PLANTATION-GROWN PINE MARKETS LIFT: Focus shifts from harvesting native forests

摘要

THREE years ago, south-east Tasmanian farmers Robert and Leanne Downie had no takers for their plantation-grown pine saw-logs Indeed, back then, their outlook for the timber industry in the State's south was bleak. Fortunately, strong markets for veneer and saw logs have sprouted in the past three years, prompting a much-needed about-face within the Tasmanian timber industry. However, the lack of markets for pine products was not a prospect Robert and his father Bruce had anticipated 22 years ago, when they established their first 40-hectare radiata plantation on their Copping property, Hazelwood, 45 kilometres north-east of Hobart.