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The Tasmanian Greenhouse Gas Emissions Report was welcomed by the Tasmanian Forest Products Association (TFPA) Chief Executive Officer, Nick Steel, who said the forestry industry continues to be a key part of Tasmania’s response to climate change. Source: Timberbiz “Tasmania’s forest industries are a major driver behind reducing Tasmania’s carbon emissions and achieving the Government’s net-zero goals, as highlighted by this report,” Mr Steel said. As production trees grow, they absorb carbon from the atmosphere and when they’re harvested, they lockup that carbon for the life of the product. Changes in the Land Use, Land use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sector have resulted in increased carbon sequestration, which has had a major influence on reducing Tasmania’s greenhouse gas emissions. LULUCF emissions were 23.78 Mt CO2-e, or 211% lower than 1990 levels. “The latest report released today shows the key drivers for change over this period for the LULUCF sector were the change in annual emissions from the private native forest estate, an increase in sequestration in the plantation estate, and additional, and probably surprising to some, the managed public native forest estate continues to be carbon negative, as what it harvests it replaces to maintain a steady standing biocarbon stock,” Mr Steel said. Climate change is one of the biggest threats to our future. Around the world governments are responding to this threat and, in Tasmania, the forest industry is leading the charge. In Tasmania, every single tree harvested, both plantation and native, is replaced by either regenerating native forests or through the cycle of plantation replanted. And that tree captures more carbon as it grows again. “Forestry is a cornerstone of sustainable economic development in Tasmania, offering a myriad of direct and indirect benefits to our community,” Mr Steel said. “Our forestry industry is sustainable, renewable and is part of the solution to climate change.”

The new No Fake Poles website set up by the NSW branch of the Australian Forest Products Association is calling supporters to sign a petition to overturn the decision by Essential Energy to opt for UV coated fibreglass and resin composite power poles. Source: Timberbiz Durability, sustainability and affordability are the mainstays of the fight which also says that the impact on household budgets has already suffered as it has led to increased electricity bills. The site claims that electricity prices have already led to an increase in the number of families struggling to keep up with the cost of energy, with those struggling to meet electricity bills rising to 3% last quarter, with an average residential debt increase of $95. Essential Energy is a state-owned corporation and so the minister for the portfolio has the authority to direct Essential Energy to change its policy. A link on the site offers a simple way for supporters to petition the NSW government, you can access the petition here. The No Fake Poles website is at www.nofakepoles.com

The timber industry has stepped up its fight against the phase-out of wooden power poles across NSW, demanding proof that the manufactured ones won’t melt in bushfires. Source: AAP The NSW branch of the Australian Forest Products Association has launched a new website urging people to sign a petition against Essential Energy’s shift to UV-coated fibreglass and resin poles. The government-owned power infrastructure company, which services 95 per cent of NSW, says the change is necessary to boost its network’s resilience to events like the Black Summer fires. During that disaster over the summer of 2019 and 2020, more than 104,000 customers were affected by power outages across the company’s network, and more than 3,200 power poles were damaged. But the shift has upset some in the timber industry, which supplies the wooden poles that have long been used. James Jooste is the NSW chief executive of the Australian Forest Products Association and has called on the government to direct Essential Energy to continue using hardwood poles. He says there’s an absence of evidence to show composite poles are more fire resistant than wooden ones. “Show us the proof.” Mr Jooste says anxiety about adequate supplies of hardwood poles is justified, but only because government decisions are hampering the industry. He points to the creation of protected koala hubs in the government’s proposed Great Koala National Park, which will cover native forests that are logged by the government-owned Forestry Corporation. He says a review of the rules that govern native forest logging is also overdue, and that’s hampering the industry. “It’s policy decisions that are impacting the supply of timber, not the availability of timber itself.” But Essential Energy has hit back, saying it must act to reduce the impact of natural disasters on customers. “The decision to use composite poles across one of Australia’s largest electricity distribution networks has been years in the making,” it has told AAP. “We also consulted with our pole suppliers and Forestry Corporation of NSW across a range of topics including composite poles.” The company has also released a photo to dispel concerns about the new poles melting. The photo – taken by Essential Energy staff during the Black Summer fires – shows a manufactured, composite pole standing intact beside the charred remains of a timber one. Its submission to the bushfires inquiry also pointed out that fibreglass cross arms that were already part of its network often survived undamaged, while timber poles were destroyed. The Australian Energy Regulator also approved the switch to manufactured poles earlier this year, after a detailed examination. Essential Energy says that was in part due to concerns about “insufficient quantities of timber poles suitable to meet the needs of Essential Energy over the 2024-29 regulatory period”. The Forestry Corporation, whose hardwood division runs at a loss, has told AAP demand remains high for timber poles due to their affordability, durability, lower energy footprint and capacity to store carbon. “By the time each pole has reached the end of service a new pole has grown to replace it.” It has contracts to supply hardwood timber poles to other energy distributors until the end of 2028. Essential Energy refuted suggestions the transition will be another economic blow for consumers during a cost-of-living crisis, saying the installation of more composite poles will cost an average residential customer less than $2 per year over the next five years.