Yesterday’s National Forestry Day was a time to celebrate the importance of Australia’s forest industries and the benefits they provide for our country and the rest of the world. Without forestry, timber, wood-fibre – the jobs and products they create – and the communities they support – Australia would be poorer and our lives harder. Source: Timberbiz
The 2024 National Forestry Day theme was Celebrating Nature’s Carbon Store.
As trees grow, they absorb carbon from the atmosphere. When those trees are sustainably harvested, the timber and fibre is made into essential everyday items, like:
- House-frames
- Paper bags, magazines and books
- Cardboard packaging
- Home furnishings like furniture, floorboards and decks
- Mulches and garden products
- Wooden cutlery that replaces harmful plastics
- Tissue and toilet paper products
The list goes on and on.
Australia’s forest industries are responsible for some amazing things.
- The full supply chain (from tree growing and management, to harvest, transport and manufacturing different products) provides 80,000 direct and another 100,000 indirect jobs nationally – many in regional areas
- The sector contributes $24 billion to the Australian economy annually and is Australia’s 6th largest manufacturing sector
- All of the trees that makeup Australia’s plantation estate store the same amount of carbon emitted by 56 million cars driving for a year
- Our industry plants around 70 million new plantation trees every year – enough to cover 136,000 football fields
- A tiny fraction – the equivalent of 6 in every 10,000 trees are sustainably harvested from Australia’s native forests for timber annually – and are then replaced by law.
“(It’s) a day to celebrate why Australia’s forest industries are so important for our lives and I commend everyone across the sector for marking National Forestry Day in their own way,” Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA) Chief Executive Officer, Diana Hallam said.
“Timber and fibre products are visible in almost every facet of our lives – if people look around for just a few minutes they are likely to spot several timber and fibre products, from hardwood flooring and kitchen benches to the desk at work or dining table and backyard deck at home, not to mention books and tissues.
“Forestry is a great Australian industry that we can all be proud of, now and into the future. Particularly, because forest industries also are a critical climate change solution for Australia and vital to ensuring we reach our net zero goals.
“Please take a moment to stop and think about how important we are.”
Nathan Paine, Chief Executive Officer of the South Australian Forest Products Association said National Forestry Day shone a light on the industry being nature’s carbon store and how Australia’s forest industries also contributed to the fight against climate change, with trees absorbing carbon as they grow and locking it up in the products that are made.
“Reducing emissions is a critical pathway to meeting Australia’s greenhouse gas reduction targets but so too is greater emissions capture, both natural and technology based. Australia’s forest products sector can make a major contribution via carbon sequestration through tree growing and via the creation of sustainable and renewable products,” he said.
“Essentially our nation and our lives are built and reliant on forestry.
“Our homes and offices are full of forest products. From the house-frame in the walls and roof, to the timber floors and benchtops, right through to paper in the printer and toilet paper in the bathroom, we cannot live without forestry.
“With global demand for wood-fibre based products continuing to grow, there are greater opportunities for our industry to combat climate change and decarbonize our economy through more tree plantations – a sought-after policy initiative to address our timber needs, our economy and regional communities,” Mr Paine said.
Tasmanian Forest Products Association Chief Executive, Nick Steel, said that with demand for timber and wood fibre expected to quadruple by 2050, the Tasmanian forest products sector would play a significant role leading the world in sustainable forest management.
“Our careful environmental management practices are an example to other jurisdictions looking to maximise the potential of their forest sectors, through active replanting and prudent regulations,” he said.
“Whether it’s the timber house-frame inside the walls of your home, the cardboard boxes your latest delivery arrived in, or the hardwood dining table in your living area, without our sustainable and renewable forest products sector, we wouldn’t have these locally made products.”
Australian Forest Contractors Association General Manager Tim Lester said forestry was a “yes and” industry that promoted sustainable land management, thriving rural and regional communities and renewable resources for essential everyday items.
“This year’s National Forestry Day theme is Celebrating Nature’s Carbon Store. This is a great reminder that trees are the best, most efficient and only commercially viable technology at scale to take carbon from the atmosphere and sequester it into stable and useful forms,” Mr Lester said.
“Australia’s working forests for softwood and hardwood are well regulated and well managed. Our forest contracting businesses and workforce are highly skilled and experienced, providing a vital link in the supply chain.
“We should all be rightly proud of this amazing industry that provides so many benefits and that touches the lives of every one of us every single day,” he said.
National Forestry Day is an initiative of the Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA) and state-based advocacy associations to raise awareness of the forest industries contribution to our national and state economies, environment and communities.
