VicForests is a Government Backed Enterprise (GBE) operating in the Australian state of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. It was created - as a state body under Section 14 of the ''State Owned Enterprises Act 1992'' - by the Victorian Government, being declared a state business corporation on 18 October 2003. Its principal function is to manage, undertake logging and commercial sale of timber in Victoria.

Sustainability concerns

VicForests has attracted criticism from environmentalists for the destruction of

old-growth forests An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

in Victoria for paper and wood products. During 2010 VicForests was accused of illegally logging large numbers of trees aged between 200 and 300 years old. ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory ...

'' obtained a report by forestry consultants commissioned by the Treasury under

freedom of information Freedom of information is freedom of a person or people to publish and consume information. Access to information is the ability for an individual to seek, receive and impart information effectively. This sometimes includes "scientific, Indigeno ...

laws in 2011. The report was highly critical of VicForests and found the organisation was logging too much and at an unsustainable rate. It also found VicForests had a large and growing backlog of planting work. In 2013,

David Lindenmayer David Lindenmayer, , is an Australian scientist and academic. His research focuses on the adoption of nature conservation practices in agricultural production areas, developing ways to improve integration of native forest harvesting and biodiver ...

, Professor at The Fenner School of Environment and Society at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies an ...

wrote that "By any scientific yardstick, forestry operations in Victoria cannot be regarded as ecologically sustainable". He criticised ongoing losses of old-growth forests which is habitat for the critically endangered

Leadbeater's possum Leadbeater's possum (''Gymnobelideus leadbeateri'') is a critically endangered possum largely restricted to small pockets of alpine ash, mountain ash, and snow gum forests in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia, north-east of Melbou ...

. A 2020 Federal Court decision found that VicForests had failed to comply with a state and federal regional forest agreement, and thereby was not exempt from federal environmental laws. In 2021 the Full Court overturned this, saying that compliance with the regional forest agreement was not necessary for the exemption. The High Court refusing leave to appeal put an end to litigation on the matter. In June 2017, a dead koala was discovered amongst trees felled by VicForests in the Acheron Valley, habitat for several critically endangered animals. The Victorian Government had ignored advice from their scientific advisers who had recommended protecting the area.{{Cite web, url=https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/dead-koala-found-in-logging-coupe-reignites-push-for-new-protected-national-park-20170624-gwxvim.html, title=Dead koala found in logging coupe reignites push for new protected national park, last=Tomazin, first=Farrah, date=2017-06-25, website=The Age, language=en, access-date=2019-04-05

References

External links

Website

Gazette
2003 establishments in Australia Companies established in 2003 Environment of Victoria (Australia) Forest products companies of Australia Government agencies of Victoria (Australia) Government agencies established in 2003