1988-89 cabinet paper 5887

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CABINET IN CONFIDENCE

Copy No

44

C A B I N E T M I N U T E

Canberra, 12 July 1988

No 11352

Submission No 5887

Consideration of Proposed World

Heritage Nominations and Associated

Issues for Tasmania s Forests

The Cabinet

agreed

tha t the

Minis ter for the

Arts, Sport , the Environment, Tourism and err i tor ies and the

Minister

for

Resources work towards

a

j o in t approach for

resolving the i ssues ra ised by the Submission and report back

to

Cabinet,

subject

to

a l l

necessary

consul ta t ions

having

been

completed,

in the week

beginning 18

July .

Secretary

to

Cabinet

This docu

men

t is

the

property

of the

A us t r li n Gove

rnm

ent nd is not t o be copied

or

reprod

uced

C A B I N E T I N C O N F I D E N C E

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Submission No.

FOR CABINET

. Copy No.

8

.87

5

Title

Minister

Pu

rpose/Issues

Relation

to

existing policy

Sensitivity Criticism

Legislation

involved

)Ieney:

,ftical/significant

dates

\fiSultation:

.It Ministers/Depts

consulted

Is

there

agreement?

Timing/handling of

announcement

Cost

CONSIDERATION OF PROPOSED

WORLD

HERITAGE NOMINATIONS

AND

ASSOCIATED

ISSUES

FOR TASMANIA'S FORESTS

Sena tor

t he Hon Graham Richardson, Minis te r fo r t he

Arts , Sport ,

t h e

Environment,

Tour i s t

and

T e r r i t o r i e s

(MASETT)

Sena tor

t he Hon

Pe te r

Cook, Minis te r

for

Resources

(MR)

To propose measures r e l a t i n g

to a World Heri tage (WH)

nominat ion and a n e g o t i a t e d

se t t lement with t he

Tasmanian

Government concerning

t h i s ,

pro t e c t ion

o f

environmental values o f f o r e s t s and maintenance o f a

v ia b l e fo re s t

i ndus t ry

sec t o r in

Tasmania.

Jo i n t I

Submission fo l lows

from

Cabine t minute No 11292

o f

16

June 1988 and Submission Nos 5837 and 5839 by MASETT

n MR r e s pe c t ive ly on these mat te rs .

Commonwealth e s t a b l i s he d

the Lemonthyme

and Southern

Fores t s (L SF) Commission o f Inquiry on 8 May 1987

to

determine those a reas

with in

t h e L SF Inquiry a rea

which

may

qua l i fy fo r WH s t a tus and economical ly

and

envi ronmenta l ly prudent

and

f e a s ib l e a l t e r n a t i v e s t o

logging

t hese

a reas .

Ongoing c o n f l i c t i s c l e a r l y evident concerning

u t i l i s a t i o n and

conserva t ion

of

Tasmania ' s

produc t ion fo re s t s .

Atto rney-Genera l s adv ises

t h a t

no

l eg i s l a t ion

would

be

r equ i red

o ther than appropr i a t ions

for

payments.

Urgent cons ide ra t ion

i s

necessary

to r eso lve

ex i s t i ng

uncer ta in ty .

A dec i s ion on

t h i s

mat te r was defe r red

when cons idered by

Cabine t

on 16

June 1988.

DITAC;

PM C;

FA T; DIR; DEET; Defence;

A-G's ;

Finance;

Treasury .

No,

Finance

and

DEET

cons ider

t h a t

t he

proposed

ass i s tance

package

may

be unnecessa r i ly

l a rge . See

Attachment F

for fu r t he r

comments.

C r i t i c a l ; a l l i n t e r e s te d p a r t i e s a re

seeking

urgent

r e s o lu t ion .

Let t e r

from t h e Prime

Minis te r

to t he

Premier

o f

Tasmania a long t he l i nes o f Attachment

A

o r Attachment B.

Fin Yr

C/W payments

ASL Trave l

ASL

(88-/89)

)

10.05M

110

000

+2

FinYr (897-90) )

5.05M

110

000

Fin Yr ((90/9-1)

5.05M

110

000

I

I

This document

is the

property

o the ustral ian Government and is not

to

be copied or reproduced


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CABINET IN

NFIDENCE

BACKGROUND

The 16

June

1988 ubmissions

of MASETT and MR diverged

on

t h e ex ten t of

a

W nominat ion

and

subsequent ac t ion .

2 .

The L SF r epor t was

t ab led

on 17 May 1988

and

fur ther

copies

are

avai lable from the

Cabinet

Off ice .

3 . Cabinet Minute

11292

of 16 June 1988

requ i red the

Min is te r s

to

cont inue negot ia t ion with a view to repor t ing

back to

Cabinet on a negot ia ted se t t l ement .

The Minis te r

for

Finance

was

to be consul ted on f inanc ia l d e ta i l s and the

Min i s t e r f o r

.

Employment, Education

and Training on

any

r e - t r a in in g proposals . Those consu l ta t ions have t aken place .

CONSIDERATION OF ISSUES

4. The

divergence

of

opin ion

between MASETT and MR remains

concern ing the ex ten t o f proposed

W

nominat ions. (See

Attachment

C p.16) .

5 . MASETT s proposa l :

Attachment

D Cpps 21-45) se t s out

MASETT s pre fe r red W

nomination

opt ion which

covers

ha l f of

t h e Inquiry pro tec ted

area ,

the

cont iguous

Walls

of Jerusalem

Nat iona l

Park,

Centra l

Plateau

Conservat ion Area

and the Hole

i n the Doughnut .

6.

This

opt ion a l so inc ludes pursu i t with Tasmania of a l l

t h e elements of Senator Cook s package descr ibed n paragraphs

10-13 concerning

nego t i a t ions with Tasmania on

indus t ry

r e s t ruc tu r ing ,

e f f i c i ency improvements, plan ta t ion programs,

s e c u r i t y

of the S t a t e s

l imi t

to logging

l ine , e t c

fol lowing

announcement of

Commonwealth

i n t en t ion to consu l t with

Tasmania

on the

Commonwealth s W

nomination.

7 . MASETT be l ieves t h a t , in addi t ion , a

jo in t

na t iona l

e s t a t e fores t t echn ica l

consu l ta t ion

process

should

be

inc luded in the

Commonwealth s

requirements

to avoid

a

r ep e t i t i o n

of

the c o n f l i c t which led to the

Inqu i ry and

to

provide a bas i s fo r dec i s ions

af fec ted

by

Sect ion

30 of the

Aust ra l i an Heri tage

Commission Act.


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3


8 .

MASETT s proposa l (Attachment D) provides

support ing

informat ion

on the World

Heri tage nominat ion opt ions ;

pr inc ipa l i s sues ; impl i ca t ion of

Senator

Cook s proposal ;

na t iona l es t a t e mat ters ;

t imber

resources , employment e f fec t s ,

compensation aspects , and fo res t management s t r a teg ie s .

9. MR bel ieves

t ha t

the opportunity ex i s t s now

to

exer t

maximum

leverage .

The

wrong dec i s ion

wi l l send the wrong

s igna l s

and,

in

h i s

view,

prec lude

a

reasonable se t t lement ,

l im i t ing fu ture inves tment and producing heavy compensation

cla ims. The MR

cons iders

t ha t should

the

Government

choose

MASETT s pre fe r red

opt ion

then a l l the elements of the

ne go t i a t e d

package

with

the

Tasmanian

Government

would be

forgone .

10. MR s proposa l :

fol lowing fu r the r discuss ions

with

the

Tasmanian Minis te r fo r Fores t s , Mr Groom,

a

negot i a t ed package

has been

developed

fo r cons ide ra t ion by the Government. MR

cons ider s t ha t we have

never

had such a thorough and prac t i ca l

commitment from Sta te Government

and

indus t ry

before and may

never

have

again.

11.

The

elements o f t he negot ia ted package are de ta i l ed in

Attachment E

pp.45-56.

Under the package,

65

o f t he Inqui ry

a re a i s

guaranteed

to

be excluded

from

logging. As

the

package s cen t rep iece , t he

Commonwealth and Tasmanian

Governments wil l

j o in t ly

nominate

the

Inquiry

major i ty 5

qua l i fy ing areas namely:

For th Valley ,

Cathedral

Mt, Mt

Anne,

Mt Bobs

and

Exi t

Cave.

Addit ional areas

(map

a t p.17,

Attachment

C)

wi l l be excluded from logging t o p ro tec t

environmental

values .

Approximately 60 of t he Inquiry area

west

of t he

l i m i t

to

logging l i n e (LLL), inc lud ing

a t

l eas t

77 000 ha

ranging

from

r a i n fo re s t

to predominant ly euca lypt

f o r e s t , wi l l

be

given s t a tu s

super ior to

fo res t

r ese rve

as

pro t e c t e d

fores t under Sta te l eg i s l a t i on

and wi l l

fi t be

logged.

12.

