Jarrah Photo: Bianca Kate Photography
One year on from the State Government’s decision to ban native forestry from 2024, the WA forestry industry is reflecting on 12 months of frustration, broken government commitments and ongoing uncertainty for impacted businesses. Source: Timberbiz
Despite being promised a Just Transition Plan by the State Government, Forest Industries Federation WA (FIFWA) Chief Executive Officer Adele Farina said businesses remained as unsure today as they were when they were blindsided with the shocking announcement.
“The State Government has failed to develop a Just Transition Plan setting out its vision for the industry post-2023 and in particular, what impacted businesses are to transition to,” Ms Farina said.
“Indeed, the Government is now suggesting this is not its role and that three funding pillars suffice as a Just Transition Plan.
“Impacted businesses are yet to receive a cent of financial support from the government,” she said.
“The Government has also failed to deliver on its sweetener to grow the softwood plantation estate, with just over $20,000 of the $350 million spent and one property purchase agreement finalised.”
Ms Farina said unlike the fishing industry, which has been invited to comment on the government’s proposal to reduce demersal fish take, based on science released to the public, the native timber industry received no advance notification from government of its intention to close the industry, were not provided an opportunity to comment and to this date, are still waiting on the government to release the science supporting its decision.
“Impacted businesses have been treated deplorably throughout this whole process, despite the Premier having promised business as usual to the end of 2023,” she said.
“The government’s decision to stand on the timber supply hose and to financially incentivise workers to leave early has been financially crippling for timber businesses.
“To date, one quarter of the workers to receive a workers transition program payment were enticed by the government’s incentive payment, creating vacancies that cannot be filled due to the industry’s limited life.”
After months of public debate and a largely one-sided negotiation, Ms Farina said the State Government’s arbitrary cap on the total funding support for sawmill and harvest and haulage businesses and insistence of payment based on a dollar amount per tonne of sawlog based on one year of the contract only resulted in compensation payments that are woefully inadequate.
“Efforts by FIFWA to negotiate an increase to the funding cap and for a funding model similar to the previous industry restructure were rejected by the State Government.
“After intense negotiations, the government stopped the process and put an offer on the table making it clear that no further negotiations would be entered into.”
Ms Farina said FIFWA put the offer to its members, in the context that no further negotiations would be entered into by government and a majority of members, many reluctantly, agreed to accept the offer.
“Equally disappointing, hundreds of businesses in the supply chain impacted by the State Government’s decision and expecting the third funding pillar to provide financial support, will receive nothing,” she said.
“We are 12 months on, and the Government has failed to deliver a Just Transition for those most impacted by its decision and its efforts to grow the softwood plantation estate have been wanting.
“The legacy of the McGowan Government will be its disregard for honouring its commitments and doing right by impacted small businesses and regional communities.
“The McGowan Government has not stopped native forest harvesting; they have stopped the sustainable harvest of native timber while permitting the continued clear felling of our native forests for the purpose of mining. To argue this is necessitated by climate change is clear non-sense.
“The truth remains that the best, and I would argue, only way to ensure our forests are healthy and best able to meet the challenges of climate change is through sustainable forest management of all of our forests.”
