Home›Questions on Notice›QoN 3219

❓ Question regarding a $2.5m subsidy for alternative pine plantations to meet Forest Products Commission supply contracts, specifically questioning the impact on smaller mills and the reasons behind sourcing alternative logs. The Minister clarifies the supply zones, volume, and the impact of drought/fire events and force majeure.

AnsweredQoN 3219Legislative Assembly

Asked

12 June 2018

Member

Mr D.T. Redman

Portfolio

Water; Fisheries; Forestry; Innovation and ICT; Science

QuestionView source ↗

I refer budget paper No 3 Page 108 where it identifies a $2.5m subsidy paid for haulage and thinning costs of alternative Pine plantations, to ensure the Forest Products Commission meets its supply contracts (presumably for Wesbeam): (a) Can the Minister confirm if these alternative pine log supply sources are a contributing factor in the lack of supply to some of the smaller mills in the Great Southern and South West; (b) What is the volume of pine logs being sourced from these alternative sites; (c) Had there not been environmental issues with Carnaby Cockatoo in the Northern pine plantations, and harvesting could have gone as planned, could logs from the alternative locations have been made available to smaller mills in the SW and Great Southern; (d) Can the Minister confirm that seeking alternative sources of log from southern forests in this instance is primarily the result of drought and fire losses to the northern plantation, even though there is a short term objective to deal with an environmental related matter with the Carnaby Cockatoo; and (e) Can the Minister also confirm that drought and fire losses could have triggered force majeure clauses in the state agreement contracts with the likes of Wesbeam, and hence absolved any contractual obligations to meet pine log supply contracts?

AnswerView source ↗

Answered

14 August 2018

Responded by

Minister for Water; Fisheries; Forestry; Innovation and ICT; Science

Response time

9 days

(a) No. The alternative pine log supply was already within the supply zones for State Agreement customers and would not have been available to other processors unless forfeited by the State Agreement customers. (b) Up to 65,000 cubic metres. (c) No, see (a) (d) No. (e) Drought and fire events have resulted in force majeure notices being issued. Force majeure reduces the quantity of timber to be supplied under pine timber contracts as a result of events (such as fire and drought) but does not absolve the requirement to supply the reduced contract volume.

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