❓ Mr Castrilli asks about the newly launched softwood industry strategy. The Minister for Forestry outlines the strategy's key components, including investment, planting targets, industry hubs, wildfire risk management, community engagement, and innovation, emphasizing job creation and collaboration.
AnsweredQoN 777Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
SOFTWOOD
INDUSTRY STRATEGY
777. Mr G.M. CASTRILLI to the
Minister for Forestry:
Minister, I was pleased to hear about the launch of the
softwood industry strategy for Western Australia on 22 September. Can the
minister please inform the house about the strategy and what it will deliver?
INDUSTRY STRATEGY
777. Mr G.M. CASTRILLI to the
Minister for Forestry:
Minister, I was pleased to hear about the launch of the
softwood industry strategy for Western Australia on 22 September. Can the
minister please inform the house about the strategy and what it will deliver?
AnswerView source ↗
Indeed it was a great day and very warmly welcomed by the
softwood sector of the forestry industry. It marks an enormous commitment from
this state government to a sustainable softwood sector and comes along with an
investment of $21 million to allow the Forest Products Commission to
essentially double its annual planting rate, with a goal to expand the state's
softwood estate by 10 000 hectares over the next five years. That means we will
be planting 2.7 million seedlings every year. That is an extraordinary
investment from this state government to support an industry that supports many
jobs right throughout this state.
It is more than just a financial investment. It is a strategy
that lays out six planks that allow the industry, from the private sector point
of view, to invest as well and identify opportunities on which the state will
be focusing its attention. Industry will be in very clearly identified hubs
where there are currently processing facilities, in the member's
electorate predominantly. It makes sense to have those types of facilities
close to where we will be establishing and increasing the number of
plantations. It means that we are closely linking businesses that have
connections through their value chains, and through their use of resources and
technology, and the workforce, and hopefully will encourage others through the
farm forestry and private sector to invest also.
The second plank will be to continue to pursue —
Ms M.M. Quirk :
Plank! Very funny!
Ms M.J. DAVIES :
There are six planks, yes. I can be funny sometimes, member!
The second plank of the strategy is that we will continue to
enhance the value of the entire chain through best practice certification. The
Forest Products Commission and industry value this enormously. It means that we
can establish to our markets that we are doing everything to the best of our
ability to maintain a sustainable sector.
The third is a focus very much on minimising what will be the
number one threat to the industry, which is wildfire. FPC is working with the
Department of Parks and Wildlife and industry on a number of things to manage
this risk. It is unfortunate that over years gone past this has been something
that has massively impacted on our ability to maintain a sustainable sector, so
this is something that we will all be very much focused on. We will be working,
of course, through the Ferguson report, and FPC has been working very closely
with the Minister for Emergency Services' department, and also with
DPaW, because there are crossovers in that space.
We also need to make sure that we can communicate to the
community the value of our softwood sector and forestry in general. It provides
opportunities for things other than just growing the trees and cutting them
down; there are multiple uses available, particularly in Margaret River, where
mountain biking events are hosted and trails developed. We need to be flexible
so we can encourage that use of our state's forests for recreation and
tourism, and that is something we work very closely with those two industries
on. We also need to make sure we are encouraging and facilitating innovation,
and today we have created a very small innovation fund, which we think will
encourage those in science and technology, more than the processing side of
things, to invest some of their money and expertise to come up with more uses
for what is an amazingly flexible product. We will continue to work through
those six planks with industry. This has been done in consultation with
industry. I have to tell you, Mr Speaker, that it was very, very warmly
welcomed by those who have made significant investments themselves.
Dr
A.D. Buti interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for Armadale.
Ms M.J. DAVIES : We will continue —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Thank you!
Ms M.J. DAVIES : We will continue to work with industry. It
is about creating jobs, particularly in the south west of our state. That is
something members on that side talk about often, but we are actually
delivering.
softwood sector of the forestry industry. It marks an enormous commitment from
this state government to a sustainable softwood sector and comes along with an
investment of $21 million to allow the Forest Products Commission to
essentially double its annual planting rate, with a goal to expand the state's
softwood estate by 10 000 hectares over the next five years. That means we will
be planting 2.7 million seedlings every year. That is an extraordinary
investment from this state government to support an industry that supports many
jobs right throughout this state.
It is more than just a financial investment. It is a strategy
that lays out six planks that allow the industry, from the private sector point
of view, to invest as well and identify opportunities on which the state will
be focusing its attention. Industry will be in very clearly identified hubs
where there are currently processing facilities, in the member's
electorate predominantly. It makes sense to have those types of facilities
close to where we will be establishing and increasing the number of
plantations. It means that we are closely linking businesses that have
connections through their value chains, and through their use of resources and
technology, and the workforce, and hopefully will encourage others through the
farm forestry and private sector to invest also.
The second plank will be to continue to pursue —
Ms M.M. Quirk :
Plank! Very funny!
Ms M.J. DAVIES :
There are six planks, yes. I can be funny sometimes, member!
The second plank of the strategy is that we will continue to
enhance the value of the entire chain through best practice certification. The
Forest Products Commission and industry value this enormously. It means that we
can establish to our markets that we are doing everything to the best of our
ability to maintain a sustainable sector.
The third is a focus very much on minimising what will be the
number one threat to the industry, which is wildfire. FPC is working with the
Department of Parks and Wildlife and industry on a number of things to manage
this risk. It is unfortunate that over years gone past this has been something
that has massively impacted on our ability to maintain a sustainable sector, so
this is something that we will all be very much focused on. We will be working,
of course, through the Ferguson report, and FPC has been working very closely
with the Minister for Emergency Services' department, and also with
DPaW, because there are crossovers in that space.
We also need to make sure that we can communicate to the
community the value of our softwood sector and forestry in general. It provides
opportunities for things other than just growing the trees and cutting them
down; there are multiple uses available, particularly in Margaret River, where
mountain biking events are hosted and trails developed. We need to be flexible
so we can encourage that use of our state's forests for recreation and
tourism, and that is something we work very closely with those two industries
on. We also need to make sure we are encouraging and facilitating innovation,
and today we have created a very small innovation fund, which we think will
encourage those in science and technology, more than the processing side of
things, to invest some of their money and expertise to come up with more uses
for what is an amazingly flexible product. We will continue to work through
those six planks with industry. This has been done in consultation with
industry. I have to tell you, Mr Speaker, that it was very, very warmly
welcomed by those who have made significant investments themselves.
Dr
A.D. Buti interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for Armadale.
Ms M.J. DAVIES : We will continue —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Thank you!
Ms M.J. DAVIES : We will continue to work with industry. It
is about creating jobs, particularly in the south west of our state. That is
something members on that side talk about often, but we are actually
delivering.
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