Sammlung von Newsfeeds

Engineers at Cambridge University have reconstructed a historic wooden bowling machine that bowled out players from the Australian cricket team during a visit to the city more than a hundred years ago. Sources: Timberbiz, Cambridge University photos Adam Page Using patent illustrations and an old photograph discovered online, the team brought the 7ft contraption to life using materials that would have been available when Dr John Venn, who first described what are now known as Venn Diagrams and was also president of Gonville & Caius College, created it in the early 1900s, and which bested the Australian cricketers in 1909. The Venn bowling machine propels the cricket ball using a wooden throwing arm powered by elastic rope. But what makes its design special is the ingenuity used to put spin on the ball – when the arm travels it pulls a string, which turns a spindle and a bobbin, which in turn spins the ball holder and the ball. Hugh Hunt, Professor of Engineering Dynamics and Vibration at Cambridge, who previously led teams of investigators on shows Dambusters: Building the Bouncing Bomb, and Attack Of The Zeppelins, and who has a research interest in “spinning things that fly” set the University Engineering department the challenge of recreating the machine, which will be used at events and open days, and aims to capture the imagination of young people considering a career in maths and engineering. “It’s a great story, and an ingenious device, and at the time would have been in a lot of newspapers, but now it’s not really remembered outside the cricket world,” Professor Hunt said. “Most people learn about Venn Diagrams at school, but not many know about John Venn’s quirky side – that he invented a bowling machine using wood and string and maths, which bowled out members of the Australian cricket team more than a hundred years ago. So, the idea behind the project was to recreate a bit of history, and to show how much fun you can have with maths.” However, all the Cambridge engineers had to work from was a black and white photograph of the machine, and a patent application from the time. “The patent is around the intellectual property, rather than the technical detail, so we didn’t have a set of engineering drawings to work with. It meant we had to sketch it out for ourselves, figure out how the machine was actually going to work, and how it replicates the skill and speed of a spin bowler,” Thomas Glenday, Head of Design and Technical Services in the University’s Engineering Department, said. “The spin has been the key piece, and probably the most complicated part of the design. It’s thinking about the different forces that are acting on the ball simultaneously, and that transition of energy – it makes one hell of a diagram!” But beyond the technical challenges, an important consideration for the team has been making sure the reconstructed machine is historically authentic. “It’s a fun project, but we definitely wanted it to look the part,” Mr Glenday said. “We used high-quality hardwood, and really not much is made from wood these days, particularly for a device like this. But back then it was where the skill set was, people were used to working with wood, which has natural faults, which moves, which is not necessarily square. Today it would have been carbon fibre, and you’d be fabricating the pieces with a 3D printer.”

Despite global commitments to halt deforestation by 2030, only eight of the top 20 countries with highest rate of tropical deforestation have quantified targets on forests in their national climate action plans, also known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Source: Timberbiz This is one of the key findings of the UN-REDD report “Raising ambition, accelerating action: Towards enhanced Nationally Determined Contributions for forests,” published as countries gather for the Bonn Climate Change Conference. The report reveals a major gap in forest protection, management and restoration in current NDCs, which outline plans to adapt to and mitigate climate change. Analysed by climate experts at UNEP, the report shows that current NDC pledges submitted between 2017–2023 do not meet the global ambition to halt and reverse deforestation by 2030. Forests play a key role in achieving the Paris Agreement on climate change, as they have the potential to con-tribute one-third of the emissions reductions required to close the 2030 mitigation gap. While 11 of the NDCs contain quantified targets relating to afforestation and, reforestation, mitigating climate change requires reducing deforestation first, as it takes many years to capture the carbon lost through deforesting an equivalent area through afforestation and restoration. To further harmonize national efforts, it is also crucial for NDCs to integrate existing national strategies to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, which 15 of the 20 countries have adopted. Given the role of forests in regulating hydrological cycles, buffering temperature extremes, preventing extreme weather events, and protecting biodiversity and human health, the ambition to end deforestation is essential for humanity to avoid tremendous risks to us, our planet and the life it supports. Yet, the report released today shows that global deforestation rates continued to increase, not withstanding a recent decline in Brazil. “After the 2020 goal by world leaders to halve forest loss was not met, we must ensure that the 2030 goal doesn’t meet the same fate,” said Dechen Tsering, Acting Director of UNEP’s Climate Division. “Climate action plans, due in 2025, need to have ambitious, consistent, detailed, target-ed, and actionable goals for forest conservation, restoration and sustainable use. This includes building on exist-ing national environmental policies, while enhancing support for Indigenous Peoples and local communities, who are the frontline stewards of forests.” The report calls for urgent international collaboration to enhance NDC ambition. As countries prepare for the sub-mission of the next round of NDCs for COP30 — known as NDCs 3.0, with a timeframe extending to 2035 — the report urges countries, especially those with extensive forest cover, to include concrete, measurable targets on forests in their revised NDCs. Increased NDC ambition must be accompanied by strong and immediate action. Predictable financial support at scale for forest-rich countries will be needed to take these steps.

