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The Regional Forest Agreement and the Use of Publicly Owned

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The Regional Forest Agreement and the Use of Publicly Owned The Regional Forest Agreement and the use of publicly owned native forests in Tasmania: an investigation into key decision making processes, policies, outcomes and opportunities. By Ula Majewski BA (Hon.) University of Tasmania A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for a Master of Environmental Management Degree at the School of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Tasmania (November, 2007). it 1 • ■ .• 4.4 i'M40 • II.' l'I'll i 1 1 • 40 ' i', • . J! I' or. jo s 4 4,-,. c I , • lei / .• 1 • •• i • • . , • 4, : 1 % ,11;1441,. ' ,I • 11 i 0 r i• Ai, . ' • 1 4 r ' • ' 4 , i0 • Yr 4 kiti , ,A , , . .4, . to t ir w , Dedicated to my dear friend Ben Morrow, A whose fine intellect, courage, passion and spirit 4 % 1. • r , are a continual inspiration. ,112 a11 d , \PS 4 I f 4 I ; .,„:,,„,„ ••■4 •' 40 ,:vi 1,,s,i4 DECLARATION This thesis contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma in any tertiary institution, and to the best of my knowledge and belief, contains no material previously published or written by another person, except where due reference is made in the text of the thesis. Ursula Majewski BA (Hon) iv ABSTRACT The Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement is a defining policy tool that governs the use and management of the publicly owned native forests positioned at the centre of one of the most protracted and conflict-ridden debates over natural resource management in Australia's history. Drawing on multi-disciplinary discourses and data, and employing a qualitative approach including interviews with prominent participants in the RFA process and implementation, this thesis examines key aspects of the conflict, positions Tasmania's forestry system within a national and global environmental policy context, and undertakes a critical analysis of the scientific, political and governance processes and outcomes generated by the Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement. It finds that the management of Tasmania's publicly owned native forests is still a contested issue and that, despite some successes, the RFA has largely failed to provide the anticipated win-win solutions to Tasmania's forest conflict. Key words: Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement; environmental policy; environmental politics; natural resource management; forestry practices; conflict; environmental planning; environmentalism; native forests; conservation. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to extend my greatest thanks to Dr Pete Hay who has been a most wonderful, patient and inspiring supervisor. It is an honour and a great privilege to be able to work with an individual who possesses such an incisive, poetic and profound intellect and who has such an intricate and finely crafted understanding of the human factor. There are far too many extraordinary people to list who have helped me in many ways during the duration of this project. However I would like to extend a special thanks to the following outstanding individuals for their invaluable knowledge, advice, patience and support during the research and writing of this thesis. Simon Branigan, Waz Jordan, Jess Wright, Trish Cameron, Dr Ronlyn Duncan, Gemma Tillack, Allana Beltran, Paul Donaldson, Dr Michael Lockwood, Dr Elaine Stratford, Kazia Sawicki, Diane Majewski, Richard Majewski, Stef Majewski, Dom Jaskierniak, Katrina Peric, Abigail Norman, Peck Firth, Nishant Datt, Petal van der Pasch, Laura Minnebo, Brendan Coffey, Sarah and Lilla Harries, Jane Keddie, Ro Alexander, Jenny Weber, Will Mooney, Lilia Letsch, Adam Burling, Zanni Waldstein, Annie Hogg, Jasmine Wills, Nicole Pietsch, Vim Bayley, Lucinda Wilson, Prue Barrat, Rob Williams, Geoff Law, Paulie Kimbell and the remarkable staff in the School of Geography and Environmental Studies at the University of Tasmania. I would like to acknowledge the people — all of whom are highly recognised and respected individuals within their particular fields — that agreed to be interviewed for this project. Many thanks for sharing your expert insights and opinions as well as your time. Your contribution has been invaluable. I would also like extend my thanks to the Honourable William Cox, Governor of Tasmania and the sponsors of the Governor's Environmental Scholarship for their generosity in supporting post- graduate re§earch at the University of Tasmania. TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration iv Abstract Acknowledgements vi Table of Contents vii List of Abbreviations viii 1.Introduction 1 2. Research Approach 6 A qualitative approach 6 Methods 7 Data sources and data collection 7 Data analysis and synthesis 11 Academic rigour 11 3. The politics of Australia's forests: conflict, policy directions and environmental sustainability in the 