Plantation plan is the key to future growth, says inquiry

The Australian House of Representatives Standing Committee on Agriculture, Resources, Fisheries & Forestry has issued the findings of its inquiry into the forestry sector. It recommends that current regional forest agreements be extended and that a national strategy for the plantation timber segment be created. This would help reduce the import deficit in wood products for the construction industry, which reached $A468m in 2010. Tasmania, where a compromise has been struck between loggers and environmentalists, was singled out as a special case that should not be a blueprint for other states.