Tasmanian RFA
The Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement was signed by the Prime Minister and the Premier in November 1997 with a supplementary agreement signed on 13 May 2005. It is the only Regional Forest Agreement covering the whole of a State in the series of ten Agreements entered into by the Commonwealth and State Governments.
The Regional Forest Agreement (RFA) process was the most exhaustive and rigorous assessment of land use ever carried out. It created a balance between protection of ecosystems with high conservation value and security for jobs and investment in our forest industries.
Conservation assessments were made by independent scientists and the world's best reserve system was created and as at May 2005 47% (1,465,000 hectares) of Tasmania's native forest is protected in secure reserves.
The RFA is a long-term (20 years) agreement to ensure the sustainable management of Tasmania's forests. It contains a provision for a review of progress of implementation every five years.
The RFA provides for more jobs and better conservation. Its key elements are legally binding - protection for a world-class reservation system, and a commitment to a sustainable harvest of a minimum 300,000 cubic metres of sawlogs each year. Timber resource that was previously available to industry and is now in reserves will be replaced by establishing new plantations and by more intensive management of existing native forest to promote the growth of more sawlogs.
In 1997 the Commonwealth provided $110M to support implementation of the RFA with Tasmania contributing from ongoing programs. $70M of these funds has been directed to a plantation program, intensive forest management, and industry development. $10M will provide for infrastructure projects including roadworks and tourism developments such as Forest visitor centres.
While the RFA provides security for conservation it also provides security for sustainable production forestry. After rigorous scrutiny, the parties endorsed Tasmania's system of sustainable forest management. The RFA commits the State to continuous improvement in forest management.
The RFA is a balanced package designed to deliver scientifically based conservation outcomes and security for employment and investment. Variations to the Tasmanian RFA were signed on 19 July 2001 and 23 February 2007 and a supplementary Tasmanian RFA was signed by the Tasmanian and Commonwealth Governments on 13 May 2005 as part of the Tasmanian Community Forest Agreement.
For more information or to download a copy of the Tasmanian RFA please visit the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and for other policy documents the Department of Premier and Cabinet website.