday said a new strategy was being drafted, looking at the future of forests and the industry. Mr Llewellyn said former Premier’s Department head Evan Rolley would play a key role in the nine-month review. Mr Llewellyn said the review, to be conducted by the Forests and Forest Industry Council, would consider the views of stakeholders, including environmentalists, and look at the availability of timber from plantations and native forests. Mr Rolley, a former Forestry Tasmania chief executive, is expected to help assess the impact of future carbon trading credits on resource availability, and on global opportunities for new forest products. Mr Rolley remains on the government payroll despite resigning in May, when then Premier Paul Lennon, who had appointed him nine months earlier, quit. Read more here