Expansion of

Premier Carr’s announcement as part of the Southern Forest Agreement included: "a continuous corridor of national parks and reserves, stretching 350 kilometres from the Victorian border to Macquarie Pass, north of Nowra, with links from the escarpment to the coast. Icon areas such as Murramarang, Conjola, the five lakes area south of Ulladulla, Deua, Dignams Creek and Monga will be protected forever."

"The Southern Forest Agreement means the NSW Labor Government has created more than 1.4 million hectares of new national parks and reserves since coming to office. More than 100 new national parks and reserves and about 80 additions to existing national parks and reserves will be created in the Southern region, bringing the number of new national parks and reserves to more than 280 since coming to office in 1995."

Job opportunities increase as a direct result of this expansion of national parks on the ‘Nature Coast’. Growth in natural and cultural heritage tourism and park management will be accompanied by expansion in construction, retail, education, Internet and other service industries. Long-term jobs are desperately needed. In Eurobodalla Shire, for example, the latest figures show a record population growth of 12% – with unemployment growing by 4% over the same period (the timber mills employ less than 1%).

But new job opportunities for the broader community did not prevent the executive director of the
Forest Products Association (FPA), Col Dorber, from describing Premier Carr’s announcement as a "sell-out". This selfish response ignored the fact that this Southern Forest Agreement actually maintains existing native sawlog volumes on the South Coast – and guarantees that supply for another 20 years.

The large job growth in plantations (which already supply 80% of timber volumes in the Southern Region) was also apparently of no interest to the FPA, probably because this Association represents hardwood timber millers who have become dependent on unsustainable, subsidised supplies of larger old trees from our publicly owned State forests. Hopefully they will take this historic opportunity to generate extra jobs and profits by developing value-adding methods using ecologically sustainable supplies of hardwood logs.

The 20-year timber contracts and other statements by the NSW Premier on the Southern Region could not have been more considerate of timber workers:

Unfortunately, South Coast residents previously displaced from jobs in fish processing, banking, Telstra and other declining industries did not receive similarly deserving consideration!

The State Forests plantations industry around Tumut is already adding over 400 jobs. Firewood for the Sydney and Canberra markets is another great opportunity for new plantations. NSW State Forests are also to be congratulated for their progressive support of re-afforestation in the Murray Darling Basin, and on other farm lands already over-cleared.

Conservationists will continue to monitor and support State Forests in their management of flora reserves and other forest management zones designed to help protect our catchments and biodiversity.

State Forest’s reserve areas and plantations richly deserve all the credits they are seeking for carbon, biodiversity and desalination (see other articles in this Journal).

But is the ‘other side of the ledger’ associated with destruction of old growth trees also being recorded? Or do State Forests have a conflict of interest?

Submissions from NPA and other conservations argued for
the Southern Region to be declared a "Woodchip Free Zone".

Jobs are being wasted. Nine out of ten old growth whole logs from the Eden Region are being trucked directly to the Daishowa Woodchip Mill. It is a myth that only offcut ‘waste’ is being woodchipped. Irreplaceable forest ecosystems in wild places like the Deua will be woodchipped, and transformed into re-growth areas resembling eucalypt forests overseas.

Recently the State Treasurer revealed a proposal to double woodchip volumes from old trees – and to burn them to generate electricity:"Mr Egan has warned that the commercial survival of State Forests – manager of all publicly owned native forests in NSW – may depend on such a radical decision, which could involve timber collected from all regions."

The NSW State Forests agency was created in 1916 to conserve our trees. Now it is suggested our old trees be sacrificed to conserve this State Forests organisation. NSW State Forest’s revenues have now become woodchip driven!

NPA members will join other conservationists from Sydney, Canberra and the South East to campaign against woodchipping of our native forests.

NPA and other conservation groups attending national forest summits have consistently rejected the 1990s Regional Forest Agreement (RFA) process, claiming they fail to deliver genuine Ecologically Sustainable Forest Management (ESFM). RFA evidence suggests intensification of old growth logging and woodchipping is wasting Australia’s natural and cultural heritage.

RFAs are themselves burning up Australia’s natural capital! The value of ecological services provided by natural forests should be considered in terms of credits for water conservation, biodiversity, salinity, carbon and avoidance of greenhouse gas emissions generated with old growth logging and burning.

‘Net public benefit’ from continued logging in many State Forest areas remains negative. Roads and other infrastructure are not being costed and RFAs are serving only the narrow interests of the State forests organisations, native forest loggers and woodchippers. The public is not yet aware of the ‘virtual clearfelling’ in RFA forest management practices. Hopefully our parliaments will assist by studying these issues more carefully when reviewing RFAs and related timber certification issues.

Fortunately, the NSW and Commonwealth governments have now agreed to a better approach. In future, forestry will be considered alongside agriculture and other industries under a regional planning process for Natural Resource Management (NRM).

Integrated regional planning for NRM will help manage ecologically sustainable development (ESD), water reform, biodiversity conservation strategies and reserves planning using the national framework agreed for managing native vegetation. The ‘work plan’ agreed for NSW and other States includes completion of a comprehensive Native Forests Inventory for both public and private lands, and implementation of the Native Vegetation Information System (NVIS).

New decision-making processes still require old-fashioned teamwork and personal goodwill. During the campaign for the Nature Coast, conservationists developed community reserve proposals; and Ian Pulsford of NPWS delivered a professionally designed Reserve System for the Southern Region. State Forests were equally well represented. Many individuals working in concert contributed to this latest expansion.

But the person most responsible for protecting our South Coast was probably Milo Dunphy, as he stoked the campfire at Murramarang, and helped a younger Bob Carr appreciate our unique natural and cultural heritage.

After all the scientific biodiversity assessments and socio-economic data are analysed, we still need leaders capable of reaching agreement with each other.

* Mike Thompson is a member of the Southern Forest Forum and sits on the executive of the National Parks Association and the Nature Conservation Council of NSW, e-mail miket@nature.net.au