International Labour Organization (ILO) is moving to boost safety and health in forestry work. Despite progress in recent decades, forests remain hazardous workplaces. New guidance from the ILO aims to better protect those women and men working in the sector. Source: Timberbiz Millions of forestry workers globally are set to benefit from an updated version of the ILO code of practice on safety and health in forestry work, adopted by ILO. The updated code, discussed and adopted in a meeting of experts held in Geneva by experts from governments and employers’ and workers’ organizations, aims to improve working conditions and practices in the forestry sector, which remains one of the most hazardous sectors globally. The new text also marks an important milestone as the first ILO sectoral code of practice since the ILO’s historic decision to add ‘a safe and healthy working environment’ in its framework of fundamental principles and rights at work. The revisions build on the previous 1998 code, as well as on International Labour Standards, including the now fundamental Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155), and the Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 2006 (No. 187). Despite improvements over the past three decades, forestry continues to see a high incidence of work-related accidents and dis-eases. The updated code provides practical guidelines to help better protect those working in forests. It reflects also wider changes in the sector and the world of work and includes new areas where improved practices and measures are required. The chairperson of the meeting, Jörg Schweinle, thanked participants of the meetings for their constructive dialogue and their efforts to help make forests safer workplaces. Director of the ILO Sectoral Policies Department and Secretary-General to the meeting, Frank Hagemann, congratulated participants on the work accomplished. He called for constituents and global industry stakeholders to actively engage in the promotion and implementation of the code at the national and international levels to make the sector safer for all workers. The code will be presented to the ILO Governing Body for formal approval and publication in November this year. After this the ILO, together with its constituents, will work towards its global implementation.

A project helping to protect native birdlife in Mohi Bush, New Zealand is also giving local students hand-on experience in pest management and environmental monitoring. Source: Timberbiz The Rodent Control Project at Mohi Bush near Maraetotara, which recently received funding from the Pan Pac Environmental Trust (PPET), is jointly run by the Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT) and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council (HBRC). It aims to reduce rodent numbers in Mohi Bush, aiding the breeding of key native species such as the Toutouwai (NZ Robin) and Titipounamu (Rifleman), Aotearoa’s smallest bird. This project is one of 11 local projects funded by PPET in 2024. The Trust was established by in 2019 by Pan Pac Forest Products Limited, a sustainable integrated forest products company based in Hawke’s Bay. Through PPET, Pan Pac contributes up to NZ$100,000 per annum towards projects that benefit the environment and culture of Hawke’s Bay. EIT Environmental Management Lecturer Chris Thorman said Mohi Bush has been without pest control for approximately the last five years, leaving the native bird species that were reintroduced to the area during a previous project vulnerable. Now, a large number of rats were raiding the nests of birds like the Toutouwai and Titipounamu. “Both of those two birds are very susceptible to rats predating their nest-ing sites and chicks,” Mr Thorman said. That made Mohi Bush the perfect location for a pest control program and an ideal training ground for students, who are getting practical experience setting and monitoring bait stations, traps and tunnel traps. “We teamed up with Natalie de Burgh from HBRC and the two of us developed the idea of a real authentic learning experience for students to carry out the pest control and monitoring as part of their Environmental Management studies.” PPET funding of $4,770 has gone towards equipment needed for the project such as bait, tunnel traps, PPE, and monitoring gear.  That has helped HBRC and the students service pre-set monitoring, bait and trap lines, which they will monitor regularly throughout the semester.