Four new na t iona l parks wi l l

be

declared:

2 smal l

ones

to

pro t e c t .

archaeologica l cave s i t e s (Bone Cave and Judds

Cavern} and 2 l a rge r parks t o p ro t e c t the major popula t ions of


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E. regnans tall euca lypt fo res t s (wor ld s t a l l e s t f lower ing

p lan t s )

with in the Inqui ry area

(3020

ha

t o t a l

a t

McLeods

Creek

and

Styx

Val ley

p l us

1

100

ha

spec ia l

management

zone)

.

13. Other

elements

of

the negot ia ted

package

d e t a i l e d a t

Attachment E inc lude : Commonwealth par t i c ipa t ion in S ta te

reviews o f

fo r e s t

po l i c i e s and

prac t i ce s ;

negot ia t ion

o f

a

formal Tasmanian

Fores t s

Agreement

to

update and r ev i se the

p rov i s ions

o f

the e x i s t i n g Memorandum

o f

Understanding

i nc l ud i ng

mechanisms

t ha t

would work on handl ing Nat iona l

~ s t t e and address ing

sus t a inab le

y ie ld harves t ing , more

envi ronmenta l

research ,

and

p r iv a t e

proper ty

fo re s t ry ;

extens ion , by 2 years ,

o f t he cu r r en t

moratorium

on r a i n f o r e s t

logging;

t he

s ta t ion ing o f inspec tors

a t

chip

mil l s

to ensure

no

chipping

o f

sawlogs; j o in t Commonwealth/State programs

fo r

gr ea t e r va lue added

process ing

( i n i t i a l l y

use

o f f l i t c h

mi l l s ) ;

an

acce le ra ted

j o in t

Commonwealth/State program o f

p l an t a t i on es tab l i shment and

an

expanded Commonwealth

as s i s t ed

f o r e s t

worker t r a in ing

package

with

more emphasis upon t he

craf twood

( f ine furn i tu re )

sec to r .

14. MR notes t ha t , in a p a r a l l e l exerc i se , he has ex t rac ted

s ubs t an t i a l commitment

from

indus t ry which has pushed it

f u r t he r

along

the pa ths o f va lue adding and increased its

commitment on p lan ta t ions (Attachment

E . This nego t i a t ed

package and

the

commitments from

indus t ry a re pa r t of

t he

necessary

review

of these a reas

by the Commonwealth to

provide

f o r

equ i t ab le

cons idera t ion

of

the cos ts and bene f i t s in the

process of reconc i l ing

development

and

conse rva t ion goa ls

c o n s i s t e n t

with the

Comm onwealth s

P o l i c i e s for Growth

s ta tement

o f May 1988.

15.

M SETT bel ieves

many

elements

o f Senator Cook s package

a re

a t t r a c t i ve , however, h i s

r e s t r i c t i v e

W area proposa l

i s

not an appropr ia te

na t iona l

government response

to

the

W

values

exh ib i t ed in

a

wider

reg ion

and w i l l

be unacceptable

to

the pub l ic . t wil l perpe t ua t e

same problems t ha t

l ed to t he

Inqu i ry in the f i r s t p lace . M SETT bel ieves t ha t the major

f law in MR s

proposal i s t ha t it wi l l f a i l to secure

pub l ic /


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CABINET IN

ONFIDENCE

conse rva t ion movement acquiescence. Consequently , the

Government wi l l

not be

in a pos i t i on

to give indus t ry i t s

requi red

wood

re source assurances .

Esca l a t i ng pressures

would

force t h i s mat te r back on

the Government 's agenda

and

j eopard i se

i ndus t ry development

by

uncer ta in ty once again.

COMP RISON

OF

WORLD

HERITAGE PROPOSALS

16. Areas se t as ide fo r conserva t ion

and agreed bas i c

resource impl ica t ions

under both

proposa ls

are

de t a i l ed in

Attachment C. The re source and f inanc ia l i mp l i ca t i ons o f both

proposa l s

are

summarised

separa te ly

by

M SETT

and

MR

in

Attachments

D

and

E r e spec t ive ly .

OPTIONS

17. The Government can

choose

to

nominate

t he W

area

proposed

by

Senator Cook and agree to the negot ia ted

se t t l ement he has arranged

with

Tasmania, o r

agree

to Senator

Richardson s W a rea nomination

proposal and agree

to

negot ia t ions

with

Tasmania on the elements o f a

package

s imi la r to

Senator

Cook's

r e l a t ing

to

indus t ry

re s t ruc tu r ing

and

e f f i c i ency

improvements, e tc .

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

18.

The di rec t

cos t s o f MASETT's pre fe r r ed

opt ion

w i l l be

200 000 in 1988/89 and cos t s a r i s ing from the complet ion

of

a

s imi la r package

to

Senator Cook's

concerning

p la n t a t i o n

programs and

management

expenses

for an

expanded

W

area .

19.

The

di rec t

cos t o f

MR's

pre fe r r ed

opt ion

w i l l

be

20M

for

ex gra t i a payments,

p la n t a t i o n and t r a in ing , spread

over

3-4

years , and 50 000 fo r

a

consul tancy on

value

added process ing

fo r

3

years ,

for which

funding i s sought . Addi t iona l

ASL

suppor t

for DPIE (Science 3 and SO 7) and

t r a ve l

cos t ing

110 000 per annum fo r 3 years

would

a lso be requi red .

CABIN ET 1 N CO N

Fl

DENCE

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.

CABINET IN GONFIDENCE

RECOMMEND TIONS

20. M SETT recommends t h a t Cabine t :

(a)

agree

t h a t

t he

Prime

Minis te r

wri te

to

the

Tasmanian

Premier

a

l e t t e r

a long

the l ine s of t he dr a f t a t

Attachment A;

(b) agree t h a t

M SETT

proceed wi th a

W nomination

based

on

t he p re f e r r e d opt ion a t Attachment D subsequent

to

consu l t a t ions

inc luding MR

with t he

Tasmanian

Government;

(c) agree

with t he consu l t a t i ons

in

(b)

above

inc lude the

Commonwealth view

t ha t :

( i)

t he S ta t e

conf i rm

i t s

l imi t - to - logg ing

l i n e

under

the

Tas

NPW Act; and

( i i )

t he S ta t e agree to

a j o i n t

Commonwealth/State

t e chn ica l examinat ion

of

t he

appropr ia te

t r ea tment

o f fo re s t s on the

Regi s te r

o f t he

Nat iona l

Es t a t e

over one year as pa r t of t he proposed Memorandum

o f

Unders tanding

renegot ia t ion ;

(d)

agree

t h a t MR

cont inue

to pursue re s t ruc tu r ing

of the

Tasmanian

fo re s t ry

indus t ry in the

l i gh t

of

Inqu i ry

r epo r t c r i t i c i s m s and

other developments

to

increase

e f f i c i e n c y ,

value

added ac t i v i t y , and inc reased

p la n t a t i o n

es tab l i shment

to

decrease

r e l i ance

on

na tu ra l

f o r e s t s ; and

(e)

agree to

prov ide

funds for compensat ion

to Gunns

Ki l ndr i ed

Ltd es t ima ted

a t t h i s s t age

to be 200 000.

21.

Alte rna t ive ly ,

MR

recommends

t h a t

Cabinet :

(a) note

t he

proposed

compromise

package of

MR's

a t

Attachment E

which as

been nego t i a t ed

with th e

Tasmanian

Government, and in pa r t i cu l a r ts key elements:

j o in t

W

nomina t ion,

fo re s t reserves west of the no

logging

l i ne ,

new na t iona l park proposa l s

to

pro tec t t a l l

euca lypt

and

a rchaeologica l

s i t e s ,

~ n a

new Tasmanian

Fores t ry

Agreement;

(b)

agree

t h a t

a

j o in t

Commonwealth/Tasmanian

W

nominat ion

be prepared

on

t he

bas i s

of

t he

major i ty

Commission of


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Inqui ry

Report , viz the

f ive

recommended

qua l i fy ing

areas :

For th

Val ley ,

Cathedra l Mountain,

Mt Anne, Mt

Bobs

and

Exi t

Cave;

(c)

agree t ha t in

consu l t a t ion with

other

Mini s t e rs

as

appropr ia te ,

MR

be

author i sed to

conclude

nego t i a t ions

with in

t h r ee months

with

the Tasmanian Government on a

Tasmanian Fores t s Agreement

which wi l l

r e f l e c t t hose

r e l evan t

elements

o f

the compromise package with Tasmania

as ind ica ted in Attachment E and

appropria te

r ev i sed

provi s ions of the

Memorandum

o f Understanding to ensure ,

in

pa r t i cu l a r ,

pro tec t ion

of

Nat ional

Es t a t e

va lues but

where no prudent and fea s ib le a l t e rna t ive s e x i s t , to

minimise impacts

on these values ;

(d) agree t ha t the Commonwealth wil l make an ex g r a t i a

payment

to the Tasmanian Government of 7M add i t iona l to

DPIE budget ;

(e) agree t ha t

the

Commonwealth

wi l l

provide to Tasmania an

add i t iona l 8M

under the

Nat ional

Affores ta t ion

Program

and an

addi t iona l

5M

fo r

t r a in ing

schemes,

de t a i l s

to

be

f i na l i s ed

by the Mini s t e r

for Resources and

the Minis te r

fo r

Employment,

Educat ion and Training i n consu l t a t ion

with t he Minis te r fo r Finance; and

f ) agree t ha t the rime Minis te r convey to the

Premier

of

Tasmania

(along the l i nes o f Attachment B) the

Commonwealth s acceptance

of

the

proposed package

ou t l ined

in

Attachment

E in lud ing payments to the

Sta t e

and

to

seek

from

the

Premier formal acceptance

o f the

arrangements on

beha l f

o f his

Government.

