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Forests cover about 4.14 billion hectares, or nearly 32% of the world’s land area, providing habitat for much of the world’s biodiversity, helping regulate global carbon and water cycles, and supporting food security, local livelihoods, renewable biomaterials, and energy. Source: Timberbiz As the climate and biodiversity crises continue to intensify, there has never been a more important time to raise awareness and encourage positive action for forests. By supporting responsible forestry, we can all play a role in protecting forests, wildlife and the communities and livelihoods that depend on them. Highlighting the importance of caring for the world’s forests, the FSC Forest Week campaign returns from 21-27 September, bringing together brands, manufacturers, forest managers, consumers, NGOs, industry groups and more to raise awareness of responsible forest management and its vital role in addressing climate change and biodiversity loss. Since its launch, FSC Forest Week has grown into a powerful global movement. From community engagement activities and workplace initiatives to forest walks and FSC-certified product launches, participants continue to find new and engaging ways to connect people with forests and amplify the campaign’s impact every year. Under this year’s theme ‘Do one thing for Forests’, everyone is encouraged to take one positive action for forests and inspire others to do the same. By getting involved, businesses and individuals help raise awareness of responsible forest management and encourage their community to consider the one thing they can do to support the world’s forests while strengthening the impact of FSC’s work together. Positive action for forests can start with the materials and products we choose every day. Many products we regularly rely upon, from paper and packaging to furniture and building materials, come from forests, and responsible sourcing is a crucial consideration across supply chains and purchasing decisions. Research indicates that consumers are increasingly looking to make a positive impact through their everyday choices, with three out of four preferring products that do not harm plants and animals, and two out of four wanting to protect forests by buying independently certified products. By choosing responsibly sourced forest-based products, businesses and consumers alike can help support forests, protect wildlife and contribute to thriving communities.

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More than 50 forestry industry participants gathered in Nelson, New Zealand recently for the latest Productivity Workshop delivered through the collaboration between FICA and the University of Canterbury. Source: Timberbiz With an even mix of approximately 50% contractors and 50% forest managers, the workshop provided a valuable opportunity to explore how the forestry sector can improve productivity, profitability and long-term sustainability. The strong turnout reflected the importance of productivity as a key issue for the industry. Discussions throughout the day focused on the growing pressure created by rising operating costs, increasing compliance requirements and the need to achieve stronger returns from the significant investment contractors have made in modern harvesting equipment and systems. One of the most encouraging aspects of the workshop was the level of participation from contractors outside the Nelson region. Representatives travelled from across the country, including Speirs Logging (Gisborne), Fast Harvesting (Central North Island), Jensen Logging (Central North Island), Loggabull (Central North Island) and Brand Log-ging (Canterbury). Their attendance highlighted the value the industry places on sharing ideas, benchmarking performance and learning from each other’s experiences. The workshop also showcased the diversity of talent within the contracting sector. Alongside many of the industry’s most experienced business owners and operational leaders were younger forestry professionals such as Ivan Quin and Sam Holmes, both under 35 years of age and currently foremen for separate Loggabull harvesting crews. Their involvement demonstrated the strength of emerging leadership within the industry and the importance of investing in the next generation of forestry decision-makers. A key theme throughout the day was that productivity improvements must extend beyond the harvesting crew itself. Presentations and discussions highlighted the role that harvest planning, infrastructure design, logistics, production monitoring, technology and communication play in improving overall supply chain performance. The message was clear: productivity gains are best achieved when contractors, forest managers and forest owners work together to remove inefficiencies and focus on outcomes. The workshop was also endorsed by respected industry leader Mike Fraser, who rein-forced the value of bringing contractors and forest managers together to openly discuss productivity challenges and opportunities. His support reflected the positive industry sentiment towards the workshop and the importance of creating forums where practical solutions can be shared, relationships strengthened, and future improvements identified for the benefit of the wider forestry sector. A standout presentation was delivered by Jules Larsen from Waratah, who challenged participants to think about the future of production monitoring and the increasing role of machine-generated data in operational decision-making. As harvesting technology continues to evolve, access to accurate production information is expected to become an increasingly important tool for improving performance and identifying opportunities across forestry operations. Jules also generously sponsored the post-workshop refreshments, providing attendees with an excellent opportunity to continue discussions and build industry connections. The success of the workshop reflects the strength of the ongoing partnership between FICA and the University of Canterbury. Special thanks go to Rien Visser and Patrick Humphrey for their continued leadership and commitment to delivering practical, industry-focused events that help lift capability and encourage innovation throughout the sector. FICA would also like to acknowledge the support of the Forest Growers Levy Trust (FGLT), whose contribution helped make the workshop possible. The momentum generated by the Nelson event is already carrying forward. The next Productivity Workshop is scheduled for 16 October in Balclutha and with more than 20 registrations already received, interest is proving strong. Anyone interested in improving operational performance, learning from industry leaders and contributing to productive industry discussions is encouraged to register early. The high level of engagement, strong attendance and overwhelmingly positive feedback demonstrate that New Zealand’s forestry sector remains committed to working together to improve productivity and build a more resilient future for contractors, forest managers and forest owners alike.