A lack of scientists specialised in plant breeding could lead to ‘dire’ food security implications in Australia, and around the world, according to new research conducted across three continents. Source: Timberbiz Plant breeding is a multidisciplinary science that underpins the global production of food, animal feed, fuel and fibre. A joint paper between Australia’s national science agency CSIRO, Lincoln University in New Zealand and McGill University in Canada to address the issue, has painted a concerning picture about future capacity in the plant breeding area. The paper found that to maintain our level of agrifood, fibre and feed production, we need to urgently address the skills shortage. Lead author and CSIRO scientist Dr Lucy Egan said the shortage has been building for some time and has the potential to impact agricultural production worldwide. “What we’re seeing is a whole generation of highly skilled plant breeding specialists who are now reaching retirement age, with a gap left as university graduates opt to focus on other areas of plant science including molecular biology,” Dr Egan said. “The implications of this shortage could be dire, including affecting global food security and the economies of different countries around the world, including Australia.” Lincoln University’s Dr Rainer Hofmann said the situation is much the same across the Tasman. “Agricultural production plays such a key role for our country, and so it’s really important we start looking at strategies to slow this skills shortage,” Dr Hofmann said. “Our research looked at the current state of plant breeding across tertiary, government and industry sectors and found that decreasing skills in plant breeding will have flow-on effects for a wide range of agrifood and fibre sectors.” The report has highlighted a number of responses to the skills shortage, including the need for a coordinated approach between the public and private sectors. McGill University’s Dr Valerio Hoyos-Villegas said one of the keys to addressing the shortage will be the establishment of dedicated training facilities in different countries. “We also need more focus on graduate programs in plant breeding, and increased private sec-tor involvement if we are to keep pace with emerging scientific and technological advances in the sector,” Dr Hoyos-Villega said. “Due to the long-term nature and the variety of agricultural industries plant breeding serves, it is important that funding and research become a matter of priority, with modernised plant breeding education top of mind.” The paper, Cultivating Success: Bridging the Gaps in Plant Breeding Training in Australia, Canada and New Zealand, was published in Crop Science.

Forestry has been in Jarrod Burn’s blood since he was a child working alongside his father on a forest harvesting operation. Source: Timberbiz “I’m a fifth-generation timber industry worker,” he said. Growing up on a family farm in the Liffey Valley, which included managed native forests, Mr Mr Burn’s was picking seeds for helicopter at the age of nine. His career has since taken him back to that helicopter for work. “I’ve been involved in the full cycle of forestry, including planning the harvesting of native forests that my dad felled about 20 years ago,” he said. With more than 20 years of forestry experience, Mr Burn is stepping into a new role at Private Forests Tasmania (PFT) with enthusiasm and a clear vision for the future. Mr Burn sees significant opportunities within private forestry in Tasmania, particularly in mitigating climate change through active native forest management. “Sustainable practices can enhance carbon sequestration and contribute to global climate goals,” he said. He also discussed the importance of changing perceptions about the value of trees in agricultural settings, a challenge lingering from the Managed Investment Scheme (MIS) days. Jarrod believes private forestry can play a crucial role in reducing the national trade deficit in wood products and strengthening Tasmania’s economic resilience. “Private forestry is at the forefront of promoting the management of a resource that can bolster our economy,” he said. Mr Burn’s journey in forestry has been extensive. After completing a technical traineeship, he spent several years in the private sector before returning to Forestry Tasmania (now Sustainable Timber Tasmania) His tenure as a planning coordinator at STT included completing an MBA, which helped to broaden his strategic thinking around forest management and promoting the sustainability and value of forests beyond just production. “Private forestry is incredibly broad, covering everything from environmental and remedial works to large-scale industrial plantation management,” he said. “The private estate in Tasmania has the most potential to expand and actively manage forests, addressing some of the most pressing challenges of the 21st century. By leveraging this potential, we can ensure our forests continue to provide ecological, economic, and social benefits for generations to come.” Mr Burn’s vision for Private Forests Tasmania is clear: embrace sustainable practices, shift perceptions, and promote the economic value of well-managed forests. Mr Burns and the Operations Team can be contacted on admin@pft.tas.gov.au or call 1300 661 009.  