GRAHAM RICHARDSON

8 Ju ly

1988

CABIN ET 1 N CON Fl DENCE

PETER

COOK

8

Ju l y

1988

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CABINET IN 0NFIDENCE

ATTACHMENT

A

DRAFT LETTER

TO

THE

PREMIER OF

TASMANIA

AS PROPOSED BY THE

MINISTER FOR

THE

ARTS, SPORT,

THE

~ R O N M E N T TOURISM AND

TERRITORIES .

Dear

Mr

Gray

1 . My Government has now considered the repor t o f

t he

Commission

o f

Inquiry

in to

t he

Lemonthyme

and

Southern Fores t s

and has taken

i n to

account

t he

pre l imina ry discuss ions

involv ing Commonwealth and Sta te Minis te r s on ac t ions

fo l lowing i t s rece ip t .

2 . The Inqui ry

arose because

o f di f fe rences

between

us about

f o r e s t r y a c t i v i t i e s in

National

Es ta t e a reas and recognised

t h a t t he Commonwealth

had been

urged by the In te rna t iona l

Union o f Nature Conserva t ion IUCN) to

consider

qu i te

s ubs t an t i a l

addi t ions to

t he ex i s t ing World

Heri tage a rea

in

south

west

Tasmania.

3 . Commissioners were not unanimous about

poten t i a l

world

h e r i t a g e

a reas in the Inqui ry area but a l l

found

o r recorded

impor tant conserva t ion va lues in

and

beyond

the Inqui ry

area .

The

l ega l advice

rece ived

by t he Commonwealth

sugges t s t ha t it

cannot

r e ly

only

on

the

views

of the

major i ty

of

Commissioners

i it

i s

to discharge i t s obl iga t ions

under the

World Her i tage

Convent ion. At

the

same t ime the Commonwealth notes

t ha t

i t s

duty

o f ensur ing the i den t i f i c a t i on pro tec t ion

conserva t ion

presen ta t ion and t r ansmiss ion to fu ture genera t ions

of

c u l t u r a l and na tu ra l he r i t age does not

requi re seeking

l i s t i n g

by

t he

World

Heri tage

Committee

in

a l l

cases .


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TT CHMENT

4. The Commissioners were agreed t h a t t he re i s cons iderab le

scope fo r improvement in

fores t ry

prac t i ces . h e r ~ i s a l so

agreement

between us

on

the

benef i t s

of encouraging

economical ly

sound

value

added

i ndus t r i e s .

e share

a

des i r e

t o f in a l i s e considera t ion of

proposa ls before

us fo r new

indus t r i e s

as soon as poss ib le .

5 .

Much of

t h i s

i s cons i s t en t

with developments

al ready

occurr ing,

many o f

which have been i n i t i a t e d by your S t a t e s

Fores t ry

Commission.

The Inquiry r e s u l t s and

the

considerable

new

in format ion

generated

by t provide a

sound

bas i s fo r

a c c e l e r a t i on

of

these developments . The Fores t Accord be ing

sought by

the

Commonwealth and re la ted processes being

i n s t i t u t e d by your Government prov ide a veh ic le

fo r doing

t h i s .

6. The Commonwealth recognises t he S ta te capac i ty fo r

e f f e c t i v e

conservat ion

management and accepts tha t

World

Her i tage

obl iga t ions

can

be

met by t he

Sta te .

At

the

same

t ime t he Commonwealth

be l i eves

t h a t t should seek a fu r the r

World

Heri tage

l i s t i n g fo r areas de f ined in

consu l ta t ion

with

t he Sta te . Consis tent

with the

background s e t

out

above

the

i n i t i a l

Commonwealth

r eac t ion

i s

t h a t a respons ib le

and

defens ib le nominat ion would be somewhere between the

doubt fu l

major i ty

view

and

those o f

the

minor i ty

Commissioner and

t he

IUCN

Areas

beyond

t h i s i d e n t i f i e d

by us both as worthy of

conservat ion

s t a tus

could

be

managed appropr ia te ly

by

t he

Sta te .


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CABINET-IN-CONFIDENCE

10

.

ATTACHMEN l A

7 . The Commonwealth i s

wi l l ing

to

cons ider

cont inua t ion

of

ex i s t i ng quarrying mining and explora t ion in conse rva t ion

a reas

and fu ture

geologica l

survey work.

8. The Commonwealth w i l l suppor t Sta te

e f fo r t s

to improve

produc t iv i ty

through

changes

to

the a l loca t ion system

improved sawlog segrega t ion p l an t a t i on fo re s t ry review of

ha rves t ing on pr iva te

proper ty

review

of

the arrangements fo r

Aus t r a l i an

Newsprint

Mil l s

inc luding

recovery

o f

i t s pulpwood

requirements

from areas outs ide

ts

cur ren t concession and

increased recovery o f f l i t c he s .

Commonwealth involvement

in

t h i s review

a c t iv i t y

w i l l s t reaml ine

dec i s ion

making by both

Governments and fo s t e r

common

unders tanding and minimis the

po te n t i a l

fo r

conf l i c t . I t i s assumed

t ha t

one

consequence

o f

review

o f

a l loca t ion

and

roya l ty systems wil l be proper

ana lys i s and

exposure of the t r ue

economics

of

t he

fo re s t ry

indus t ry .

9. Indus t ry review

should

a l so

include a

j o in t program to

determine t he prospec ts for va lue added process ing

inc luding

f u r n i t u r e

making and o t he r craf twood a c t i v i t i e s . The

Commonwealth wil l f a c i l i t a t e expans ion o f

t r a i n i ng

for

workers

in a l l face t s

of

the fo re s t ry and r e l a t ed

indus t r i e s .

10. Sec t ion 30 o f the Aust ra l ian Heri tage Commission Act

p laces

a s i gn i f ic an t r e s pons i b i l i ty on

Commonwealth

Minis te rs

CABINET-IN-CONFIDENCE

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11

TT CHMENT

fo r p ro tec t ion of the Nat iona l Es ta te .

t

obl iges

them

to

avoid

ac t ion

adverse ly

a f f e c t i n g

the ~ t i o n l Esta te unless

s a t i s f i e d

t ha t

t he re

s no

f e a s ib l e

o r prudent a l t e r na t i ve .

The Commonwealth recognises t h a t it w i l l not always be prudent

o r f e a s ib l e t o avoid fo r e s t ry a c t i v i t i e s n Nat ional Es ta t e

f o r e s t s

but

be l i eves

t ha t

t h i s should be kept to an

absolu te

minimum and then ca re fu l ly

managed.

11.

Consi s t en t

with the

Inqui ry

conc lus ions the reviews we

have both acknowledged should occur can provide a

bas i s

for

review o f fo re s t ry

plans to avoid as f a r

as poss ib le the use

o f

National

Es ta t e

fo res t s .

t would be d i f f i c u l t for

a

Commonwealth

Minis te r

to endorse use o f Nat ional Es ta t e

f o r e s t r y re sources n terms o f

t he

obl iga t ions under the

Aus t r a l i an Heri tage Commission Act unless the var ious

a l t e rna t ive s

suggested have been sc rupulous ly pursued. Again

t h i s would

minimise

the po t en t i a l fo r conf l i c t between

us.

12. The Commonwealth accepts t ha t the re would be bene f i t s n

es t ab l i s h i ng a Fores t s Informat ion Centre outs ide Hobart . t

would be

able

to cover the many face t s

of

fo re s t s from

commercial and conse rva t ion

pe r spec t ives .

13. The

Commonwealth

envisages t h a t any extended World

Heri t age a reas

and

Fores t s

Informat ion

Cent re

could be managed

under

the

e x i s t i n g south west Tasmania

management

arrangements

i nvo l v i ng both

our Governments.


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12

ATTACHMENT A

14. I t

i s

c r i t i c a l

t ha t we

work t oge the r in pursuing t he

i s sues r a i s ed by both Governments.

This

wil l requi re fu r the r

j o i n t cons idera t ion of the

conserva t ion and

fores t ry i s sues

and development of the Memorandum o f

Understanding

in to

a

Tasmanian Fores t s Agreement cover ing a l l the

common

i s sues .

15. unders tand

t ha t

your Government

considers tha t

compensation should be payable to the S ta te

i

the

Commonwealth accepts the

major i ty

f ind ing

of

the

Inqui ry .

At

t h i s

s tage the bas is of t h i s

i s not

c l ea r as implementat ion

of the major i ty views would

have

very l imi ted

impact

on the

resource

ava i lab le

and

would l e ad to

a

more economic

and

pro f i t a b l e indus t ry overa l l . This would mean bene f i t s r a the r

t han cos ts

fo r t he

Sta te . However it i s recognised t ha t

pur s u i t of

the

issues r a i sed in t h i s l e t t e r could l ead to

development

of l eg i t ima te

claims

by

the S ta te which the

Commonwealth can

cons ider

in the

usual

way. This i s apar t

from claims

from ind iv idua l en te rp r i s e s where

they

bel ieve

they

have

been disadvantaged by s pec i f i c Commonwealth

ac t ions .

e

have agreed

with

the only claim made so fa r

and wi l l

examine any

new

ones

in accordance with pas t under takings .

