Mr. Stephens asks if the government will grant a long-term sandalwood contract to Darren Farmer to support his business. The government acknowledges Farmer's past sustainable harvesting but cannot guarantee a long-term contract, suggesting he apply annually and liaise with the Forest Products Commission.

AnsweredQoN 7653Legislative Assembly
Asked
28 March 2012
Portfolio
Environment

QuestionView source ↗

In reference to efforts of indigenous Wiluna local, Darren Farmer, to establish a small sandalwood processing business for his family and community members, I ask, will the State Government favourably consider the granting of a long term contract to take sandalwood of between 5 to 10 years, in order to underpin a business proposal like this, and if not, why not?

AnswerView source ↗

Answered
1 May 2012
Responded by
Minister for Environment
Response time
34 days
The Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) manages the harvesting of sandalwood on private land through licences issued under the
Sandalwood Act 1929
and the
Wildlife Conservation Act 1950
.  The amount of sandalwood available for harvesting is limited by the Sandalwood Act Order in Council (1996). Sandalwood licence applications are accepted annually to enable different landowners to make use of this resource, but no licence applicant can be assured of a set amount each year.
DEC has advised me that Mr Farmer has, in the past, ensured that harvesting operations are sustainable to its satisfaction. While a long-term guarantee for access to sandalwood cannot be given, future applications to harvest sandalwood will be looked on favourably given past performance, within the constraints of the sandalwood licensing process. DEC has also encouraged Mr Farmer to liaise with the Forest Products Commission which manages Crown land harvesting contracts.
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