Joint media release
- 31 January 2013 - Federal Environment
Minister Tony Burke today reiterated his
commitment to provide certainty for Tasmania’s
forestry industry, support local jobs and
communities and protect the state’s iconic
forests.
Mr Burke said while
the State’s Legislative Council is debating
the bill, as is its right, important work
continues to support the Tasmanian Forests
Agreement.
“The work demonstrates the durability of
the agreement and the commitment of signatories
to seize this unprecedented opportunity
for Tasmania and to secure jobs into the
future,” Mr Burke said.
“I continue to work with Signatories to
ensure the integrity of the Tasmanian Forests
Agreement is maintained and the important
measures announced in December to support
industry and jobs continue to move forward
in advance of the passage of the Tasmanian
Forests Agreement Bill 2012.
"It includes an extension of the Tasmanian
Wilderness World Heritage Area and next
steps in delivering on the transition to
a long term and viable native forest industry
in Tasmania and supporting jobs and communities.
“The Australian Government got behind this
agreement to improve job security in Tasmania.
“Industry has worked
hard and argued strongly for the Australian
government to help facilitate the agreement.
Continuing to unlock the different funding
components is a further down payment for
jobs and job security.
“The layer of environmental
protection which is added today is truly
iconic. While it only represents around
a 12 per cent increase to the total existing
world heritage area and a significant part
of it is already in national parks this
still provides the highest level of international
protection for some of the most extraordinary
forests on earth.
“This is to grow jobs now and protect iconic
old growth forever.”
Mr Burke said package
focuses on a long term future for industry
addressing important issues such as use
of residues, supply of specialty timbers,
certification, durability, and on-going
regional development.
"From the
processes in the package we will investigate
better use of timber in Tasmania in innovative
ways such as through bio-ethanol processing,"
he said.
“Together with the Tasmanian
Government we are progressing the package.
I have also asked the Tasmanian Government
to progress the $15 million High Quality
Sawlog Buyback Program and a program for
regional sawmillers, so that we have conditional
contracts in place that allow funding to
flow immediately on the formal protection
of the reserve areas identified by the Signatories.
“The Gillard Government
will release $ 3 million to develop a management
plan to support the special timbers industry
and to explore options for dealing with
timber residues in the short-, medium- and
longer-term and are starting the process
to obtain forest stewardship council accreditation.
“The Tasmanian Government
has provided funding to support industry’s
transition to the future that we hope to
achieve when the Legislative Council passes
the bill.
Mr Burke also today
announced the Gillard Government will put
forward a nomination to extend protection
of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage
Area by an additional 170 000 hectares.
If supported by the
World Heritage Committee this will incorporate
areas of forest identified through the Tasmanian
Forests Agreement for reservation under
Tasmanian legislation.
“The Tasmanian Wilderness
World Heritage Area is a spectacular part
of Australia, this extension is a critical
next step for the Tasmanian Forests Agreement,”
Mr Burke said.
“The modified boundary
will include the Upper Florentine and areas
within the Styx, Huon, Picton and Counsel
River Valleys. These areas include a number
of areas identified as having old growth
forest.
“This comes after an
exhaustive process brokering an historic
peace and ending decades of dispute over
Tasmania’s forest areas.
Regional Australia Minister Simon Crean
said that the work to be started on specialty
timbers and residues is consistent with
the Tasmanian economic diversification strategy,
which includes the development of a long-term
sustainable forest products industry, with
a diversified product base.
“As part of this package I will also convene
a meeting of the Economic Diversification
Tasmania Taskforce to bring together business,
union and community leaders to identify
opportunities to diversify and strengthen
the Tasmanian economy and generate jobs,”
Mr Crean said.
“These opportunities
will be lost if the Legislative Council
rejects the forests package and pass up
the opportunity to secure the more than
$90 million in funding to support economic
diversification.
“The $20 million funding already provided
under the economic diversification stream
has the potential to generate more than
4,000 new jobs in areas including the diary,
in aquaculture and in the wine industry.
Imagine what could be achieved with four
times that funding.”
Federal Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries
and Forestry, Joe Ludwig, said the Gillard
Government had always supported the industry
working with community organisations to
develop a future for forestry in Tasmania.
“Today’s announcement
is a demonstration of our commitment to
the signatories process and to a sustainable
future for the industry in Tasmania,” Minister
Ludwig said.
“The Government has taken advice from the
signatories and will continue to work with
them.”