16.

The Minis te r

for Resources Senator

Cook

and

the

Mini s t e r fo r t he

Arts

Spor t t he

Environment

Tourism

and

T e r r i t o r i e s

a re j o i n t l y

respons ib le

fo r cont inuing

Commonwealth

ac t ion on t he

Inqui ry i s sues and r e l a t ed mat te rs .

CAB INET IN CONFIDENCE

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3

TT CHMENT

I

sugges t t hey con t inue to pursue t he

i s sues

with

your

Mini s t e r s

so t h a t

we

can r each

an

agreed pos i t i on on

t he

de t a i l s as

soon as poss ib l e .

Yours

s in c e re ly

R L H WKE


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CABINET IN 1

NFIDENCE

TT CHMENT B

DR FT

LETTER

TO THE

PREMIER

OF

T SM NI

S PROPOSED

Y THE MINISTER FOR

RESOURCES

Dear

Mr

Gray

My

Government

has

now

considered the

Report of the

Commission of Inquiry

in to

the Lemonthyme and Southern Forests and

has

taken in to

account the

discussions

between Commonwealth

and

Sta te Ministers on possible measures to se t t l e

the

issues

surrounding

resources required

by

the fores t ry industry and the

need

to

conserve

areas

of

high

environmental values.

Your Government s

acceptance

of the views of the

majori ty

of Commissioners tha t cer ta in areas are of World Heritage

signif icance

and should

accordingly be

nominated for inscr ip t ion

under

the

terms of

the World

Heritage Convention i s welcomed.

This

act ion,

together

with the other

measures discussed by

the

Tasmanian Minister

for

Forests and

the Commonwealth Minister

for

Resources,

wil l

I

bel ieve,

enable

us

to

resolve

many

of the

i ssues

which led the

Commonwealth to

es tab l i sh

the commission of

Inquiry.

3

In part icular

the enhanced conservation s t a tus for areas

within

the Inquiry

area ,

together

with

the proposed

addit ional

national

parks

wil l

enable

Austral ia to fu l f i l l

i t s obl igat ions

under the

World Heritage

Convention.

4 The Commonwealth also bel ieves t i s essent ia l tha t the

industry

issues raised by the Commission of Inquiry are addressed

quickly

and substant ively

in order

to

provide a

secure

base for

development as

well

as

more ef f ic ien t and

environmentally

responsible fores t pract ices. The proposed negot ia t ion of a

Tasmanian

Forests

Agreement i s fundamental

to the achievement

of

those object ives.


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TT CHMENT B

C B I N E T I N ~ O N F I D E N C E

5 The

quest ion of compensation

which

has

been

raised

by your

Government

causes

me some

concern.

s

you are

aware, there i s no

l ega l

obligat ion

on the Commonwealth to provide for actions taken

in the exercise of i t s

legi t imate

powers.

However, the Franklin

Dam precedent . would indicate t ha t in the present case, ex gra t

ia

payments

may

be

appropr ia te .

I

am

prepared

to

offer

20m

comprising

an

ex

gra t ia

payment to cover

sunk costs addit ional

management costs and royal t ies forgone, 8 mill ion for an

accelera ted p l3n ta t ions program and 5

mil l ion

for an

industry

t ra in ing

p r o g r ~ m Detai ls

of these

programs

wil l

need

to

be

f ina l i sed by t1ie apprDpriate Ministers.

6 I

can

tu2refore advise you tha t the Commonwealth i s

prepared to

a c e p t

the

proposed

'package'

forwarded

under

cover

of

Mr

Groom's

l e t t e r of

29 June 1988, subject only to the

f ina l i sa t ion o mutually

acceptable

f inancia l arrangements. I

would be

gra te fu l for confirmation tha t your Government accepts

t h i s

p r o p o s i t i o ~

Yours

sincerely

RJL Hawke

CABIN ET 1 N CON l DENCE

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16


ATTACHMENT C

AREA AND BASIC RESOURCE IMPLICATIONS FOR

THE PREFERRED PROpOSALS

OF SENATORS RICHARDSON

AND

COOK

JOINT ATTACHMENT)

AREAS

RESERVED

BY PROPOSALS

World Heri tage

nominat ion

ha)

Two eucalypt and two cave National

Parks

( ha)

West

of l im i t

to

logging

l i ne

ha)

ie s t a tu s conf irmed

by

Sta te l eg i s la t ion )

TOTAL

ha)

PERCENTAGE

OF INQUIRY AREA

(+

small

adjacent a reas ) RESERVED:

World

Heri tage

nomina t ions

West

of

l imi t to

logging l i ne

ie

s t a tus

to be conf irmed by St a t e

l eg i s la t ton )

National

Parks

four)

TOTAL

NET COMMERCIAL EUCALYPT

AREA

RESERVED

FROM WITHIN INQUIRY AREA

ha) :*

PERCENTAGE

OF TOTAL NET COMMERCIAL

EUC.

AREA IN INQUIRY AREA:*

RECOVERABLE STANDING VOLUMES

RESERVED

FROM WITHIN INQUIRY AREA:*

Net

of Veneer)

SAWLOG (m3)

Assume

15

of

gross

sawlog)

VENEER

(m3)

PULPWOOD ( m 3)

TOTAL

* eas t

of

the

l imi t to

logging l i ne

** not

yet

agreed

by

Tasmania

inc ludes 1,100 ha spec ia l management zone

SENATOR

RICHARDSON

282,000

80,000**

362,000

52

28 **

80

18,200

43

703,000

124,000

4,170,000

4,997,000


SENATOR

COOK

30,000

4,120lt

152,000

186,120

10

53

2

65

4,700

11

179,000

32,000

1,309,000

1,520,000

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lliQUIRY RE

Lemon

thyme

Area

6ltSi i IG

Wo l.Lo

tiE

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I

SI: \.-\TOR

R J C I - l - \ R D S O ~ Is

PREFD\RE

D

OPTICX\

Lemon re :J

0

- A

REAS

PROPOSED BY

SENATOR RICHARDSON

FOR

hlORlD HERITAGE

LISTING

ADDITIONAL

AREAS

FOR NO

1 J

ux ;ciNG BY VIRTUE oF BEL \ C

\VEST OF LIHIT TO LOC..GING

LINE

outhern

I

Forests

rea

I

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SENATOR COOK s

PROPOSAL

)

C E'h/lf r1L

fLr}TERr l

~ f

flR EA

AREAS PROPOSED BY

00

SENATOR COOK

FOR

HORID

HERIIAGE

LISTING

AREAS NOT

TO

BE

LOGGED

C l JEST OF

Lll1IT TO

LOGGING

LINE

status greater

thar

Forest Reserve

SIATE RESERVES/NATIONAL

PARKS WHICH \ JILL NOT BE

LOGGED

IALL EUCALYPT NATIONAL

PARKS

Southern

Forests

Area

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RE S OF FOREST

PROTECTED BY

SEN TOR

RICHARDSON S

PREFERRED OPTION I T I O N

TO SEN TOR COOK S PROPOS L

~ ~

\ et h

Confi

ence

f . . / i 1 ~ f l l flr}T RLI

r Fr Jr CrEI>

AREA

J

SEN TOR COOK S

T LL

EUC LYPT N TION L P R

Southern

orests

Area

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CABINET IN

NFIDENCE

SEN TOR

RICH RD

S

ON S

POSITION

CONTENTS

Descr ip t ion of

World

Heri tage

Nomination

Options

Pr inc ipa l I s sues

Impl ica t ions

o f Sen. Cook s Proposal

Nat iona l Es ta te Matters

Timber/Recovery/Employment/Compensation

Aspects

o f

Pre fe r r ed

Option

World Her i tage Values: Summary

Indus t ry Res t ruc tur ing :

Inquiry

Report

Comments


TT CHMENT D

Attachment

(i)

Attachment i i )

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22

CABINET IN C NFIDENCE

TT CHMENT D

E S ~ P T I O N OF WORLD ~ T G E NOMIN TION OPTIONS

Option

1

1.

The conse rva t ion

movement

proposal covers a lmost the en t i r e

south-west

qua r t e r

o f t he

S ta t e .

Although t i s defens i b l e as a

reasonable

assessment

o f world her i tage values ,

t

t akes

in

cons iderab le a reas t h a t have

not

rece ived

the

de ta i l ed

examinat ion necessary fo r a world her i tage nomina t ion.

(See

Map

1 .

Option

2

2 . The

minor i ty

Commissioner found world

he r i t age

values in

almost

the e n t i r e

inqui ry a rea p lus pa r t of t he Cent ra l

Pla teau

outs ide the area . This accords with the IUCN view. IUCN

recommendations

a l so

t ake

in

the Maxwell/DenisoP- area sandwiched

between the

ex i s t i ng world

her i tage na t iona l

parks

and

the

Inqui ry a rea .