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Affected by fires, Australian architect Adriano Pupilli used FSC plywood to create a flatpack kit home for recovery and resilience. After Australia’s hottest December on record, the South Coast of New South Wales was on fire. The 2019-2020 fires were some of the worst in Australia’s recorded history, burning around 15.5 million hectares of land, and causing the loss of 26 lives and more than 2,400 homes. Source: Timberbiz Architect Adriano Pupilli found his family on the frontlines in the town of Manyana on Yuin Country, 200 kilometres south of Sydney. “Our property came very close to perishing in the flames,” Mr Pupilli said. “The fire was at our back fence. It actually leaped over the property, catching fire to trees on the other side of the road.” The Pupilli family home was spared, but a small timber cabin in the front yard was badly damaged. When it came to rebuilding, bushfire resilience was front of mind. Casa Manyana is Pupilli’s architectural response: a fire-safe, DIY cabin constructed around a frame of FSC-certified plantation pine plywood. The design aims for quick disaster recovery and future fire resilience, while maintaining harmony with the landscape. Placed in the front yard of the family home, the compact structure contains a sleeping loft, kitchenette, and bathroom for guests, as well as a living space for everyday use. Large glass panels invite plenty of natural light, while louvred windows let in a cooling sea breeze. To prepare for future fires, non-combustible corrugated metal and fibre cement form a protective casing around the plywood frame, built to withstand fire-generated winds, while the open windows are covered by screens to protect from flying embers. The design is simple enough to be built without specialist expertise or tools, and small enough to avoid lengthy authority approvals, making it ideal for emergency rebuilding. For Pupilli, participation by households in the rebuilding process not only brings down costs but can foster a sense of community and healing after a disaster, getting people back on their land fast. “We got the structural frame up in one day, and it was the most satisfying and fun process,” he said. “I hope to encourage other architects and designers to look at solutions that explore the human side of prefabricated housing – how designs and systems provide for sustainable and efficient prefabrication while delivering dignified and elegant solutions that bring costs of assembly down and a sense of satisfaction and healing in a post-disaster setting.” Casa Manyana is the latest evolution of the IMBY™ Kit, a flatpack modular system for building small, sustainable spaces ‘in my backyard’ that Mr Pupilli and his Sydney-based firm have been developing for over a decade. FSC plywood pieces are key to the design. The arched frame pieces are nested together on single sheets of plywood to avoid wasted materials and cut by computer-aided machines to ensure precision for assembly. Structural bays are sized to suit standard plywood lining sheets, further maximizing use of the materials. The pieces are strong, lightweight, and easy to lock and layer together without the need for nails or glue. They can be assembled using only a mobile scaffold, avoiding the cost of crane hire. Once assembled, the plywood becomes a key feature of the design, with warm wood hues and exposed beams becoming part of the signature aesthetic. “It’s a common misconception that prefabricated buildings need to be cookie-cutter,” Mr Pupilli said. “They can be dignified and creative solutions that bring joy to occupants while complementing the landscape.” Aside from the use of renewable FSC timber, other sustainability benefits include a small environmental footprint, smart use of natural light and ventilation, and modularity that can extend the lifecycle of the structure and its materials – the cabin can be easily extended or dismantled, flatpacked, and transported to a new location. Casa Manyana updates the IMBY Kit design for a future where hot, dry summers and fire risks are becoming more prevalent, due to the effects of climate change. “My clients are seeking out sustainable solutions in response to the visible signs of climate change we see around us,” Mr Pupilli said. “We need to start thinking about how we design for climate change, how we can increase the options available to people, and how we can enable their participation in the solutions.” For more information visit: https://adrianopupilli.com.au/project/casa-manyana/  

