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Australian Bureau of Statistics
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1301.0 - Year Book Australia, 2007
Previous ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 24/01/2007 |
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FORESTRY
Plantations The estimated area of planted forests in Australia in December 2004 was 1.7 mill. ha, comprised of 58% softwood species and 42% hardwood species (table 15.2). The hardwood proportion of the total estate has increased from 15% in 1994 (graph 15.3). About 95% of the softwood plantations are Pinus radiata and other introduced pines. Nearly all of the hardwood plantations are native eucalypts, including Tasmanian blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus), shining gum (E. nitens) and flooded gum (E. grandis). A diverse range of ownership arrangements exists in the Australian plantation industry, including a variety of joint venture and annuity schemes between public and private parties. Private ownership of trees in plantation forests has increased from 46% in 1999, when it was equal to public ownership, to 58% in 2004. Private ownership of plantation land increased from 42% to 53% over the same period.
Farm Forestry Farm forestry generally refers to the incorporation of commercial tree growing into farming systems. This may take the form of small plantations, timber belts, wind breaks, alleys and wide-spaced trees, and may also include management of native forest for commercial returns. Farm forestry has been adopted by relatively few Australian farmers, although a large proportion of them plant trees for land protection and amenity purposes. Managing private native forests is a potentially important component of farm forestry given 24% of Australia’s total native forest area is privately owned. WOOD AND PAPER PRODUCTS Australia's wood and paper products industries are important components of Australia's primary and secondary industry sectors. They are particularly important in providing economic development and employment in many regions of rural Australia. The industries include hardwood and softwood sawmilling, plywood and panels manufacturing, woodchip production and export, and the pulp and paper industries. In 2004-05 total roundwood removed from forests increased by 1% to 27.4 mill. cubic metres (mill. m3). The removal of broadleaved wood (primarily from native forests) increased 5% in 2004-05 to 13.0 mill. m3, while 2% less coniferous wood (mainly from plantations) was removed. The value of exports of forest products in 2004-05 totalled $2.1 billion (b), of which 41% were woodchips and 30% paper and paperboard products. The value of imports of forest products in 2004-05 was $4.1b, of which 52% were paper and paperboard products and 12% sawnwood. This indicates a trade deficit in forest products of $2.0b in 2004-05. Australia produced 89% of its sawn timber needs in 2004-05, of which 73% come from softwood plantations, the remainder (27%) from native forests. Imported sawn timber is mostly Radiata pine from New Zealand and Douglas fir (also known as Oregon) from North America. The hardwood and softwood sawmilling industries comprise mills of various sizes which process wood into sawn timber and other products such as veneers, mouldings and floorings. The hardwood mills are generally small scale and scattered. The softwood mills are generally larger and more highly integrated with other wood-processing facilities. Australia's production of sawn timber in 2004-05 increased by 17% to 4.7 mill. m3 (table 15.4). Other value-added timber products include plywood, wood-based panels and reconstituted wood products. Australian wood-based panels include particleboard, medium-density fibreboard, and hardboard made from softwood or hardwood pulp logs, sawmill residues or thinnings. Pulp and paper mills use roundwood thinnings, low quality logs, harvesting residues and sawmill waste, recycled paper and paperboard to produce a broad range of pulp and paper products. Over the past five years there has been a substantial increase in the volume of wood for paper and paperboard sourced from eucalypt plantations as they have come into production. This production has increased six fold from 443,000 m3 in 1998-99 to 2,640,000 m3 in 2004-05, more than doubling 2003-04 production levels. Some 42% of the paper and paper products consumed domestically in 2004-05 were imported, with 71% of printing and writing paper coming from overseas. The majority of paper products produced domestically were packaging and industrial paper (60%) along with printing and writing papers, newsprint and tissue paper. Recycled paper now contributes 54% of the fibre used in the production of all paper and paperboard. Woodchips are mainly used in the production of Australia's paper and paper products. The woodchip export industry uses sawmill residues and timber which is unsuitable for sawmilling and not required by the pulp, paper and reconstituted wood-products industries. Before the advent of the woodchip export industry, much of this material was left in the forest after logging. Considerable quantities of sawmill waste material, which would otherwise be burnt, are also chipped for local pulpwood-using industries and for export. Up until 1990-91 at least 95% of woodchips exported from Australia had been eucalypt, but since then greater quantities of softwood woodchips have become available from pine plantations.
This page last updated 16 January 2008
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