(See Map

2 .

This pos i t i on

i s too

expansive for

success fu l pur s u i t .

Option

3 (The

pre fe r r

e d op

t ion

3 .

Lemonthyme Area This t akes in the two world he r i t age

qua l i fy ing

areas found by the major i ty Commissioners; the Walls

o f

Jerusa lem

Nat iona l Park

and

Centra l Pla teau

Conserva t ion Area

proposed by IUCN (a l a rge p a r t of t h i s was a l so found to

be

world

he r i t age by

the minor i ty Commissioner);

and crown fo re s t in

the

upper Mersey Valley, recen t ly endorsed by t he Tasmanian Cabinet

fo r add i t i on to t he

Cradle

Mountain Lake St C la i r Nat ional

Park.

4. So u

thern

Fores t s

Area

This

t akes

in the Maxwell /Denison o r

Hole

in the Donut region recommended by IUCN and

the upper

Gordon

River

catchment in the northernmost sec t ion of the Inqui ry

area .

CABIN

ET 1

N CON

Fl

DENCE

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CABINET IN d NFIDENCE

TT CHMENT

5 . The Southern p a r t of

t h i s

opt ion t akes in t he remaining

th ree

majo r i ty Commissioner

qua l i fy ing

areas

with

minor addi t ions and

t he upper Weld

River

catchment. See Map 3 .

Option 4

6. This opt ion

var ies opt ion

by

de le t ing a l l the commercial

wood zones

in

t he upper

Weld

River

catchment

and adding non-

commercial wood zones of

high her i t age

value sou th

of

the Weld.

See Map 4.)


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:

. 24


ATTACHMENT D

MAP 1

Proposed

Western

Tasn a ia

Stage 2

World Heritage

Area

C11rnnc

Atd ~ r i c a c c

71 YtOttd ~ r i u a e n c e n t ~

Uscaae2.

D

~

\\Orld H t n t ~

~ u ~ n c i o n

sc... 1

The Combined Environment

Group s

proposal


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)

26

TT CHMENT

D

- N CONFIDENCE

LEMON THYME

UK

ST C L ~

NATIONAL PARX

WILD RIVERS

NATIONAL PARK

SOUTHWE T HA

TIONAL PARK

> AP 3

Proposed additions

to ex

is

tin g WH

P l anned

l ogg..ng

a..: eas

e a s t

o f

tht

l im i t

to

l ogg ing

l i n e

SOUTHERN FORESTS

RE

C I N E T IN CON l DENCE

/

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I N C 8 ~ ~ I D E N C E TT CHMENT D

NATIOHAL PARK

WILD

RIVERS

NATIOHAL PARK

SOUTH WES

T

NATIOHAL

PARK

HAP 4

Proposed add rions

to existing W

r

A

P : a nncd l o gglng

areas

cas t

0 f

the

l im i t

to

l ogg ing

L.ne

SOUTHERN

FORESTS

RE

IN CONFIDENC

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CABINET IN C NFIDENCE

TT CHMENT

PRINCIPAL ISSUES

7.

The Government must

be seen

c l e a r ly t o

s a t i s f y W obl iga t ions

to

i den t i fy

and pro tec t world he r i t age

areas

because of defec ts

in the

Act

or

t he

Commission s

i n t e r p r e t a t i on re l iance on

the

Repor t by i t s e l f

does

not do t h i s .

The repor t

i s

a l ready

under l ega l

chal l enge .

8 .

Examination

o f t he Report,

data

genera ted by the Inqui ry

process and subsequent ly ava i lab le in format ion

and opinion

leads me to the view

t ha t

an a rea l a rg e r than the

f ive

majori ty

Com missioner s W qual i fy ing a reas my pre fe r r ed

opt ion) has va lues

t ha t would

make t

an appropr ia te

W

nominat ion (see Attachment D pp 42-43) .

9. Determinat ion of exact

boundar ies

based

on my pre fe r r ed

nominat ion by Commonwealth Government expe r t s would enable a

nominat ion to be

put

to the

W Committee in

December

1988,

the f i r s t ava i lab le

oppor tuni ty .

t h i s

process would ensure

our

W convention obl iga t ions

are

met.

the recen t ac t ion by the W

Bureau

in r e l a t i on to the

Queensland

Wet Tropics

World

Heri tage nominat ion

ind ica te s

t ha t

the Commonwealth government i s accepted

as

t he so l e

re spons ib le e n t i t y

fo r nomina t ions .

Tasmania s cooperat ion

i s

des i r ab le

but

not

a

pr e r equ i s i t e for a successfu l

nomina t ion.

10. Our ob l iga t ion to

pro tec t

W s i t e s can a l so be met by Sta te

Government

ac t ion

such as proclamation o f nat iona l parks or a

combinat ion

o f

Sta te Government ac t i on and a W nominat ion.

11.

The Inqui ry a rea i s on

the Regi s t e r

o f the Nat ional Es ta t e

NE) .

The Appendix

to the 1986 Memorandum of Understanding

with

Tasmania on

expor t

woodchip

opera t ions

s e t s out , amongst

CABINET 1 N CON Fl DENCE

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29

C B NET IN CONFIDENCE

TT CHMENT

other

th ings , the Commonwealth/State consu l t a t i on

processes

and

condi t ions

under which fo re s t s on the Regi s t e r could be

logged.

12. This Inqui ry a rose because of unders tandable publ i c

percept ion

t h a t

the

MOU

arrangement

was

not

l ead ing

to

an

appropr ia t e balance between

pro tec t ion

and development of

fo re s t s o f supe r la t ive

environmental

value .

This

was

unfor tuna te s ince

the Prime

Minis te r

s a i d a t the t ime

of

s ign ing t ha t No logging in t he Nat iona l

Es ta t e

area

wil l be

permi t ted

(before)

t he

Commonwealth

i s sa t i s f i e d t ha t

t he Nat iona l Es ta t e values wil l be pro tec ted .

13.

The

conserva t ion

movement

has been

dogged

in

i t s

de te rmina t ion to co r rec t t h i s s i t ua t i on : to move t he mat te r

of f the Government s agenda we

must heed

t h i s precedent

lesson. There i s a

vehement

publ i c

d e s i r e fo r an

environmental ly respons ib le outcome. Minis te rs

have rece ived

a

cons tan t

s t ream

of

emot ional ly charged correspondence

before and dur ing the Inqui ry . Since the

r epo r t was

t ab led I

have rece ived in

excess

o f6 ,000 l e t t e r s and cards .

14.

An

environmental ly defens ib le dec i s ion

in

l i ne

with my

pre fe r r ed W nomination

plus

ac t ion ou t l ined below to s e t t l e

ongoing

NE

fo r e s t problems would reduce commercial fo re s t

resource a v a i l a b i l i t y by only a

modest

amount and would

enable

us

to then provide t he f i rm resource assurance

t ha t

i s

the

Tasmanian fo r e s t s i n d u s t ry ' s p r i o r i t y .

15.

This

would remove WH NE

cons t ra in t s to pr o j ec t s

for which

approvals

have

been sought . The

resource

lo s s would

be

compensated fo r by the

e f f i c i ency

improvements in a l loca t ing ,

harves t ing and process ing

t ha t would r e su l t from Senator

Cook s proposa l s

fo r i ndus t ry

r es t ruc tur ing

and an Accord.

(Attachment i i )

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CABIN ET 1 N CBNFl DENCE

ATTACHMEN l D

IMPLICATIONS OF SEN TOR

COOK S

PROPOS L

16.

We

should

recognise t ha t

Senator Cook s

Accord

proposal

s to

da te only

a

concept ,

In addi t ion ,

Tasmania s agreement

to

accept the Commonwealth

as

an observer on a Sta te

Fores t s

Council

and

a Sta te Working Par ty

to

examine indus t ry

c r i t i c i sms n the Helsham repor t ,

though

a usefu l s tep ,

s

one which, a t Tasmania s whim, may l ead

nowhere.

17.

Aspects of

Senator

Cook s proposed package are a t t r a c t i ve :

the

emphasis

on Commonwealth

ass i s tance for p lan ta t ions

and

high

value added produc ts could wel l a s s i s t n de laying the

need to damage some o f Tasmania s remaining t ll fo re s t s

f r ing ing the

a lp ine

areas of the SW

Wilderness

W area ;

indus t ry

r e s t ru c tu r in g and ef f ic iency

improvements,

again

pa r t l y f inanc ia l

by

t he Commonwealth, would

more

than

compensate

for the re source reduc t ions i nhe ren t in my

pre fe r r ed

W

nomina t ion.

All these i n i t i a t i v e s have,

though,

been on the

S t a t e s

own agenda for some yeara .

18.

Fur ther ,

much

of the remainder

of

the package,

i s no more

than a recommitment

by Tasmania

of conse rva t ion measures

a l ready agreed n the 1986 MOU or a conf i rma t ion o f ex i s t ing

Sta t e under takings such as the l imi t - to - logg ing l i ne and

pro tec t ion

of a rcheologica l values in

na t iona l

parks .

The

Conserva t ion

movement

would

undoubtedly

po in t out

t ha t little

has been

achieved by t he

Commonwealth.

