The Future for N E Forestry

The recent history of forest operations has been dominated by wood chipping and many native forest areas have been converted to plantation.

Despite fuelling by investor funding and the Federal Government’s Managed Investment Scheme (MIS) three out of the four major wood chipping companies have gone into receivership. The remaining company, Gunns Timber Ltd. Has vowed to end native forest logging and concentrate on plantations to feed the proposed Tamar Valley Pulpmill.

As no date has been given for the exit from native forests, it is likely conversion to plantation will accelerate over the next few months, to increase plantation stock for the mill. This will increase the burden on the landscape and leave an even greater legacy of E. Nitens for the northeast to deal with.

With Gunns’ share price having lost 87% of its value and now dwindling at the mercy of contrarian buying, it is unlikely the pulp mill, the fantasy of Gunns’ former CEO, John Gay, will ever eventuate.

There has been a recent rise in the share price, following the TASMANIAN FORESTS STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES, as agreed between conservation and forestry groups. The rise (approx 20%) was caused by Gunns announcement of the pulp mill being back on track. This was prompted by the report’s suggestion of a pulp mill being included in the forest program.

The share price however, is slipping back down again, after an initial surge and will likely continue to fall. Today’s price (9/2/11) is 0.545c and is likely due to an increase in the cost of doing business with Australia. The Australian Dollar has eclipsed the US Dollar and looks likely to hover around parity for at least the next 12 months. This increases the commodity price of woodchip and will possibly be the final nail in the eucalypt coffin of Gunns Timber Ltd.

The impact on Northeast Tasmania, after Gunns inevitable demise, will be felt long after the dust cloud has fallen onto the leaves of those shining gums and removed the lustre.

Woodchipping of forests and plantations is a waste of a valuable resource and is clearly financially unsustainable. The legacy of these plantations is something the population of Tasmania will have to live with for years to come.

The water catchments, particularly in the Northeast, are lined with E. Nitens, Tasmanians’ shining inheritance.

There are better, cheaper and more sustainable ways of producing paper and it is likely the demand for E. Nitens will diminish with the rising dollar. N E Tasmania has to find other uses for E Nitens and a way of removing the toxicity from the water catchments.

Removal of Toxic Assets

Dr Bleaney and Dr Scammel have identified a serious problem in our water catchments, one that – in my view – will haunt future generations and create a huge burden on Tasmania’s health services. To me, and many others, it is obvious the toxic trees cannot remain in water catchments and they have to be removed in order to restore safety into community drinking water.

http://www.abc.net.au/austory/content/2007/s2827178.htm

A Possible Solution

There is however, a way around the problem and possibly a saving grace for Gunns and the forest industry. Apart from being suited to paper manufacture, E. Nitens is also a very attractive timber, suitable for joinery, floor boarding and decorative wall panelling. Its golden appearance may be the real sheen that will restore the landscape, the forest industry and the health of the population.

It is suitable for structural framing, decking and if treated, can be used in the ground. The timber is, by nature or cloning, pest resistant, giving some protection against termites, a problem more prevalent in mainland Australia.

There are some research papers in existence, showing uses other than paper manufacture, for this precious resource. The government site below shows graphically, how versatile and attractive this timber is.

The timber is also known as Australian Ash (Eco Ash), which would suggest that used in this way it will be more ecologically sustainable.

http://www.tastimber.tas.gov.au/SpeciesDetailsGeneral.aspx?SpeciesID=11

In a New Zealand trial by Ensis (formally Forest Research) it was found that quality solidwood products could be made from E. Nitens plantation timber. Butt logs from 15-year old samples were suitable for saw logs of around 5.5 metres in length and 2nd and 3rd logs were suitable for laminated timber products, due to the heavily branched stems at that level.

It was also found that veneer products could be made from first and second logs from 6-year old trees at 2.6 meters in length and peeled at 2.6mm in thickness, from a tree girth 57cm at chest height and 36 Metre overall height. This allowed for the peeler logs to provide full sheets of veneer (1200 x 2400) and lamination of the layers met structural specifications as laid down in AS/NZS 2269:1994 for plywood.

With acoustic testing for wood density, laminations of 38mm thick were created and then cut into 90mm x 38mm structural beams. These were checked for structural strength, stiffness and tensile strength and met AS/NZS 4063: 1992 as framing timber. The tests conclusively found those beams to be stronger than structural Radiata pine in all cases.

Boletin del CIDEU 2:51-55(2006) ISSN 1885-5237

What are Other Countries doing?