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The timber industry has a strong story to tell and for generations, timber has helped deliver Australian homes, schools and commercial buildings. It continues to play an important role in meeting some of the industry’s biggest challenges, from delivering more housing to reducing embodied carbon and improving construction efficiency. Source: Timberbiz Yet the conversation around building materials is often influenced by advertising campaigns and misconceptions. That’s why WoodSolutions, in collaboration with FTMA Australia, has Launched Let’s Put Timber Back In The Conversation. The campaign is designed to help industry share clear, evidence-based information about timber’s role in the built environment and ensure the benefits of timber remain visible in conversations. The campaign helps turn trusted information into practical content that can be used across the industry, giving businesses, manufacturers, suppliers and industry stakeholders the confidence to communicate timber’s benefits consistently and accurately. Over 14 weeks, the campaign will highlight a series of key topics that showcase the value of timber. Each week focuses on a different benefit of timber framing, drawing on trusted research, technical knowledge and educational resources developed through WoodSolutions. Topics include: Renewable forestry Carbon storage Construction efficiency Thermal performance Structural capability Sustainability outcomes.   The campaign provides industry with resources to share through their own channels. The goal is simple: create greater awareness of timber through consistent, evidence-based messaging. As Australia’s leading resource for timber design and construction information, Wood-Solutions exists to help the built environment access practical, reliable information about timber. This campaign builds on that role by bringing together research-backed content in a format that is easy to share, understand and apply. By working together, the industry can help ensure timber remains part of the conversation about Australia’s housing future, sustainability goals and built environment. Every conversation matters. Download the resources at https://www.woodsolutions.com.au/publications/timber-framing-resource-library Whether you’re a manufacturer, supplier, builder, designer or industry advocate, you can help amplify timber’s story by sharing campaign content and encouraging informed discussions about timber’s benefits.

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Millions of pine seedlings have been replanted in NSW state forest pine plantations this year, continuing the cycle of growing renewable timber resources to build future homes, schools, businesses and infrastructure. Source: Timberbiz This year around seven million radiata pine seedlings have been planted across recently harvested NSW State Forest pine plantations. The ongoing replanting program underscores the long-term nature of forestry, where every harvested plantation is replanted to ensure a continuous supply of renewable timber for future generations. NSW’s State forest softwood plantations collectively produce enough timber each year to build around 40,000 homes, making them a critical part of Australia’s housing and construction supply chain. Forestry Corporation Regional Manager Tumut Roger Davies said the annual seedling dispatch highlights the planning and care that underpins sustainable forestry. “Most people see the end product in a timber house frame, a pallet, paper or cardboard product or piece of furniture, but that story begins years earlier with a pine grown from seed in a nursery,” Mr Davies said. “The 230,000 hectares of pine plantations in NSW are carefully managed as they grow to maturity and harvesting just a small portion each year produces enough timber to con-struct about a quarter of the homes built in Australia each year. “Every seedling planted represents an investment in the future. These trees will grow for decades before supplying the renewable timber products Australians rely on every day. “Our plantation forests operate on a continuous cycle of growing, harvesting and re-planting. As one crop is harvested, the next generation is already being established. “Radiata pine takes about 15 years of growth to be ready for fibre extraction and around 28 years for structural timber and in between there are many years of silviculture to produce the best pine sawlogs for processing. The seedlings are grown from carefully selected radiata pine seed and nurtured through their early development before undergoing rigorous quality checks ahead of dispatch. Different seedlots are matched to specific growing regions to maximise survival, growth and timber quality. Once dispatched, the seedlings are mostly hand-planted by crews across the State’s pine plantation estate, where they will grow for around three decades before being harvested and processed into structural timber, engineered wood products, paper and packaging. These forests are an essential source of renewable building materials and play an important role in carbon storage, with growing plantations continually absorbing carbon from the atmosphere as they develop.