19.

I f

Senator Cook s r e s t r i c t e d World Heri tage a rea i s

accepted,

the

Commonwealth

may be

embarrassed

by

a

World

Heri tage

Committee

r e j ec t ion

o f i t s nominat ion. The Conserva t ion

movement s a l so

l i k e l y

to

point

out

t ha t

a

prime

WH/NE

objec t ive , p reserva t ion

of

subs tan t i a l areas of cu r ren t ly

unreserved, wilde rness

very t a l l fo re s t s , has not

been

achieved desp i te

a lengthy (but imperfect ) Inqui ry .

20.

The nat iona l

parks and reserves

compris ing

Senator

Cook s

proposal

are

complete ly inadequate fo r t he p ro t ec t ion

of the

t a l l t r e e s and assoc ia t ed

ecosystems n

a pr i s t i ne

s t a t e ,

al lowing b io log ica l evolu t ion to cont inue untrammelled. I t

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TT CHMENT

should a lso

be poin ted

out

t ha t the l imi t - to - logg ing l i ne

would only

prese rve a r e l a t ive ly

smal l

amount of t rue

t a l l

old

growth

euca lypt in ecologica l ly

doubt fu l smal l

patches .

21. The f ive

qua l i fy ing areas conta in little very tall fo re s t s

and

in

rega rd

to

fo re s t ry

resources

genera l ly

in

these f ive

areas Helsham s a id they were of

little s ign i f i cance . For

employment he s a id

t ha t

loss

o f

access to the f ive qua l i fy i ng

a reas

would

be minor .

22.

Given

the above perspec t ives the

Commonwealth

would be hard

pressed

to r e s i s t

cla ims t ha t it has f a i l ed in

its

W

and NE

ob l iga t ions . t

i s

lud ic rous

t ha t the Commonwealth

should

be

seen

to

be

of fe r ing

considerable

cash

amounts

as

a

t r ade-of f

for

the St a t e ' s

co-opera t ion

in a

minimal

W

nominat ion.

23.

Tasmania 's compensat ion claims are around double Senator

Cook's

proposed

of f e r .

There

i s unl ike ly

to

be agreement.

Since Tasmania 's pos i t ion i s t ha t

it

w i l l not agree to

a

j o i n t nomination if

any

element

of the

proposed

agreement

with Senator Cook i s changed, little

would

be

j eopard i sed

by

pu t t ing

a

more

environmental ly

respons ib le

pos i t ion to

Tasmania. have provided a dra f t

l e t t e r

a t (Attachment

A

from

the

Prime

Minis te r to the Premier t ha t would achieve

t h i s .

24. Senator

Cook's

Recommendation (c) o f paragraph 21 in

which

he

seeks so le ca r r i age

of negot i a t ions

with Tasmania

i s

inappropr ia te .

Environmental

and

National

Es ta t e mat te r s

are

with in

my

por t f o l i o

and

non-involvement

o f

envi ronmenta l

perspec t i ves l ed

to

these problems in the f i r s t ins tance .

am concerned

fo r

example t ha t Commonwealth/Tasmania

negot ia t ions

on

the Douglas Apsley na t iona l

e s t a t e

fo re s t

have been proceeding

with

i n s u f f i c i en t l i a i s on with

my

por t f o l i o .

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ATTACHMENT D

N TION L EST TE

M TTERS

25. The

dr a f t l e t t e r

draws a t t en t ion to Senator Cook s proposal

t o r enego t i a t e the MOU

To

avoid

the

sources o f c o n f l i c t

which

l ed to the Inqui ry

we

should

i n s i s t on

a

recons idera t ion of t he

MOU Appendix

which s e t s out

fo re s t

opera t ion t rea tment

of each

NE

f o r e s t

26.

This

could be done by

a

one year t e chn ica l eva l ua t i on

of

na t i ona l es t a t e fo re s t s involv ing co l l abo ra t ion

of

Tasmanian

Government

fo re s t ry

and conserva t ion au t ho r i t i e s with

o f f i c e r s from our Departments

(with Aus t ra l i an Heri tage

Commission advice as necessary) This process would:

prov ide

a

sound

bas i s

for

dec i s ions

under Sec t ion

30

of

t he Aus t ra l i an

Her i t age

Commission

Act r e ga rd ing

examinat ion

of

prudent and fea s ib le a l t e r na t i ve s

s e t a

respons ib le and defens ib le

framework fo r logging

approvals i n na t iona l

es t a t e

fv re s t s ; and

v i r t u a l l y e l imina te

t he cont inuous sources

o f

c o n f l i c t

under present arrangements as

areas a re

d e a l t

with

s e r i a l l y

27.

Such j o i n t ac t i on should

avoid

the need for more dramat ic

measures

such

as use

of t he

Corpora t ions

power

(See

Submission No

5837)

being urged by

the

Conservat ion

movement.


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ATTACHMENT

D

CONSIDERATION OF TIMBER RESOURCE, EMPLOYMENT EFFECTS

AND

COMPENSATION ASPECTS OF SENATOR RICHARDSON S PREFERRED OPTION

28. Tasmanian Fores t ry

Commission

planning a l ready provides

t h a t

l e s s

than

one

qua r t e r of t he

t o t a l

Inqui ry

a rea

i s

to

be

logged. (Much

of the a rea ,

a l though Sta t e

Fores t , i s

a lp ine ,

bu t t on

grass

p la ins ,

swamps, non-commercial fo re s t ,

i naccess ib l e fo re s t

or wi th in

a

nat iona l park

and proposed

r a i n f o r e s t

reserves . )

The S t a t e s own l imi t - to - logg ing

gene ra l ly s e t s o f f

non- logging

zones to

the

west o f its

nor t h

south t rend th rough t he Inqu i ry

area.

29.

My

pre fe r r ed

opt ion

would

leave

wel l over

ha l f

o f

t h i s

p lanned logging

area

in

commercial

product ion. In

volume

te rms around 65

of

t he t imber planned for

logging would

still

be

ava i l ab le

for

exp lo i t a t ion .

30. On a Sta te wide bas i s t he loss of resource i s

es t imated

a t

only

around

2.5%

(see

Map 5

fol lowing

page) ,

which

may,

if

no ac t ion

were

to

be t aken

to

improve indus t ry e f f i c iency as

proposed

by

Senator

Cook,

cause

unemployment

of

around

132

persons in a workforce o f around 4,000

in

t he longer

t e rm.

31.

Harves t ing

occurs s imul taneously

in

dozens o f l oca t ions

in

and

around the

Lemonthyme and Southern

Fores t s .

Very

few

o f

those a re

with in

my

pre fe r red opt ion. Consequently , littl

o r no dis rup t ion

should occur in the

shor t te rm

except to

Gunns

Kilndr ied

Ltd which

cu r ren t ly

takes

a

s i gn i f i c an t

p a r t

o f its

resources

from

t he Lemonthyme Fores t . E f f ec t s on

any

p a r t i c u l a r l oca l i t y

should

be

amel iora ted by

a

r e spons i b l e

S ta t e

Government d i s t r i bu t i on

of

any

log quota reduct ions ,

though

shor t term

ass i s t ance could

be considered

if

problems

a re

demonstra ted. Assuming t he Fores t ry Commission i s

unrespons ive

about

r e a l l o c a t i o n

of

quotas ,

Gunns could

c la im

compensat ion of,

say, 100,000 to 200,000 if produc t ion a t

its Deloraine Mil l i s d i s rup ted

for ,

say, t h r ee months. Any

p re c i s e amount

could be determined

when

be t t e r

in format ion

i s

a v a i l a b l e .

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ATTACHMENT

1>

MAP 5

INDICATIVE

OUTLINE OF

TASMAN AN CROWN

FOREST

N

PRIVATE

FOREST AREAS

( not

shown

I

CONSTITUTE zst

OF

TASMANIAN TOTAL FOREST

Crown Forest

ru in

Senator Richardson s

preferred World Heritage

Nomination

that

would be

withdrawn from planned

logging

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TT CHMENT

32.

Current

Fores t ry

Commission s t r a t egy

i s

to

cut the

S t a t e ' s

remaining o l d growth fo re s t

over

the next 50-55 years

and then

t u rn

pr inc ipa l ly

to

regrowth fo res t s . y pre fe r red

opt ion

amounts

to a year

and

a

h a l f ' s

o l d

growth ha rves t

a t

recen t

r a t es of cu t t ing .

Therefore ,

t i s

fea s ib le to

mainta in

curren t

fo re s t y ie ld s ,

and

employment

l eve l s ,

with

minimal dis turbance to long

te rm

s t r a t eg i e s . In any case

medium and longer

te rm

po t en t i a l

unemployment

would

be

over taken

by

severa l f o r e s t indus t ry pro jec t s

for which

approval i s cu r ren t ly now

being

sought.

33.