Germany, a world leader in forest care and management, realised that monoculture plantations do not work. They remove bio-diversity, species habitat and impact greatly on water use. They also require treatment against pests. Today, most European countries advocate mixed species plantation, with under-story and ground cover included as part of the solution. This works in a similar way to a forest and with trees maturing at different rates, has less impact on water use, once established.

www.unece.org/timber/docs/dp/dp-22.pdf

Tasmania could follow that example by systematically removing most of the E. Nitens stock for timber use. Subsequent replanting of mixed species will lessen the impact of toxins in water catchments and rebuild bio-diversity. With so many E. Nitens plantations, there will be a constant supply of usable hardwood and value adding, will return skills to the community and create real jobs and a thriving industry.

Processing

Scottsdale has two sawmills, the recently closed Tonganah Mill and the Ling Siding Mill, also about to close. Gunns Timber Ltd. owns both mills and is struggling to strip liabilities. Both mills are on rail sidings and both mills are on a main highway, making access to markets practical. A possible solution would be to establish the Tonganah Mill as a plantation-based, hardwood mill and retain the Ling Siding mill as a pine mill. E Nitens can be processed in the ways mentioned above, for structural and decorative hardwoods.

A moulding mill, for the milling of sections, decorative mouldings and profiles could handle the output from both the hardwood and the softwood mills. The establishment of a joinery works, possibly a window and a door manufacturer, adjacent to both, could also be encouraged and many small businesses could attach themselves to both mills, creating a forest-based commercial area.

There is a trend towards quality, traditional timber homes. It is possible that houses could be prefabricated into kits on the site and shipped inter or intra state.

Impregnation of E. Nitens hardwood, in the same way as pine is treated, is possible for plantation hardwoods, such as E. Nitens, due to the sapwood percentage of all plantation hardwoods. This gives added value with in ground and marine use possible.

http://www.timberqueensland.com.au/

The forest industry has always been a backstop for commerce in Tasmania; however, the past 30 years has seen a decline in real jobs within that industry. Mainly due to the industrialising of harvesting and with wood chip becoming the major product, rather than a byproduct of logging, jobs have been slashed by around 80% on 1980 levels. The closure of the two Scottsdale mills has further impacted on employment in the region and a likely outcome will be an exodus of working age people from the district. It is therefore necessary to find ways in which business can be enticed into the area, creating employment opportunities.

Using the legacy of E. Nitens and E. Globulus plantations to make sustainable products, which can be supplied to a domestic market, instead of exporting, it may be possible to create a niche. At the same time, proper timber use can rid the landscape of the monoculture legacy, which is harming Tasmania’s environment.

The Objections

Timber prices have declined globally over the last few years as a resource; is it therefore viable?

Shrinking timber prices can be blamed in part on woodchipping and devaluing timber as a commodity. Timber needs to be regarded in ways other than by pure price. It is a vessel for job creation and if made available to the local market first and at the right price, more use will be made of it. Exporting it as a commodity sets Tasmania up against third-world countries, lower labour costs and unsustainable practices.

Can we compete in the domestic market with foreign imports?

Trade agreements have created a situation, especially when foreign governments protect against imports and the Australian Federal Government does not. A change in policy is required to help Tasmania/Australia into a financially and ecologically sustainable future.

What sort of products should we make for a domestic market?

Making specialist furniture and joinery products that meet sustainable values will serve local markets. Marketing must reflect Australian/Tasmanian values and branding.

Environmentally sound products not only attract sales but will also be carbon tax exempt.

What about competition from big business?

Large corporations, which crave volume timber sales, will want to export products, rather than compete in local markets; however, discussions will need to take place and possible partnership/investment can be negotiated.

This sort of operation is more plausible when applied to small business and will create more jobs locally. The State Government should legislate to protect small business and help to provide jobs.

Further Discussion

This brief discussion paper will need thorough interrogation, with regard to financial viability and market research and is merely a starting point for interested parties to consider. Changes in legislation, along with changes in attitude are necessary if this transformation is to be a success.

Points of discussion are:

• Technical issues regarding processing of hardwoods
• Technical issues regarding impregnation of preservatives
• Market research to find required products and possible markets
• Financial research for funding
• Financial research for viability
• Number of jobs to be created
• Training and recruitment requirements and methods
• Impact on regional infrastructure and
• Impact on the environment
• Changes to legislation, regarding import protection and small business shielding.

There have traditionally been rifts in the community between the forest industry and environmentalists. Recent changes however, have shown it is possible to find common ground. It is hoped that a commonsense approach can be achieved in these discussions, as the damage to the region, by not acting responsibly towards change, could be severe.

We live in changing and challenging times; a lot of cooperation between parties, with differing views, is needed if the northeast is to survive as a working community into the future.

For the full article see: http://hubpages.com/hub/TASMANIAS-SHINING-LIGHT