Victoria’s timber industry in a time of transition

On 1 January 2024, timber harvesting in native forests will be banned in Victoria. The implications of this ban have been significant for the timber industry, demonstrating the central role the sector plays in regional economies and highlighting the continuing challenges of bushfires, climate change, and ecological disruptions. The ban is the latest development in a long history of forestry in Victoria, which has led to a largely privatised timber industry that will soon be solely plantation-based. 
 
This Research Paper provides an overview of the timber industry in Victoria on the eve of significant change, outlining the varied and at times competing interests, policies, philosophies and approaches that influence a sector that has a wide range of stakeholders. It provides a brief history of forestry in Victoria and a snapshot of the industry as it stands on the eve of the ban, and summarises party policies on this issue, including the impending transition to a plantation-based industry. 

The paper also explores some of the recent debates and events that have shaped discussion, together with some of the challenges facing Victoria’s forestry industry as it moves into a new phase, including timber supply, regional employment, forest management, Traditional Owner knowledges, climate change and biodiversity.