Federal government subsidising native forest logging
From Tasmanian forests to mills in Victoria
A federal inquiry has revealed that up to 150,000 tonnes of hardwood sourced from Lutruwita/Tasmania's native forests and plantations were shipped across the Bass Strait to supply mills on the mainland in 2023.
These exports were heavily subsidised by the federal government under the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme (TEFS). This little-known scheme provides subsidies to eligible businesses which transport goods across the Bass Strait.
Conservation groups say the federal scheme is undermining Victoria’s transition to a sustainable plantation industry after industrial native forest logging on public land ended in January this year in that state.
Documents submitted to the inquiry reveal that the federal government has subsidised the export of native Tasmanian forest to Victoria by more than $20 million since 2019. Some of this forest destruction is supplying Victorian mills such as ‘Australian Sustainable Hardwoods’ (ASH) located at Heyfield.
“We are extremely concerned the federal government is subsidising the supply of native forest logs from Tasmania to mills in Victoria – a state where native logging is now banned – and undermining its transition to plantation forestry in the process.
"Including native forest wood as a subsidised product under the scheme provides a perverse incentive to continue logging Tasmania’s precious forests.”
— Natalie Hogan, Environmental Justice Australia Senior Lawyer
Worth more in the ground
The inclusion of native forest wood as a subsidised product under the federal scheme acts as an incentive to continue logging Tasmania’s native forests, which are vital carbon sinks and provide habitat for numerous threatened species. In short, Tasmania’s forests are worth more in the ground and this should be reflected in federal law and policy.
With several court cases currently on foot, the Tasmanian logging industry is under fierce scrutiny. Still, logging continues in threatened species habitat—home to forest dependent wildlife like the Tasmanian masked owl, swift parrots and the Tasmanian wedge tailed eagle. Rare and endangered forests continue to be logged and burnt without the consent of the rightful owners, the Palawa people.
Victorian buyers of this wood and manufactured timber products are exposing themselves to reputational risk for contributing to this destruction.
In 2023, the Federal government provided another $15 million in grants to five Tasmanian mills, one of which controversially exports logs to the Heyfield mill in Victoria. Heyfield is 49 per cent owned by the Victorian government, raising questions of the legitimacy of the state's transition to a plantation-based industry.
At yesterday's hearing, the Wilderness Society, and Environmental Justice Australia called for the subsidy on native forest product transport to be revoked, and the scheme must provide accurate, transparent and disaggregated data on a quarterly basis on native forest products and plantation products being transported.
“In a climate and biodiversity crisis, there has never been a more critical time to protect Lutruwita / Tasmania’s precious native forests. Australians should not be footing the bill for the destruction and export of globally significant Tasmanian forests.”
— Alice Hardinge, Tasmanian Campaigns Manager for the Wilderness Society
Lack of transparency
In the four-and-a-half years to December 2023, the scheme’s payments for wood and wood products (excluding wood chips) totalled approximately $49 million. By far the largest payments were for 'processed wood' (code 31000) - $45 million. Truckloads of logs at Tasmanian Ports raise questions about whether the bulk of this was for logs rather than actual wood products.
The federal scheme lacks clarity and transparency in terms of how it defines raw wood products. A definition of “processed wood” should be introduced to ensure that raw logs are not being incorrectly subsidised.
This scheme was introduced to level the playing field for Tasmanian manufacturers to be able to compete with mainland businesses, and the subsidisation of raw logs that are merely trimmed down prior to travel is inappropriate.
Tasmania is rapidly approaching a sawlog shortfall in 2027, and any resources spent propping up the industry should be redirected to support workers and industries to transition to long-term ventures.
Back tourism not logging
One of the cartage ships for transporting these logs is the Spirit of Tasmania, the public passenger ferry.
Given the limited space on the Spirit of Tasmania in its current capacity, tourism has been hindered by the funding of this scheme. Tourists are not able to get on to the ferry as there is limited space available. We should be backing clean, green tourism, not native forest logging.
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