Policies & Programs
New South Wales
Forests NSW is a public trading enterprise, or government business, within the NSW Department of Primary Industries. Forests NSW principal role is to sustainably manage 2.4 million hectares of native forests and planted forests of pine and native species for the benefit of current and future generations. Forests NSW performance is measured across four key result areas;
- Social – building partnerships and generating economic and social benefits within the community, especially for regional and rural communities. Developing and valuing staff.
- Environmental – ecologically sustainable management of native and planted forest to protect and enhance environmental functions and conservation values. Expanding the plantation estate to help meet future market needs.
- Economic – ensuring an adequate return from the marketing of wood products from the state’s native forests and plantations, while also developing innovative commercial products and services to facilitate private investment in new planted forests.
- Sustainability – managing State forests for the long-term. Retaining opportunities for future generations to meet their needs and expectations while providing for the present.
Photo: NSW Department of
Primary Industries
The Parks and Wildlife Division of the Department of Environment and Climate Change is the main government conservation agency in New South Wales. They are responsible for managing the 600 parks and reserves in NSW, which cover more than 7% of the state.
The NSW Department of Lands provides access to State parks and also manages some of the State’s Crown Land.
The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry identifies over 8.5 million hectares of privately owned native forest in NSW.
View maps, facts and case studies on forests in New South Wales.
Programs
New South Wales has three Regional Forest Agreements (RFAs), covering 15.1 million hectares of the State. They are located in Eden, North East (Upper and Lower) and Southern NSW Regions.
Photo: NSW Department of Primary
Industries
The Brigalow Belt South (& Nandewar) Regional Assessment permanently conserves 352, 000 hectares of forest stretching from Dubbo to the Queensland border including 328, 000 hectares in a Community Conservation Area (CCA). CCA is a land tenure divided into different zones that allow for different land uses and intensity of human management eg conservation, Aboriginal cultural heritage, mineral exploration and extraction and forestry.
Forests NSW recently reached a major milestone in obtaining independent and internationally recognised certification of its environmental management activities. Forests NSW Environmental Management System passed to the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) 14001:2004 standard. The Environmental Management System is about ensuring compliance with legal obligations, minimising the environmental impacts of activities, improving operational efficiency and fostering a culture of continual improvement.
Ecologically Sustainable Forest Management (ESFM) Plans form a key part of Forests NSW Environmental Management System. ESFM plans for the Upper North East, Lower North East, Eden, South Coast and Tumut have been approved for implementation. The plans cover over 1.5 million hectares of native forest.
The goal is to conserve and protect a range of forest values from biodiversity, soil and water, forest productivity and to the ability of forests to act as carbon sinks and for the many recreational and cultural values that they provide.
The plans outline broad strategies on how Forests NSW are going to provide for forest uses such as timber supply, grazing, honey production, access, regional infrastructure and recreation while maintaining the ecological processes and environmental values. The plans also specify how Forests NSW will maintain forest health by protecting the forest from bushfires, insects, diseases, weeds and pests.
A key component of the ESFM Plan is to measure performance. Using the
Montreal criteria and indicators, the sustainability of forest practices will be monitored, reviewed and reported over time.
For more information visit the NSW Department of Primary Industries website
Links to other forest related programs and organisations in New South Wales, including government, industry, research, education and community sites.