Resource reduct ions w i l l be

subsumed

by

the numerous

i ndus t ry e f f i c i ency

improvements

ou t l i ned by

Senator

Cook (see

Inqui ry

Report

comments on

re s t ruc tu r ing ,

Atta

c

hment

D.

p

~

Professor

Pearse in

h i s 1987

consul tancy

repor t

to

the

Tasmanian Fores t ry

Commission sa id , a f t e r

c r i t i c i s i n g

cur ren t

f o r e s t r y indus t ry

arrangements and po l ic ie s , All t he se

shor tcomings

are

impediments to achieving the maximum bene f i t s

from

Crown t imber

resources , and,

In t he

i n t e r e s t s

o f

e f f i c i e n t

i ndus t r i a l development

and

improved

re source

management and u t i l i s a t i on , a

high

p r i o r i t y should now

be

put

on

loosening

these t i g h t cons t ra in t s

under

a

more

orde r ly

t imber management and

a l l o c a t i o n

system.

34.

Professor

Pearse was qu i te c lea r

t ha t

numerous

macro

l eve l problems meant t h a t

t he

bes t use of t imber i s impeded .

The Commonwealth

Government

input

i n to

so lv ing these problems

should

ensure so lu t ions

t ha t

w i l l

more than

compensate fo r

a

2.5%

resource

reduct ion . Without

our

pressure

the S ta t e may

l ack the po l i t i c a l wi l l i n the face

of powerful

i ndus t r i a l

i n t e r e s t s

(suppor ted

by cu r ren t but

outmoded Sta t e

Concession

l eg i s l a t i on ) to

make t he

proper re-ar rangements .

35. Option 4

would

l eave th ree -qua r te r s

o f

the

planned

logging area in produc t ion . In volume

terms about

77

o f

the

t imber planned

for logging

would

st ll

be ava i lab le fo r

e x p lo i t a t i o n . Only

about

1.4% of t he t o t a l Sta t e wood

resource would be unavai l ab le fo r harves t ing .


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ATTACHMENT D

COMPENSATION

AND

WOOD

MANAGEMENT

STRATEGIES

36. Current Tasmanian Fores t ry Commission pol icy i s to move

to an

80

to

90

year

sawlog

r o t a t i on . The s t ra tegy i s to

l a rge ly

cut

out the

old growth

over

the next

50-55

years ,

na tura l

regrowth

over

the

subsequent

30

years

and

then

to

u t i l i s e t he s i l v i c u l t u r a l regenera t ion

ar i s ing

from

t he

cu t t i ng of oldgrowth

and

regrowth

Helsham 18 .8 .2 ) .

37. The aim

of

t h i s s t ra tegy

i s

to ensure a

cons tan t

supply

o f

sawlogs to indus t ry

th rough

to

t he

second ro t a t ion ,

culmina t ing in a fu l ly

managed

fo res t , in the l a t t e r pa r t of

the

next

century (18 .8 .8) . This s t ra tegy assumes

t ha t the 80-

90 year

ro t a t ion

w i l l be maintained for

t ha t

per iod

the

TF

have

s t a t e d t ha t

they

wi l l reduce quotas pro r a t a to

the

s tanding

volume

of

t imber

reserved

by any

se t t l ement

of

he r i t age i s sues . Two

assumptions

under ly t h i s s t ra tegy :

38. Fi r s t l y ,

no t echnologica l improvements

wil l

a r i s e

which

wi l l s i gn i f i c an t l y reduce the age a t which

sawlogs

may

be

harves ted .

39.

Secondly,

sus ta inable

y i e l d i s the bes t pol icy both

under

presen t

ci rcumstances

and

under

those

fol lowing r e se rva t ions

f o r he r i t age

conservat ion.

40.

I f

t h i s

s t ra tegy

i s

accepted the Tasmanians wi l l c la im

compensation

for an immediate

lo s s

of product ion of sawlog

and

veneer .

However, in the l i gh t of the

t renchant

c r i t i c i s ms of

fo res t ry management in Tasmania a r i s i ng from

t he

Helsham

Inqui ry ,

the

Commonwealth should not be in the

p o s i t i o n o f

compensating Tasmania fo r t he maintenance

of

ine f f i c iency or

f o r fol lowing imprudent economic prac t i ces . At presen t the

Tasmanian

Government

pol icy gives

spec ia l

cons idera t ion to

sawmil lers based on

non-commercial objec t ives 20.3.10)

to

the

ex ten t for example

t ha t

they may be

sa id to

be

giv ing away

money. Helsham notes

t ha t

t he re

i s

undisputed ev idence by

some of those

involved

n

the indus t ry

tha t

the

r esa l e p r i ce

o f a mil l involves a s ubs t an t i a l c ap i t a l i s a t i on

of

t he va lue

of the

quota

a l loca t ion . (20 .2 .28) .

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TT CHMENT

41.

In summing

up

the

pos i t ion Helsham

asse r t s t ha t the

Tasmanian

Government, in

designing

i t s

po l i c i e s

fo r t he

f o r e s t r y indus t ry

faces

t h i s

bas i c dilemma

can

t

abandon

t he complex

s t ruc tu re

of higgledy p iggledy ad hoc

i n s t i t u t i o n a l arrangements

(sawlog

quotas ,

non-commercial

roya l ty systems and so on) so severe ly c r i t i c i s e d by

Professor

Pearse and others and accept the consequences

fo r t he

i d e n t i f i e d spec ia l i n t e r e s t groups

involved,

in order to gain

s ubs t an t i a l and pervas ive

genera l

increases in produc t ion

and

employment.

(20.3.14)

42.

At presen t

the roya l ty system, undervalu ing t he

product

as t

does, encourages t he poor u t i l i s a t i o n of the

product

by

r e l i ev i ng

a

s t rong motiva t ion to improve the technica l

ef f i c i ency of the processes . Given the high propor t ion of

oldgrowth in Tasmania

and t he

lack

o f

market pressure

to

exp l o re new technolcgy t i s

not

surpr is ing

tha t

Tasmania has

not made

the

same e f fo r t s as

NSW, Qld and Vic to r i a

to

adopt

new technologies

to

p r o f i t ab l y

u t i l i z e regrowth

resource

ANUTECH 1987 p21) .

ANUTECH

noted

t ha t

i t

seems

to

be

extremely conservat ive view t ha t

sawmills

and

veneer m i l l s

wi l l st ll requi re euca lypt logs of

80

year ly

age and

a

70-

80cm

diameter

to be su i t ab le fo r convers ion

30

to

40

years

from now

(p22)

.

And

yet

t h i s

i s one

of the assumptions

imp l i c i t l y underlying

Tasmania 's proposed r eac t ion

to

t he

re se rva t ion o f

her i tage

a reas .

In

addi t ion to the pos s ib i l i t y

o f

u t i l i z i n g

and promoting t echnologica l development, other

s t r a t e g i c

a l t e rna t ives

to management

techniques

have been

ignored .

For example, Professor Jackson has urged movement

away from

a

uniform sawlog management regime

to a

system

of

s i ng l e product

management.

43.

The product ion of

e i t he r

sawlogs or pulpwood

fo r

compet i t ive

markets requi res separa te and

qui te d i f f e re n t

management. These d i f f e rences a r e

fundamental and stem

from

t he need

to

grow d i f f e r en t spec ies

a t

di f fe ren t

growth r a t e s

f o r d i f f e r en t ro ta t ion

t imes,

by di f fe ren t s i l v i c u l t u r a l

methods . (Ex

116

p.39) .

Professo r Jackson sugges t s managing

wet fo res t s

fo r

sawlogs

and dry for

pulpwood.

Helsham

notes

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TT CHMENT

t h a t

i f successfu l , t h i s s t r a t egy would enable

resources

to

b e t t e r meet indus t ry

demands,

enhance

product ion and

employment oppor tun i t ies

and

increase the re turns

to

the Sta t e

from

i t s

fo re s t as s e t . (20 .3 .8) .

44. ANUTECH

poin t

to

the

p o t ~ n t i l

for

b e t t e r

recovery

r a t es

o f sawlog.

From

the FIAT

data

for

the mil l s

which

they

analysed, they noted a recovery r a t e

of

32

. . I f

t h i s

r a t e

was

increased to 36 , a r a t e achieved

within

the

indus t ry ,

p r o f i t a b i l i t y

would be higher even if

the

e n t i r e Inqui ry a rea

was reserved . As they

i nd ica te i f

adjus tments

to resource

and m i l l management

(and

s imi l a r r e l a t i ve ly

low

cos t opt ions)

could

produce even qu i te smal l

recovery

improvements,

they

would

be

an

e f f i c i e n t

veh ic l e

fo r

any

adjustment

po l i c i e s

t ha t

governments may

cons ider

fo r the Tasmanian

i ndus t ry .

p .33 .

45. However,

the

most

pe r t i nen t

i s sue re levant

to

compensation

claims based

on

immediate

losses from quota

reduc t ion concerns the r a t i ona l i t y

of

such

reduct ions in

the

face of

reserva t ion

of resource , in

order

to maintain an even

sus ta inab le y ie ld .

46. (18.6.20) Professo r Ferguson in h is Report of

t he

Board

of Inqui ry in to the Victor ian

Timber

Indus t ry (1985) urges a

more

f l ex ib le

approach

when

faced with the

vagar ies

o f

c i rcumstance . The popula r connota t ion of

s us t a ina b i l i t y

i s

e s s e n t i a l l y t ha t of

a cons tan t

yie ld of

wood t h i s approach

i s inappropr ia te : the presen t and

foreseeable

s t a t e of the

economy

i s not s teady

Attempts

to

impose

a s teady

s t a t e

y i e l d

o f wood

as

a Sta te po l i cy equate with t ry ing to stern the

t i d e .

