This is Us
Visit our Instagram account Visit our Facebook account Find us on Linkedin
This is Us | Tasmanian Forestry
Back to Solutions
Topic: Solutions

Scientists have told us how to address climate change – so where to from here?

  • Horizontal closeup photo of narrow leaves hanging down on a branch of a Eucalyptus tree lit by early morning Winter sunlight. Soft focus background

It is an ongoing obstruction. The rigid divide between science and emotion that if not resolved will leave us scratching our heads and unable to move forward on climate change.

Following decades of campaigning, the misinformation around Tasmanian forestry has resulted in less investment and less trees in the ground than there could and should be.

The world wants wood! This is undisputed and the demand is growing by the day as outcomes from the COP26 in Glasgow are implemented by governments and industries around the world.

Any business that is environmentally conscious is currently looking at how they can replace metals, concrete and plastic from their products, their packaging, and their supply chains to lower their environmental footprint.

And there is one product the world is talking about – wood!

Problem is that past and present politicians and environmental activists have created empires by condemning forestry without considering of the bigger picture.

But now, the outcomes from Glasgow and the scientific community have put the environmental politicians squarely on the wrong side of history as they continue to slow progress to real climate action. They will tell you they “support plantation forestry but not native” however as recent letters to the editor prove, this is just political opportunism. They will again as they have done in the past change this stance to ensure political relevance.

We need a diverse forestry industry. Engineered timber products, bio-composite materials, construction grade timbers and ply, dressed timber products and some of the highest quality fibre in the world is coming out of Tasmania.

But to continue to be successful, to continue to be a part of the solution to climate change, these products will always need to come from a variety of tree species. A diversified industry is stronger, more varied, and more able to invent and create the environmentally friendly products of the future.

If you have built a house recently you would know all to well how in demand timber is, all species.

Australia imports around 25% of our framing timber simply because we do not grow enough here.

To understand why you need to look back fifteen to twenty years, to when these plantation trees needed to go in the ground.

The extreme pressure from the environmental politicians and activists, who were dead against expanding plantation forestry at the time, put downward pressure on plantations and investment. They selfishly politicised plantation forestry to get themselves elected, and we are paying the price for that today.

Now proven wrong about plantation forestry they have other species in their sights, longer growing species that we need in the ground today so that they too will be available in the future.

So where to from here? Well just like the attitude flip on plantation timber from fifteen years ago it is time to accept the fact that sustainable, mixed species forestry is the future, for both people and for the climate.

It’s time we catch up to the rest of the world in understanding and celebrating the benefits of forestry products and appreciate what our local industry produces because it really is the best product on earth and is part of the solution to climate change.

Nick Steel, CEO, Tasmanian Forest Products Association

Share this Story
Previous Story

Stopping climate change requires balance

This is Us TFPA Tasmanian Forestry. The Ultimate Renewable.
About
Visit our Instagram account Visit our Facebook account Find us on Linkedin

About

This is us.

The Tasmanian forestry industry has, like most industries, had its ups and downs. If history tells us anything, this valuable and sought-after resource is to be respected, appreciated and protected.

The modern forestry industry has matured and evolved as global demand soars for timber products as this resource is increasingly recognised for the environmental solutions it provides.

This is an industry filled with research, innovation, forward-thinking and value-adding.

Our timber is sourced from sustainably managed forests, independently audited and certified to an internationally acclaimed standard.

Plantation timbers are on the rise in Tasmania, and incredible advancements are being made in plantation hardwood, construction softwoods and the harvesting technology of native and speciality timbers.

Tasmanian forestry products are revered by builders, architects, furniture makers and producers. And our timber is playing a significant role in the global fight against climate change because timber is The Ultimate Renewable resource. And that’s something we can all be proud of.

For more information please contact us via e-mail: enquiries@tfpa.com.au.