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US Customs and Border Protection agents spent four days investigating Auckland timber processor Hermpac after a complaint from the US Lumber Coalition. The finding was uncomfortable. Source: B2BNews A wholesaler on America’s east coast had been routing Canadian-origin wood through New Zealand for processing before shipping it into the US, a manoeuvre that carried timber roughly 27,000km across the Pacific and back. The purpose, according to the investigation, was to dodge the punishing duties the US imposes on Canadian softwood lumber. This is the first confirmed case of a New Zealand processor being directly investigated by US Customs in connection with the Trump-era tariff regime. It is a meaningful escalation from the macro-level tariff debate that has run since April 2025. The fight is no longer just about headline rates. It is now about who inspects your paperwork, and whether the value you add in New Zealand counts for anything. The US-Canada softwood lumber dispute is decades old. Washington argues Canadian provinces subsidise their forestry sector and has repeatedly slapped countervailing and anti-dumping duties on Canadian wood. Those duties create a financial incentive to route Canadian timber through a third country, process it, and re-export it as something else. The practice is called transshipment, and the US Lumber Coalition monitors for it aggressively. Running parallel is the Trump tariff regime on New Zealand itself, which began with a 10% base tariff from April 2025 and rose to 15% from 7 August 2025. Timber was initially exempt from the base rate but sat under a separate Section 232 investigation that produced a 10% tariff on foreign softwood lumber in September 2025. Hermpac ended up caught where those two fights overlap. The legal mechanism at the heart of the case is the US ‘substantial transformation’ test. In April 2025, commercial lawyer Richard Hoare of Sharp Tudhope explained that origin turns on whether a good undergoes a fundamental change in name, character, or use in the country claiming origin, and that the change must add meaningful economic value. Kiln-drying Canadian cedar in Auckland sits squarely in the grey zone. It adds value and changes the product’s condition, but US Customs concluded it did not fundamentally change the wood’s character or use. Origin stayed Canadian, and the duties applied. Hoare’s warning at the time now reads as prophecy. “Merely assembling components in New Zealand may not be enough,” he wrote, adding that exporters should be ready to justify origin claims based on pro-cessing steps and value added. New Zealand exports NZ$380 million in timber products to the US annually, its third-largest timber market, and the 10% tariff already adds roughly NZ$40 million in yearly costs. The sector has almost no room to absorb more. In August 2025, the Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association released survey findings showing anything over a 5% tariff would cause 50% of exporters to rethink the value of selling to the US. It is worth noting what New Zealand actually sells there. In October 2025, WPMA chief executive Mark Ross stressed the timber is not the structural framing lumber Canada was hit for, but high-grade clear wood for mouldings that only a handful of countries can produce because New Zealand prunes its trees. That premium segment had grown 30% over the five years to 2025. A compliance scare is the last thing it needs on top of mill closures already stressing the industry. New Zealand sells around $9 billion of goods into the US every year, and the export data already shows tariff pain, with sales to the US falling 4.3% in May and 8.9% in June 2025. New Zealand Trade Minister Todd McClay has argued the uncertainty and changing nature of the tariffs is harder to manage than the rate itself. The Hermpac case adds a third dimension he has not addressed publicly – enforcement risk. Any New Zealand manufacturer sourcing inputs from a high-tariff country like Canada or China, then finishing goods for the US market, faces the same question. If US Customs decides the local processing does not amount to substantial transformation, the product keeps its origin-country classification, and someone pays those duties. The complaint mechanism is open to any US industry group that suspects origin laundering. The practical takeaway is unglamorous but urgent. Review and document your origin classifications now, before a competitor files a complaint, not after Customs agents turn up. Hermpac learned that the hard way, over four days.  

