The Nationals Member for Eastern Victoria Region, Melina Bath and Committee for Gippsland CEO, Jane Oakley are calling on the Andrews Labor Government to deliver a genuine commitment and investment to support secure and permanent jobs for Gippsland’s native timber industry
The creation of a new state-owned nursery in East Gippsland which the State Government claims will help local forests and economies recover from the devastating 2019-20 Victorian bushfires as well as support the transition from native timber harvesting has been labelled by the Opposition as “bogus”. Source: Timberbiz
The State Government said that the establishment of the $10 million Victorian Forest Nurserym announced today, would increase the eucalypt seedling supply chain and create up to 30 new jobs, most of which would be ongoing.
The government says its Gippsland Plantations Investment Program will provide a $2 million grant to VicForests to establish and manage the nursery, on the former PR Adams sawmill site at Nowa Nowa in East Gippsland, with planning requirements being worked on ahead of project commencement in the coming months.
The Program is part of the Government’s $110 million investment in plantation timber.
The government says it supports the Victorian Forestry Plan and the timeline it sets to transition from harvesting native forests to a plantation-based sector.
It said the production of eucalypt seedlings, believed to be mountain Ash seedlings for bushfire-affected areas and blue gum for pulp, would support bushfire recovery replanting, forestry coupe regeneration, timber plantations and farm forestry programs in Gippsland as state forest harvesting decreases over the next decade.
“We’re supporting the future of our timber industry by securing jobs the whole Gippsland community can benefit from,” Agriculture Minister Jaclyn Symes said.
“The seedlings grown at this exciting new nursery will support the future of our timber industry by securing new jobs and new plantations and support the regeneration of our forests.”
However, the Opposition says the seedling nursery won’t save tens of thousands of native timber jobs that will be destroyed as a result of the Andrews Government’s green agenda.
In 2019, Daniel Andrews announced Labor would close the native timber industry and transition to plantation native timber by 2030.
The Nationals Member for Eastern Victoria Region, Melina Bath, a long-time supporter of Victoria’s sustainable native timber industry labelled Labor’s announcement insulting.
“The Andrews Labor Government needs to explain how the establishment of a nursery will replace Victoria’s world class sustainable native timber industry in only 10 years,” said Ms Bath.
“Any seedling planted today will not be ready for saw log harvest until 2050.
“Recognising how long it takes the Andrews Labor Government to establish operations after any given announcement, it is doubtful any seedlings will be in the ground before 2022.
“Labor’s ‘Victorian Forestry Plan’ is bogus and a seedling nursery will not replace 21,000 jobs and an industry that delivers $7.32 billion through Victoria’s economy.”
Ms Bath also raised serious questions around the validity of the jobs Labor claim it will create through the nursery’s establishment.
“Gippsland wants and needs secure permanent jobs, yet Labor is serving up temporary construction and casual/seasonal jobs which do not equate to sustainable long-term employment,” said Ms Bath.
“Gippslanders are justifiably sceptical of Labor’s job creation claims following the Steelvision debacle, and the serious lack of progress on the 500 SEA Electric manufacturing jobs Daniel Andrews promised for Latrobe Valley during the 2018 election.
“If COVID-19 has taught us anything, Victoria should focus on being more self-sufficient. Labor should be supporting and invest in timber manufacturing jobs using our homegrown high-end hardwood products, instead of importing timber from third world countries,” said Ms Bath.
Leader of The Nationals and Shadow Minister for Agriculture Peter Walsh said Victorian native timber jobs were critical to the survival of many Gippsland communities and Labor was destroying the livelihood of hardworking regional families and timber towns.
“This is just another smoke and mirrors timber announcement that will not deliver long term jobs, nor will it replace our sustainable native timber industry,” said Mr Walsh.
“Labor is starving the native timber industry of resources, costing Gippslanders jobs and is undermining business confidence.”
