Proposed native forest carbon method raises more questions
Friday 24 Jan 2025
The peak state body for the forest and timber industry in
Queensland has raised major concerns with the recent announcement
by the Australian Government of a proposed new carbon
method known as the Improved Native Forest Management in
Multiple-use Public Forests.
Timber Queensland CEO Mick Stephens said “This proposed method
raises far more questions than answers for addressing long term
climate mitigation and the integrity of the carbon credits intended
to be generated.”
The method is at odds with the high level principle identified
in the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 4th assessment
report that states:
- In the long term, a sustainable forest management strategy aimed
at maintaining or increasing forest carbon stocks, while producing
an annual sustained yield of timber, fibre or energy from the
forest, will generate the largest sustained mitigation benefit.
“The proposed method suggests that by simply ceasing sustainable
timber harvesting in public multiple-use forests you can generate
additional long-term abatement compared to the counterfactual of
continued harvesting and storage of carbon in regrowing forests and
harvested wood products,” Mr Stephens said.
“This is in direct contrast to many life cycle analyses of
managed forests with sustainable timber harvesting, which show
long-term sustained carbon benefits when the substitution of
steel and concrete in the built environment is included along with
carbon stored in forests and harvested wood products,” he
said.
The method fails on multiple accounts to meet the very principles
Minister Bowen set out following the recent Chubb review into the
land based carbon sequestration market.
These failures include:
- a high likelihood of perverse carbon mitigation outcomes;
- a risk of wasting millions of taxpayer dollars on dodgy credits;
- adverse economic and social outcomes for the native forestry
industry if implemented;
- disregard for a growing body of Australian and international
research supporting the longer-term carbon benefits from actively
managing native forests with the inclusion of sustainable timber
harvesting; and
- a lack of transparency and public disclosure on the proposed method
and assessment process used by the Emissions Reduction Assurance
Committee (ERAC).
“We have briefed the Queensland Government and advocate they
reject this method at a state level given the seriousness of
potential impacts and policy development flaws, similar to the
position being taken by the Tasmanian Government,” Mr Stephens
said.
The native hardwood sector in Queensland contributes almost $700
million each year to the economy and supports 6000 jobs
across the state, providing much needed building and housing
materials. We believe this proposal is ideologically motivated by
the method proponent (NSW Government) to further restrict native
forestry in Australia, which can contribute to poor land management
outcomes including higher risks of bushfires.
Timber Queensland is calling on the Australian Government to
withdraw this method immediately and to undertake a review
into how the approval process seemingly ignored the counterfactual
science.
“The irony is there is a definitive need for a carbon method that
deliberately encourages forest thinning and sustainable timber
harvesting as a tool to improve tree growth and productivity,
forest health and long-term carbon outcomes in many public and private
native forests. This is particularly the case in Queensland,”
said Mr Stephens.
Source: Timber Queensland

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