Forests NSW
“On the hardwood side of the business, ….as with softwoods,
there is no wastage. Every bit of the hardwood log sent to
the mill is used.”
Source:
The Bush Telegraph: February - April
2003: Where
does State Forests' wood go?
A living tree in growing
forest can be classified as waste.
Source: Yield
Simulator, Southern Region, SFNSW, May 2001, page 9 |
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Timber
Communities Australia
“…it should never be
lost sight of that the material that supports this business is the
residue of sawlog harvesting operations required to meet Australia’s
structural grade timber markets which if not sourced locally from
the very small percentage of Australia’s forests that are available
for sustainable management, would be imported probably from
unsustainable operations elsewhere in our region and adding to
Australia’s trade deficit in timber products.”
Source:
TCA Media Release 8th December, 2008
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Consultants to the logging industry, MBAC Consulting
Pty Ltd
“Wood
waste projects are also inherently more difficult to get to fruition
because unlike wind or solar water heaters, wood waste projects must
secure a large volume of fuel for the project.”
“Due to
public concerns, retailers either will not purchase native forest
wood waste RECs or are willing to pay a significantly lower price
for those RECs. The criteria in the regulations were designed to
address these public concerns but unfortunately, they have clearly
not done so.”
“Wood
waste projects, in some cases, may be relatively more expensive to
operate then other sources of renewable energy, such as wind,
landfill and solar water heaters.”
Source:
Wood and the Renewable Energy Industry ‑ Part 1 Global and
Australian initiatives and impediments to the production of
renewable energy from wood in Australia. May 2003
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National Association of Forest Industries
The
term “wood waste” refers to low grade timber material with no other
identifiable market or environmental value. This includes material
left that is left in the forest after the higher value timber
resources have been harvested. It also includes sawdust, shavings,
off-cuts and other wastes associated with timber processing.”
Source: NAFI brochure “Forest industries and climate change.”
2007
“This harvesting, or
wood waste as it is classified in Regulation 8 to the
Renewable Energy
(Electricity) Act 2000,
includes the defective stems, large branches and logs cut from the
heavily-branched upper reaches of the trees.”
Source:
NAFI submission on the Renewable Energy (Electricity)Amendment
Bill 2002.
Mandatory
Renewable Energy Target
“the
[current] MRET allows native forest biomass as an eligible fuel
subject to this biomass being a harvest residue pr processing waste,
with further conditions around the harvesting operation. By
contrast, native forest harvesting residue is excluded under
Victorian and NSW schemes.”
Note: both options under consideration by COAG for the Expanded
Renewable Energy Target contain the same definition of waste, but
would exclude the NSW and Victoria bans on native forest residue
“harvesting.”
Source:
The COAG Working Group on Climate Change and Water. Design Options
for the Expanded National Renewable Energy Target Scheme.2008. p.7
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NSW Minister for Primary Industries, Ian McDonald
“….the
Government has taken steps since 1995 to ensure that woodchips are
obtained only from sawmill wastes and timber that will not be
suitable for use by sawmills for solid wood products, along with the
products of thinning and other operations to enhance the production
of high-quality sawlogs. “
Source: Legislative Council Hansard, 8
Nov 2005
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Mogo Charcoal
Plant EIS
“The
waste lie was illustrated in the environmental impact statement [EIS]
when the State Forests assessment of the source of the extra 200,000
tonnes of forest recategorised whole forests as waste. State Forests
said that standing trees are available for charcoal.
”Ironbark, woollybutt, bloodwood, grey box and maybe some spotted
gum will be used. The least preferred is blackbutt, silvertop ash,
stringybark and monkey gum. Angophora costata and the peppermint
varieties will not be touched. The really old-growth trees are
preferred because they produce much better charcoal. State Forests
has a puzzling tree category titled "standing waste", which is
applied to trees that are not well shaped. Most standing waste would
be considered to be perfectly good trees yet this standing waste
will be used in the charcoal plant.”
Source: Hon. Richard Jones, Legislative
Council Hansard 8 May 2002. Speech on the proposed Mogo Charcoal
Plant.