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced that Chinese Premier Li Qiang will visit New Zealand later this week. Source: Timberbiz “I look forward to warmly welcoming Premier Li in New Zealand. The Premier’s visit is a valuable opportunity for exchanges on areas of cooperation between New Zealand and China,” Mr Luxon says. “China is New Zealand’s largest trading partner, with two-way trade worth almost $38 billion last year. From innovative agri-tech and high-quality food, to creative industries, and world class tourism and education, New Zealand has a lot to offer China. “I am confident that trade with China will continue to grow, supporting the Government’s goal to double the value of exports in the next decade.” Premier Li’s visit marks 10 years since the conclusion of the New Zealand China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. China is New Zealand’s largest trading partner with around NZ$38 billion for the year ending March 2024 (Statistics New Zealand) but relationships have not always been ideal and this a way to get things back on track. When it comes to the timber trade more than half of all logs processed at China’s ports were from New Zealand. Statistics New Zealand also shows that 89% of radiata pine logs from New Zealand in April headed for China. “New Zealand and China engage where we have shared interests, and we speak frankly and constructively with each other where we have differences. Our relationship is significant, complex, and resilient,” Mr Luxon said. “The challenging global outlook makes it vital that we are sharing perspectives and engaging China on key issues that matter to New Zealand.” Premier Li will receive a ceremonial welcome in Wellington, followed by bilateral talks with the Prime Minister and an official dinner. Engagements in Wellington and Auckland will focus on important areas of cooperation including innovative business, agri-tech, education, and people-to-people connections. In a statement from China’s foreign ministry, it said Premier Li’s tour was at the invitation of the New Zealand Prime Minister but also of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and he was to co-chair the ninth China-Australia Annual Leaders’ Meeting. Australia has an annual timber trade with China that is worth more than $1.5 billion, it was temporarily halted due to ‘a regulatory measure’ as pests were found by China in Australian timber in 2020. Australia’s timber trade with China resumed in May last year.

A recent collaborative training exercise between CFA and Hancock Victorian Plantations (HVP) has been hailed as a success following an enforced break because of the pandemic. Source: Australian Rural & Regional News The Shelley Burn Camp is unique because it occurs in one of the highest locations in the state and is home to extensive pine plantations managed by HVP. There are about 17,500 hectares of continuous plantations, including approximately 5,000 hectares of native bush reserved for conservation. With such a large area, it is considered critically important that any fire related training (including mitigation and prevention activities), occurs collaboratively between HVP and CFA. Starting in 2014, the Shelley Burn Camp is organised by the North East Region Vegetation Management team in partnership with HVP. With more than 40 participants from HVP, CFA volunteers and staff plus a NSW Rural Fire Service member, the three-day camp provided excellent opportunities for hands-on learning by burning and a positive exchange of ideas between all participants. Five sites were burnt over the three days with a total of 25 hectares of fuel reduction burning achieved. “It was a fantastic opportunity for our forestry industry brigade members to work alongside the CFA as equals,” HVP North East Plantations Manager, Nikki Armstrong, said. “It provides opportunities us to showcase our skills and understanding of the plantation and share our knowledge. Shelley Burn Camp is not only a stunning backdrop but allows us, in a very controlled environment, to observe fire behaviour first hand. “Participants can step back and look at the effects of weather, fuel and topography in real time with no pressure or urgency to suppress,” she explained. The HVP Plantations field crew – Andrew Centre, Shane Riley, Tristan Boar and Kayla Nichol – thought the burn camp was a fantastic opportunity for a variety of firefighting agencies to come together and share knowledge and experience while working in a team environment. “Representing HVP, we felt very honoured to be invited and welcomed by everyone,” they agreed. “The mentors have a wealth of knowledge and were more than willing to share it.” Likewise, CFA volunteers also appreciated the opportunity provided by the burn camp. “It was a great time to learn and test yourself with others who want to do the same thing,” Bethanga brigade volunteer, Sean Farrar, said. “Yes, you learn about the planned burning process including the preparation, execution and follow-up but it’s also great to be able to test yourself in situations where there’s no fear of failing so that you can learn from mistakes. “It was a great opportunity to build teamwork with members from other brigades who you don’t know and work towards a common goal.”  

Timber framing accounted for 91.1% of all framing in houses approved in Victoria over the year-ended April 2024. The latest analysis of the most comprehensive data available in any Australian jurisdiction shows 30.972 house approvals included timber framing, with ‘no information’ coming in second (4.4%) and steel framing third (3.7%). Source: Industry Edge Over the same period, timber also framed 83.8% of townhouses and an aggregate 89.5% of all dwellings approved in Victoria, including apartments. IndustryEdge has laboriously reassembled the massive dataset available for Victoria, cleansing the entire data series back to 2009, to inform subscribers and clients of the trends in building materials use in the State’s dwellings. The data is updated monthly in the IndustryEdge database and a range of datasets are being provided to clients interested in timber framing, roofing materials, flooring materials, cladding types and other relevant features. One aspect of the data that has proved useful for clients is analysis of framing and roofing materials at the specific Council level, based on the floor area of every dwelling approved in the State since 2009. Analysis has pointed to some major trends and changes over the fifteen years for which data is available, especially for those areas where there has been extensive new building. One client has worked with IndustryEdge to extrapolate the trends to identify the likely number of dwellings requiring ‘timber solutions’ in an adjacent development area and worked through the expected average size of dwellings and therefore frame, truss and other materials needed over the next two to three years. For more information visit www.industryedge.com.au

