Council
16 May, 2024
Have your say on the rise of timber plantations
AN INCREASE in timber plantations has prompted Corangamite Shire Council to weigh up the effect on valuable agricultural land.
At its April meeting, council released a discussion paper to spark community conversation about current and future land use change.
Last month Corangamite Shire released its discussion paper on the impacts of plantation timber in the shire, which forecasts a dire economic hit if the dairy industry faces disruption.
Corangamite Shire is the largest dairy producing government area in Australia, which produces six per cent of Victoria’s agricultural output, which generates around $60 million in wages.
The shire’s discussion includes a scathing analysis of the timber industry, issuing a warning which compares its growth to a “slow leak in the water tank”.
“On the basic economics, it is already clear that using highly productive, carbon efficient land for food production is again, by far, the highest and best use of the land on all measures - economic, social and environmental,” the report states.
“Timber plantations, in contrast are one of the least productive land-uses - they do very little to add to local jobs or generate flow-on benefits for communities.
“We accept that there is a real need for softwood plantation timber for the construction industry, but should this be at the expense of established food production?
“Of greater concern is where plantations are dedicated to hardwood timber product used for pulp and paper-based products or shipped overseas.”
Corangamite Shire mayor Kate Makin urged residents to share their views on the issues and opportunities raised in the discussion paper.
“In recent years there has been an accelerating change in land use from food production to timber plantations,” she said.
“These are on highly productive land previously used for food and fibre production. Agriculture contributes 100 times more than forestry to the shire economy including 45 per cent of the economic output, 38 per cent of the jobs and 70 per cent of the exports.
“Our towns and communities rely heavily on farming with most of the 2400 plus jobs and $60 million in wages annually coming from dairy, meat production, sheep and cropping and agricultural services.
“It is important that we plan for what effects land use change may have on the shire economy and the future of our communities.”
Cr Makin said the discussion paper outlined a range of potential concerns related to land use change.
This includes national food security, job losses across farming-related industries, threats to the viability of small communities as agricultural workers and their families leave the region, loss of biodiversity, pest and weed incursion, increased fire threat, and the excision of farm dwellings creating isolated rural residences.
Cr Makin encouraged residents to download the discussion paper from corangamite.vic.gov.au/GrowCorangamite or email shire@corangamite.vic.gov.au.