Australian Forest Products Association represent the biosecurity interests of the plantation timber industry. They are members of Plant Health Australia and signatories to the Emergency Plant Pest Response Deed. Their responsibilities include:
- biosecurity planning and implementation at the national and farm levels
- liaising with federal and state governments on trade issues
- funding and supporting biosecurity initiatives
- participating in national committees and response efforts in an emergency.
Industry overview
The forest, wood and paper products sector is Australia’s sixth largest manufacturing industry.
Australia is the seventh most forested country in the world, with 132 million hectares of native forest on public and private land and two million hectares of plantation forestry. Of this native forest, only 78,000 hectares is harvested for timber production annually (less than 0.06 per cent of Australia’s total native forests). All native forest harvested is sustainably regrown, with the regrowth quickly becoming an abundant food source and habitat for native species.
Of the 36.6 million hectares of native forest both available and suitable for commercial wood production, 7.5 million hectares is multiple-use public forests. The remainder is in leasehold and private forests. Multiple-use native forests are managed by state government departments or agencies in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania and are defined as crown land managed for a range of values including wood harvesting, water supply, conservation, recreation and environmental protection.
Plantation species are split evenly between softwood and hardwood plantations. Softwood plantations are predominately long rotation (from 28 to 40 years) and produce logs for a range of products including structural timber for housing, appearance grade sawn timber, wood-based panels, engineered wood products, paper and paperboard. Most softwood grown in Australia is Pinus radiata, which is the dominant species in South Australia, Western Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. P. elliottii and P. caribaea are also grown in Queensland and northern New South Wales, and P. pinaster is grown in Western Australia. There is also a notable area (around 50,000 hectares) of native hoop pine (Araucaria cunninghamii) in the south-east of Queensland and northern New South Wales.
Hardwood plantations include short rotation eucalypt species (eight to 12 years) grown for woodchips to be made into tissue, paper and paperboard products, and around 10 per cent are long rotation species, producing logs for a range of products including appearance grade sawn timber and structural timber for housing. Dominant species planted include Eucalyptus globulus, E. nitens and E. regnans. There are also some plantings of Acacia mangium, African mahogany, grown in the Northern Territory. In 2015–16, there were 32,000 hectares of sandalwood plantations in the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia. This estate comprised approximately 17,900 hectares (56%) of Santalum spicatum and 14,100 hectares (44%) of Indian sandalwood (S. album).
Forestry surveillance
National Forest Biosecurity Surveillance Strategy
The National Forest Biosecurity Surveillance Strategy is designed to complement and address aspects of the National Plant Biosecurity Strategy, the National Plant Biosecurity Surveillance Strategy and the National Plant Biosecurity Diagnostic Strategy for the forest biosecurity sector.
A series of goals and actions with defined outcomes are described to enable stakeholders to successfully establish a National Forest Pest Surveillance Program over five years.
Funding for the development of this strategy comes from the Australian Government’s Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper, the government’s plan for stronger farmers and a stronger economy.
National Forest Biosecurity Surveillance Strategy Implementation Plan
To achieve the objectives, goals and outcomes outlined in the above strategy, the NFBSS Implementation Plan suggests ten major actions with a total of 30 associated tasks, undertaken over five years, for consideration by forest stakeholders and governments.
Implementation of the NFBSS will support the sustainability of Australia’s forests and provide information on pest status that underpins market access for forest derived products.
Download the implementation plan
Framework for National Biosecurity Surveillance of Exotic Forest Pests
This Framework recognises the need to effectively gather together and engage the multitude of stakeholders in the forest sector to drive fair investment in forest biosecurity.
The recommendations outline a system wherein the forest sector would, where appropriate, provide funding, in-kind operational support or forest-specific expertise to assist or undertake the activities along Australia’s biosecurity continuum.
Biosecurity plans, manuals and resources
Plantation Forest Biosecurity Plan
Biosecurity planning provides a mechanism for the plantation timber industry, government and other relevant stakeholders to assess current biosecurity practices and future biosecurity needs. Planning identifies procedures that can be put in place to reduce the chance of pests reaching our borders or minimise the impact if a pest incursion occurs.
The Plantation Forest Biosecurity Plan outlines key threats to the industry, risk mitigation plans, identification and categorisation of exotic pests and contingency plans. For a copy, please contact PHA on (02) 6215 7700 or email biosecurity@phau.com.au.
Biosecurity Manual for the Plantation Timber Industry
The Biosecurity Manual for Plantation Timber Industry contains information to help producers and plantation managers to implement biosecurity. Manuals usually contain an overview of biosecurity, fact sheets to identify the high priority pests of a crop, tips on crop management, and how to manage people, vehicles and equipment to minimise biosecurity risks.
Manuals also contain a biosecurity self-assessment list, and templates to record pest surveillance records and visitors. More information about on-farm biosecurity for both plant and livestock producers is available from the Farm Biosecurity website.
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