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Australia’s forests are ecologically and economically significant landscapes. They support biodiversity, store carbon, provide timber, and sustain a wide range of environmental and social values. Source: Timberbiz Developing a consistent understanding of these forests is therefore becoming increasingly important for their effective monitoring, reporting and management. Australia already has a wealth of forest data, but these observations are often collected by different agencies using different methods, technologies and standards. The challenge is not simply a lack of data, but the difficulty of bringing these datasets together consistently across regions and through time. SkyForest, an Australian Forest and Wood Innovations (AFWI) initiative, delivered via AFWI Centre for Climate-Smart Forestry (CCSF), is responding to this challenge by contributing to the framework of a nationally consistent forest inventory framework for Australia. In partnership with the NSW Natural Resources Commission (NRC), Forestry Corporation of NSW (FCNSW), and CSIRO, the project is prototyping a transparent, auditable and open operational data platform, called Monitoring and Observation System for Australian Forest Inventory and Change (MOSAIC), that brings together existing forest observations across spatial and temporal scales. It is at this intersection between detailed field observations, remote sensing and forest change that Aakash Chhabra, based at the Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment (HIE), Western Sydney University, brings his research experience and capability in developing operational monitoring systems to SkyForest. He works with Distinguished Professor Belinda Medlyn, who leads SkyForest at Western Sydney University. Aakash’s research work has centred on using multi-sensor remote sensing to under-stand forests before, during and after disturbance, particularly wildfire impacts and recovery. During his PhD with Professor Marta Yebra, he combined SAR and optical satellite time series to map the severity of the 2019/2020 “Black Summer” wildfires and monitor recovery across the south-eastern coastline. He later extended this work at NASA Ames Research Centre by developing the Opti-SAR framework, that integrates optical, and multi-frequency radar observations to investigate fire severity of the 2025 Southern California wildfires. Within SkyForest, Aakash is applying this multi-sensor perspective to strengthen an approach that moves beyond traditional indicators such as greenness alone and places greater emphasis on forest structure. His vision is to strengthen the integration of complementary observations, including field inventory measurements, airborne and ground-based LiDAR, and optical and radar satellite data, to build a more complete picture of Australian forests. Connecting these datasets across scales can help reveal not only their current condition, but how they have changed through time, how they respond to natural and anthropogenic disturbances, and how those changes unfold afterwards. Through this work, Aakash contributes to SkyForest’s broader ambition of moving forest monitoring beyond a static description of Australia’s forests towards a system capable of capturing structure, condition and change through time. In doing so, the project also contributes to a wider national discussion around what a modern Australian forest monitoring system should look like, and operationally useful and capable of revealing not only where change is occurring, but how and why it is happening.

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Queensland’s future homes, manufacturing capability and regional economies will depend on decisions made today about the state’s future forest resource. A technical report commissioned by the South & Central Queensland Regional Forestry Hub has identified significant opportunities to strengthen future timber supply, support regional investment and improve long-term resource security across Queensland. Source: Timberbiz The study explores plantation expansion, afforestation opportunities, native forest regrowth management, carbon sequestration and forest resource planning. The technical report was commissioned to help address one of the most significant challenges facing the forest and timber sector: ensuring Queensland can meet future demand for timber products while supporting regional jobs, manufacturing growth and environmental outcomes. The work aligns closely with Queensland Future Timber in Focus: Prosper 2050 Delivering Now 2026–2030, the Queensland Government’s first five-year implementation plan under the Queensland Future Timber Plan 2050, which aims to secure and grow sustainable timber resources to support housing, infrastructure, economic development and environmental outcomes. The study findings highlight several significant opportunities and challenges for the sector: Spatial modelling identified significant areas of land suitable for future plantation development and assessed opportunities involving timber production, carbon storage and grazing across the South and Central Queensland region. A study undertaken through the native regrowth carbon sequestration project identified approximately 1.5 million hectares of commercially important regrowth or potential regrowth forest and highlighted opportunities to better recognise the carbon value of managed forests. A technical report examining manufacturing competitiveness identified con-strained timber supply and increasing demand as key challenges for future industry growth Analysis of forest management models found multiple-use forests consistently generated greater long-term benefits than protection-only models, with an assessment estimating approximately $5.4 billion in benefits over a 100-year evaluation period.   Kerry Fullarton, Manager of the South & Central Queensland Regional Forestry Hub, said the study provides practical evidence to support future planning and investment decisions. “Queensland has significant opportunities to strengthen its future forest resource, but realising those opportunities requires informed decision-making and a long-term view of resource security, ” said Ms Fullarton. “This study provides industry, government and investors with practical evidence about where future timber supply opportunities exist and the planning, investment and policy settings that can help support them,” she said. The Queensland Future Timber Plan identifies supply, supply chains and markets, regulatory settings, workforce development, and research and innovation as critical priorities for the sector. The Hub’s study contributes evidence across many of these priority areas, including plantation expansion, afforestation opportunities, carbon outcomes, resource security and future investment confidence. Ms Fullarton said the findings demonstrate the important role evidence-based planning will play in achieving Queensland’s long-term timber supply goals. “The Queensland Future Timber Plan recognises the importance of securing future timber resources to support housing, manufacturing, regional jobs and economic growth. “The study commissioned through the Hub helps identify practical opportunities to expand future timber supply while supporting environmental outcomes and regional development. “Most importantly, it provides a strong evidence base to help inform future industry, investment and policy discussions.” A video on the South & Central Queensland Regional Forestry Hub report is here.  

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