The

modern and appropr ia te view of fo re s t management

e n t a i l s

t he

i n t e l l i ge n t

management

of imbalanced fo res t

s t ruc tu re s . In t e l l i ge n t

management impl ies

t ha t

secu la r

and

where

poss ib l e

cyc l i ca l ,

changes be

addressed

- and

not

ignored

as they would be with a l i t e r a l appl ica t ion of

the

sus ta ined yie ld or s teady s t a t e approach (p.126).

In

t he journa l of

the Fores t Department

of Western Aus t ra l i a ,

Fo re s t Forum

30,1983 Underwood po in t s out

tha t the

sus t a ined

y i e l d

model

i s pure ly

a mathematical

one,

based on the a rea

of

fo re s t ,

i t s

growth r a t e

and

t he dimensions of the produc t


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CABINET IN

NFIDENCE

TT CHMENT D

involved . The in f luence of the market , and of p o l i t i c a l

and

economic

f ac to r s

i s completely ignored in the model. Timber

consumption

by

the

community

does not fol low the s t r uc t u r e of

ar i thmet ic ,

but

va r ie s according

to the

laws of

supply

and

demand, the economic

c l imate ,

the f luc tua t ions in the

i n t e r s t a t e

and i n t e rna t iona l t r ade and

commerce from

year to

year ,

and the impact

o f

changes in customs and technology

page

12.

47.

Senator Richardson 's p re f e r r e d opt ion would reserve in

s tanding

volume

approximately

t he

equiva len t

o f two years lo s s

of the

55

years p roduct ion

of resource . To

immediately

reduce

the quotas ,

and so

p lace p re sen t

cap i ta l

opera t ions

and

employment in jeopardy should be

seen as

an i r r a t i ona l ac t ion .

t s a c r i f i c e s the

known presen t

in favour o f

assumptions

concerning

the indus t ry in 50

years

t ime. The proper

use

of

c a p i t a l

and

labour a l ready dedica ted

to

the indus t ry

would

sugges t

t ha t the

maintenance

of

th roughput

and so of

ha rves t ing

over a

pe r iod

of adjus tment should be

the p r i o r i t y

to

al low

fo r

increased e f f i c i e nc i e s

from re s t ruc tu r ing . This

would give a

cons iderab le

l ead

t ime (up

to 50 years) to

adjus t

towards

t he use

of a d i f f e re n t resource base for sawlogs. The

presen t

value of produc t ion bene f i t s t o be

foregone

by

re se rva t ion for

the per iod

a f t e r

t he oldgrowth runs out while

maintaining

current

ra te s of

ha rves t ing would not be

s ign i f i c a n t . Accordingly,

t he

NUTECH

s tudy

sugges ts t ha t i f

as s i s t ance o f some form

or

o the r to Tasmania to overcome any

economic detr iment

i s

cons ide red , op t ions for mainta in ing

throughput should be examined

f i r s t :

compensating i ndus t r i e s

f o r t h e i r increased un i t

cos t s

and lower gross pro f i t s

i ncu r red

v ia log input reduc t ions wi l l

inev i tab ly prove

expensive. p .19.

48. The degree to which such a s t ra tegy i s

an

impera t ive s

i l l u s t r a t e d

by ANUTECH's

exe rc i se comparing

the p r o f i t a b i l i t y

reduct ions from the simple withdrawal of t he t o t a l

Lemonthyme

and Southern

Fores t resource

to

t he

pro f i t a b i l i t y reduct ions

if t ha t

re source i s

rep laced by sawlog from

elsewhere cos t ing

33 more

than

a t presen t .


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.

ATTACHMENT 0


ProfitabWq Reduetlou from Reduction of

awtoe

Volumes l

Cemonthyme Southem Forests 1987/88) *

Effect on Revenue-

Costs 1f Supply

Not Rep_laced

Effects on

Revenue-

Costs

1f

Supply

Replaced at 33

Increased Cost

Reductions n Lemonthyme-Sout.hem Forests

Sawlog Supply of:

25

50

75

100

552.200

1.104.300

1.656.500

2.208.700

146.200

291.800

438.000

584.100

*(ANUTECH 1987 p.12)

49.

With

the except ion

of

the 33 ex t ra

cos t

fo r replacement

resource , t h i s r e s u l t i s

based on

reasonable

assumptions

which

a rose from ANUTECH's f i e l d s tudy o f

mil l s .

Concerning t h i s

t a b l e ANUTECH notes t ha t : From

the na t iona l

viewpoint , t

would

be f a r pre fe rab le to rep lace sawlogs

l o s t

to supply even

a t 33 grea te r cos t ( in yard)

than

to al low the mil l s to

run

below

capac i ty . Increas ing t he

supply

cos t

of

sawlogs

by

33

in

yard i s

a f a i r l y rad ica l assumption: assuming

t ha t

logging

and haulage

charges did not a l t e r grea t ly between the

o ld

supply and t he replacement , t h i s

f igure

would imply

t h a t

something

in

the orde r of

double

cu r ren t roya l ty could be

paid

fo r

t he logs

and the r e s u l t

would st ll

be

l e s s

than h a l f the

p r o f i t a b i l i t y loss

of

al lowing capac i ty to drop. p . l 2 .

50. Since

t he re

i s

no

na tu ra l

l i nk

between

the

maintenance

of

ha rves t ing l eve l s and

increased roya l ty

charge for the

supplementary propor t ion , so t ha t the

33

increase

bears

no

r e l a t i on to the quota, t i s c l e a r

t ha t

dis loca t ion and

cos t

w i l l be minimised by mainta in ing throughput .

51. I t should be

noted

t ha t Mr D.J . B i l l s of APPM confirmed

in evidence a t the Helsham Commission Transcr ipt

3686-88)

t h a t

in

the

face

of

resource

withdrawal

the preference of

indus t ry

was to maintain throughput and have a

long l e ad t ime

f o r i ndus t ry

and

market r es t ruc tur ing .


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TT CHMENT

52. Accordingly

t

i s sugges ted t ha t

t he

Commonwealth

r e j e c t s

any compensat ion claim which i s based

on

the

automat ic

reduc t ion of quotas pro

r a t a

with

t he r e se rva t ion

of resource

The

maintenance

o f

throughput

to indus t ry

should be

the

s t a r t i n g po in t

for

any nego t i a t ions on

compensat ion

both to

minimis ing

cos t

to

the

Commonwealth

and

to

encourage

e f f i c i e n t

resource usage. I f successfu l t h i s

s t ra tegy

should ensure

t ha t World Her i tage nominations are su i t ab ly discounted over

50

year

pe r iod

The

only

contra ind ica t ion

to

t h i s proposa l

would r i se from environmental

cons ide ra t ions

Clear ly

ha rves t ing would

be s l i gh t ly

more

in tens ive

on the

non-

reserved a reas

to

maintain throughput

to indus t ry However

to

s i gn i f i c an t degree

t ha t

w i l l

be of f s e t

by increas ing

e f f i c i ency in

recovery

r a t es

such as

t he

re s t ruc tu r ing

progres ses

At worst

the

Commonwealth

has

to accept

t he t r ade

o f f between

t he world

her i tage areas and

other environmental

concerns .

CABINET 1

N CON

Fl

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ATTACHMENT

WORLD ~ T G E VALUES SUMMARY ttachment ( i )

53.

y

p re f e r r e d

W

nominat ion

opt ions contains

mul t ip le

her i t age values :

wilderness

t ll

euca lypt

fo re s t

ecosys tem

r a in fo re s t

a lp ine

ecosystem

t h r ea t ened

spec ies

o f p la n t s

and

animals

ka r s t

g l a c i a l

l andscapes

na tura l beauty.

54. The

contex t

of the

areas i s c r i t i c a l

to t he i r he r i t age

values . They are cont iguous with the ex i s t ing W

area

and

are

p a r t

o f

the same wilderness

t r a c t .

55. The most

importan t element o f t he

W values i s

t he

t a l l

euca l yp t f o r e s t

region. These

fo res t s

represent

an

oppor tun i ty to

preserve

for

the benef i t of

mankind

examples o f

t h i s unique

ecosystem where na tu ra l

b io log ica l processes o f

i n t e rna t iona l

sc i e n t i f i c i n t e r e s t

still opera te .

56. Ta l l

Eucalypt Fores t s in

t he

Inqui ry Area

the t ll

euca lypt fo res t s are

the supreme express ion of the

genus

Eucalyptus

a re an outs tanding

example

represen t ing s ign i f i can t ongoing

b i o l og i ca l evolu t ion in a

p r i s t i n e

environment undis turbed

by t echnologica l man

the

wilderness s e t t i ng of

the

fo res t s i s

c ruc ia l

to t h e i r

world he r i t age value

and

the

maintenance

of

the wilde rness

se t t i ng s es s en t i a l fo r t h e i r i n t e g r i

Documents

1988-89 cabinet paper 5887