This is evident from the many testimonials praising the J.W Gottstein Memorial Trust Fund.

The Fellowships generally are of most benefit to talented people in the earlier to mid-stage of their careers.

In June 2021, we began reconnecting with former fellows, inviting them to gather in person or virtually for the 50th anniversary of the trust held at the National Press Club in Canberra.

These people make up an alumni network of talented individuals who can be found in many areas of the forest and wood products sector, including within the research community. New fellows will join the network every year.

My 2010 fellowship was a unique opportunity to think a little outside the box and investigate new ways of thinking. I traveled to North America to look at novel approaches to fuel reduction through thinning and mechanical treatments as part of preventative forest fire management.

In addition to learning from overseas practices and networking with relevant experts, it was a fantastic personal experience to get outdoors and visit amazing places and forests.

I greatly value the collegiate nature of the Gottstein Trust and the shared values to pursue innovation and best practices.

I encourage anyone in the forest and timber industry to think big and pursue their passion through the Gottstein Trust. 

• A Gottstein Fellow in 2010, Mick Stephens, CEO of Timber Queensland, has served the interests of the forest industries in Australia for many years playing an important part in many policy debates and outcomes. He is a resource economist with 30 years of experience in forestry and timber industry policy, research, and advocacy and was previously deputy CEO of the Australian Forest Products Association.

Mick has held senior research and policy roles within the Australian government and internationally, including with the Canadian Forest Service, CSIRO, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, ABARES, and the Bureau of Transport and Regional Economics. 

However, it has also been 12 months since the Australian Labor Party (ALP) made a commitment under the same election platform to remove the so-called ‘water rule’ under the Emissions Reduction Fund.

Under this rule, new plantations for timber production are not eligible to bid for carbon sequestration projects in areas that receive over 600 mm annual rainfall, unless the Minister is satisfied there are no adverse impacts for water allocations. Plantation forestry is the only vegetation management activity that requires such a rule in the Fund. For a number of timber growing areas including in Queensland, Northern Territory and parts of New South Wales, this rule remains firmly in place.

Industry has long argued that this acts as a perverse barrier to any new plantation investment as without carbon payments most plantation projects would fail to deliver an adequate rate of return. At the federal election there was strong bipartisan support from both major parties to remove the water rule as a barrier to new plantation investment, carbon sequestration and timber supply. The strong commitment to remove the water rule was lauded by industry and Timber Queensland at the time, where the area of timber plantations has actually declined due to the lack of a supportive investment environment for new plantations.

Labor berated the Morrison Government for taking three years to start to look at this issue.

On the anniversary of this significant election commitment made on 27 April 2022, it begs the question – what’s happened since?

Despite recent interest rate rises and a further softening of activity from 2024 onwards, we still have a high pipeline of demand with housing starts forecast to remain at around 38,000 new dwellings in 2023 and high levels of building alterations and renovations.

The other exciting development in Queensland is the announcement of the 2032 Brisbane Olympics. This has catalysed the Queensland government and the private sector to use the Games as an opportunity to position Brisbane as a global city with a 10-year runway of economic and public infrastructure development.

Timber Queensland has been advocating the use of locally-sourced timber and engineered wood products as part of the Olympics infrastructure to help deliver a Green Games.

We should expect big things for the industry in helping transform Brisbane and related venues into a global Olympics village. The timber industry can enhance the Games and its legacy by reducing its carbon footprint through the use of timber materials and plantation offsets, promoting leading edge timber design and innovation and delivering health and well-being benefits for both athletes and spectators alike from the biophilic use of timber as a natural material.

The Games can also showcase Queensland’s diverse plantation softwood and native forest hardwood and cypress sectors while supporting local jobs and manufacturing.

In July last year, the state government also established a new Timber Industry Ministerial Roundtable as a forum to provide feedback to government to further grow the industry. In 2023 this roundtable will progress key priorities to meet future demand and enhance supply chains.

Considerable work is also being done to lay the foundation for longer-term native hardwood industry development and investment. In addition to discussions as part of the Native Timber Advisory Panel, the industry has been briefing the state government on the multiple benefits from actively-managed state and private hardwood regrowth forests. These include carbon-positive outcomes and much-needed wood supply to meet the state’s building needs and essential services such as power poles, indigenous forestry opportunities and local manufacturing jobs.

As we approach the end date of 2024 for the previous South-East Queensland Forest Agreement, we expect some clear direction from Government based on the need for resource security to underpin investment and revitalise the native hardwood industry as part of the Timber Action Plan.

Finally, following the hard work undertaken by Timber Queensland and other allied bodies during the federal election, we continue to advocate for the removal of the discriminatory ‘water rule’ barrier in the Emissions Reduction Fund. This barrier has been stifling any new plantation investment in Queensland by blocking access to carbon markets under the ERF for any areas that receive more than 600 mm annual rainfall.

The Albanese government committed to removing this barrier as soon as possible after the election.

We expect this election commitment to be implemented soon in 2023, which will assist in removing a major barrier for plantation investment in the state.