  About 400 Victorians a day have been signing a petition calling on the Victorian Government to halt converting another 486,412ha of state forests into national parks, locking out hunters, firewood collectors, prospectors, horse and trail-bike riders, according to The Weekly Times. Sources: The Weekly Times, Timberbiz As of Tuesday, 11,346 people had signed the Bush Users Group United’s petition, 30 days after its launch. Group founder Bill Schulz told The Weekly Times that he hoped it would beat the all-time record for an e-petition of 27,545 by the time it closes on 8 August. Gaining more than 10,000 signatures automatically means the petition must be debated in parliament, rather than tabled. The petition states: “The Victorian government has shown disregard for the interests of bush user groups who participate in traditional recreational activities, which not only contribute to rural and regional jobs, but also have a positive impact on people’s wellbeing and the natural environment. “Locking up public forests increases the risk of bushfires, placing communities and the environment in greater peril. Neglecting public land leads to overgrown tracks, the proliferation of invasive weeds and feral pests, which degrade the environment and pose a threat to native flora and fauna.” The powerful Electrical Trades Union has also called on its 20,000-plus members to back the petition and urged other blue-collar unions to join the fight on retaining access to public land. “It’s of utmost importance that ETU members and every Victorian worker have the opportunity to explore our state’s magnificent bush, coast, and bays, engaging in the activities they cherish with their loved ones,” the union said in a recent Facebook post. The Liberal-Nationals Coalition has already promised to stop the creation of more parks if elected in 2026. The government is charging ahead with the formation of more parks, after terminating native forest timber harvesting across 1.8 million hectares on 1 January 2024. The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action’s Future Forests website states the timber industry’s demise means Victoria is now “home to an area of native forest that is protected from logging that is larger than the entire land mass of Tasmania”. The Weekly Times says the government has set up an eminent panel, chaired by former South Gippsland Labor branch president Karen Cain and Victorian Environmental Assessment Council chairwoman Melissa Wood, which in partnership with traditional owners: has recommended the government lock up 24,000ha of the Strathbogie Ranges in a Cultural Reserve, plus a small 420ha lot at Mirboo North into a Conservation Park, which would ban recreational hunting, firewood collection and prospecting. has overseen community consultation on the future use of 390,000ha of the Central Highlands state forests, with its report and recommendations due to be delivered to the government this month. Is due to oversee another round of community consultation on the future use of 72,000ha of East Gippsland, including the Errinundra and Kuark regions, plus Bonang, Yalmy, Murrungower, Club Terrace, Bemm, Cann Valley, Buldah, Drummer, Tamboon and Wingan state forests. Mr Schulz and Nationals Upper House MP Melina Bath told The Weekly Times they were both concerned about the independence of the panel, due to Ms Cain’s political background with Labor and Ms Wood’s role as chairwoman of VEAC, given the body’s long history of recommending the state government lock up more crown land in parks and reserves. The government failed to respond to questions on the panel’s independence, nor why it had failed to appoint any recreational forest users to the panel. Environment Minister Steve Dimopoulos has instead responded to growing community concern over public land access by establishing a Great Outdoors Taskforce, chaired by former Labor Minister Lisa Neville and on which Ms Cain, Ms Wood and traditional owners sit, alongside Victorian Fisheries Authority chair Graham Dear and Destination Gippsland chief executive Terry Robinson. In launching the taskforce in April, Mr Dimopoulos said it would “investigate ways to support more Victorians and visitors to explore the great outdoors, protect biodiversity and create new recreation opportunities”. The minister, however, has given no indication of how the taskforce interacts with the work of the existing eminent panel. Ms Bath told The Weekly Times the taskforce appeared to be no more than an attempt to re-badge the process. “At the end of the day it’s just another con by the Victorian government to say it’s looking after the best interests of forest users, when it’s just doing the bidding of inner city voters,” Ms Bath said. Mr Schulz said the taskforce was nothing more than “smoke and mirrors”.