The Victorian Government is providing certainty for Victoria’s timber industry and the jobs it supports with a new allocation order and the development of new timber plantation sites in Gippsland.
Victorian Minister for Agriculture and Regional Development Jaclyn Symes announced the first sites as part of the Victorian Government’s record $110 million investment in native plantation timber, including 550 hectares of crown land close to Maryvale and Yallourn North in the Latrobe Valley that will be planted with native Blue Gum.
These sites will start being planted this winter with further plantations planned for the winter planting season in 2020.
The Victorian Government also announced an updated allocation order that will help provide certainty to timber mills and workers across the state, and ensure supply for the coming year while a long-term sustainable industry pathway is developed.
Importantly, the order includes improved spatial data – boosting the capacity of the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning to enforce logging regulations and protect Victoria’s native forests.
This allocation order, which reduces the overall area available for timber harvesting by 5,000 hectares, will not affect VicForests’ ability to meet contracts over the upcoming year.
VicForests will now release its Timber Release Plan, which will identify areas within the allocation order that may be harvested for use by our state’s timber industry for the coming year.
Source: Vic Government