Dr Peter Volker
Tasmania’s forest practices system has been balancing timber production and conservation for more than 30 years. Recently three Forest Practices Authority scientists published a paper in Forest Ecology and Management detailing how the Tasmanian forest practices system contributes to biodiversity conservation outside of the formal reserve system. Source: Timberbiz
Managing Director of the Forest Practices Authority, Dr Peter Volker, said the fact this work was peer-reviewed and published by a highly respected international journal demonstrates the world-leading approach to sustainable forest management in Tasmania.
One of the authors, Anne Chuter, who is the manager of the FPA’s Biodiversity Program, said: “The value of the ‘off-reserve’ conservation management was first suggested in the 1980s and has gained momentum since then. The FPA worked with the forest industry to turn theory into practice and has set the standard for the rest of the world. We have developed tools to identify risks and conservation actions for biodiversity in production forest – so species and their habitats are managed even though the forest is not in the formal reserve system”.
“The paper written by three long-term members of the FPA’s biodiversity team describes how the off-reserve conservation approach is an important part of meeting the FPA objective of providing reasonable protection to the environment in forestry operations,” Dr Volker said.
He added that the forest practices system includes a policy to maintain a permanent native forest estate, a code of practice, planning tools, scientific advice, training, research, monitoring, and continual improvement in an adaptive management manner with input from stakeholders.
“Those working in the forest industry and government have long recognised the benefits of Tasmania’s approach to forest management, but it’s great to have it examined in a scientific paper that has been published internationally,” Dr Volker said.
“One of the challenges for off-reserve management is that conservation goals are harder to attain as the reserve system expands and consequently forest management in the production areas intensifies.
“It’s important to share our experience of the Tasmanian forest practices system with our peers and the broader community as a model for forest management.”
Link to article: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S037811271930814X