1990s 13 4. Forestry, environmentalism and politics: the Tasmanian context 25 5. The process, outcomes and implications of the Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement for publicly owned native forests 37 6. Tasmania's native forests: the conflict, the Forest Practices System and the potential for future transformations 51 Conclusion 64 References 66 Appendix A Schedule of Interview Questions 79 vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AFC — Australian Forestry Council ALP — Australian Labor Party ANZECC — Australian and New Zealand Conservation Council CAR — Comprehensive, Adequate and Representative CEG — Combined Environment Groups CFA — Community Forest Agreement CFMEU — Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union CRA — Comprehensive Regional Assessment DIER — Department of Infrastructure, Energy and Resources EPBC — Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (Act) ESD — Ecologically Sustainable Development FFPD — Forestry and Furnishing Products Division FFIC — Forests and Forest Industry Council FFIS — Forests and Forest Industry Strategy FIAT — Forest Industries Association of Australia FPA — Forest Practices Authority (formerly the FPB) FPB — Forest Practices Board (now the FPA) FPC — Forest Practices Code FPO — Forest Practices Officer FPP — Forest Practices Plan FPS — Forest Practices System FT — Forestry Tasmania GBE — Government Business Enterprise HEC — Hydro-Electric Commission IBRA — Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia IGAE — Intergovernmental Agreement on the Environment IUCN — International Union for the Conservation of Nature viii JANIS - Joint ANZECC-MCFFA National Forest Policy Statement Implementation Committee LPAC — Lake Pedder Action Committee MCFFA — Ministerial Council on Forestry, Fisheries and Aquaculture NAFI — National Association of Forest Industries NFPS — National Forest Policy Statement NGO — Non Governmental Organisation NSESD —National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development NSW — New South Wales PFRP — Private Forest Reserve Program RAC — Resource Assessment Commission RAG — Regional Advisory Group RFA — Regional Forest Agreement RMPS — Resource Management and Planning System SWTAC — South West Tasmania Action Committee TFC — Tasmanian Forestry Commission TFGA — Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association TTLC — Tasmanian Trades and Labour Council TWWHA — Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area TWS — Tasmanian Wilderness Society, now The Wilderness Society UNEP — United Nations Environment Program UTG — United Tasmania Group WCED — World Commission on Environment and Development WWF — World Wildlife Fund ix CHAPTER ONE Introduction Tasmania's native forests have been the centre of one of the most contested and lengthy natural resource management debates in Australia's history. In 1997, the Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement (RFA) was signed. It formed part of a national program that was promoted as a concerted attempt to improve the management of Australia's forests and was constructed as a series of agreements between state and federal governments. The development of individual RFAs across the country was a necessarily complex process, involving numerous committees, the input of stakeholders from various sectors of the community, and a vast amount of consultation, research and documentation. In Tasmania, the RFA was presented as a 20 year plan based on credible scientific research, which would strategically deliver a number of conservation and sustainable management goals within the state's native forests, while simultaneously optimising Tasmania's economic development and alleviating the ongoing conflict over the use of native forests. However in 2007, exactly a decade after the RFA was negotiated, the increasingly divisive debate over the fate of the state's native forests can still be identified as one of the defining features of the political, social, ideological and economic landscape of the island. This research project was developed in order to explore, identify and analyse the underlying aspects of this debate. The aim of the study is to critically assess the key decision making processes, outcomes and opportunities involved with or created by the Tasmanian RFA and to explore the broader implications of these on the current debate over the use of Tasmania's publicly owned native forests. The study has employed a qualitative approach and utilised a triangulation method in integrating multiple data sources, as detailed in Chapter Two. 1 The primary research objectives are: • to provide an overview of relevant environmental policies and legislation on a state, national and global level which are relevant to the management of Tasmania's publicly owned native forests; • to undertake an analysis of federal and state based political processes that have had a direct impact on Tasmania's native forests; • to conduct
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