Submission to the NSW Independent Forestry Panel

This submission offers policymakers a practical blueprint for a just transition for workers and communities affected by industry change. It recommends establishing regional adaptation authorities, ending public subsidies for native logging, and embedding the value of natural capital in public investment decisions. With a major review of the industry scheduled for 2024, the report urges the NSW Government to take this opportunity to plan a sustainable, forward-looking future for the state’s native forests.

Based on the findings of Blueprint Institute's report, 'Branching out: Exploring alternate land use options for the native forests of NSW,' we estimate that ending native forest logging in NSW in 2023–24, rather than continuing until 2039–40, would deliver a net benefit of at least $294 million in present-day terms. This figure includes projected revenue from carbon sequestration and tourism, as well as the costs of industry transition and contract termination.

The analysis finds that continued native forest logging on the North Coast is economically unviable, sustained only by subsidies from the profitable softwood division of the Forestry Corporation of NSW and periodic taxpayer support. In contrast, managing these forests for conservation could abate an average of 450,000 tonnes of carbon annually, support new tourism markets, and create long-term economic value for the region.