Beyond the classic image of the lone lumberjack lies a modern industry of surprising scale, where Australia's forests and plantations feed a $24 billion economic engine that exports timber to the world while directly employing 68,000 Australians.
Key Takeaways
- In 2021-22, Australia's total sawn timber production reached 3.2 million cubic meters, with native hardwood accounting for 1.1 million cubic meters and softwood plantations contributing 2.1 million cubic meters
- Victoria produced 1.05 million cubic meters of sawn timber in 2021-22, representing 33% of national production primarily from radiata pine plantations
- New South Wales sawlog harvest from native forests was 1.2 million cubic meters in 2020-21, down 5% from previous year due to regulatory changes
- The Australian timber industry employed 68,000 full-time equivalent workers in 2021-22, with 40% in sawmilling and 25% in pulp and paper
- Victoria's forestry sector supported 16,500 direct jobs in 2022, primarily in Gippsland plantations
- New South Wales had 12,000 forestry workers in 2021, with 30% in native forest operations
- Australia exported 7.8 million cubic meters of wood products worth AUD 8.9 billion in 2021-22
- China received 55% of Australia's sawn timber exports valued at AUD 2.1 billion in 2022
- Japan imported AUD 1.4 billion in hardwood chips from Australia in 2021-22
- Total forestry estate certified under PEFC was 10.5 million hectares in 2022
- Native forest regrowth after harvesting covered 85% of coupe areas within 5 years in 2021-22
- Plantation carbon sequestration averaged 12 tonnes CO2e per hectare per year in 2022
- Timber industry contributed AUD 24 billion to GDP in 2021-22, 1.2% of national GDP
- Export value of forestry products grew 10% to AUD 9.2 billion in 2022
- Sawmilling industry revenue reached AUD 7.5 billion in 2021-22
Australia's timber industry is productive and diversified, balancing native forests with significant plantation output.
Economic and Financial Statistics
- Timber industry contributed AUD 24 billion to GDP in 2021-22, 1.2% of national GDP
- Export value of forestry products grew 10% to AUD 9.2 billion in 2022
- Sawmilling industry revenue reached AUD 7.5 billion in 2021-22
- Pulp, paper and paperboard production value was AUD 12.4 billion in 2022
- Plantation estate valued at AUD 15.6 billion in 2022
- Regional economic impact of forestry was AUD 70 billion including multipliers in 2021-22
- Average sawlog stumpage price was AUD 85 per cubic meter for pine in 2022
- Native hardwood sawlog prices averaged AUD 220 per cubic meter in Tasmania 2022
- Wood chip export price fob averaged AUD 210 per ADt in 2021-22
- Sawn timber wholesale price index rose 18% to 145 in 2022 (base 2010=100)
- Investment in new sawmills totaled AUD 450 million in 2021-22
- R&D expenditure by industry was AUD 180 million or 0.8% of revenue in 2022
- Profit margins in panel products averaged 12% in 2021-22
- Government royalties from timber harvest were AUD 250 million in 2022
- Insurance costs for forestry operations rose to AUD 120 million annually in 2022
- Carbon credit revenue from plantations reached AUD 50 million in 2021-22
- Freight and logistics costs represented 15% of export value at AUD 1.4 billion in 2022
- SME contribution to industry revenue was 65% from 4,500 businesses in 2021-22
- Tax revenue from sector totaled AUD 5.2 billion including GST in 2022
- Average return on assets for major processors was 8.5% in 2021-22
Economic and Financial Statistics Interpretation
Australia's timber industry stands as a substantial and sophisticated economic engine, not just chopping logs but strategically milling them into a multi-billion dollar framework of GDP contribution, export growth, and regional investment, all while carefully balancing its books from stumpage prices to carbon credits.
Employment Statistics
- The Australian timber industry employed 68,000 full-time equivalent workers in 2021-22, with 40% in sawmilling and 25% in pulp and paper
- Victoria's forestry sector supported 16,500 direct jobs in 2022, primarily in Gippsland plantations
- New South Wales had 12,000 forestry workers in 2021, with 30% in native forest operations
- Queensland timber industry employed 8,200 people in 2022, 50% in SEQ pine plantations
- Tasmania's forestry workforce numbered 5,600 in 2021-22, down 10% from 2019 due to mill closures
- Western Australia forestry jobs totaled 3,200 in 2022, focused on karri and jarrah harvesting
- South Australia employed 2,800 in softwood processing in 2022
- National sawmilling employment was 25,000 FTE in 2021-22
- Women comprised 18% of the forestry workforce in Australia in 2022, up from 12% in 2015
- Indigenous employment in forestry reached 4,500 positions or 6.6% of total in 2021-22
- Average weekly wage in timber processing was AUD 1,450 in 2022, 15% above national average
- Training apprenticeships in forestry numbered 2,100 in 2022, with 70% in plantations
- Pulp and paper mills employed 15,000 workers nationally in 2021-22
- Contractor workforce in harvesting operations was 18,000 in 2022, mostly self-employed
- Regional unemployment impact from forestry was mitigated by 30,000 indirect jobs in 2022
- Hyne Timber employed 800 staff across 5 mills in 2022
- Timber Tasmania operations supported 1,200 jobs in 2021-22
- OneFortyOne Plantations employed 450 in harvesting and logistics in 2022
- Visy Pulp and Paper mill in Tumut had 500 employees in 2022
- Labour turnover rate in sawmills was 12% in 2022
- ForestryOne contractor network managed 5,000 workers in 2022
- Youth employment under 25 in industry was 15% or 10,200 in 2021-22
- Safety incident rate dropped to 8.2 per million hours in 2022 from 10.5 in 2020
- Panel products manufacturing employed 6,500 in 2022
- Export logistics roles in timber trade numbered 4,000 in 2022
- R&D positions in forestry biotech were 1,200 across universities and CRCs in 2022
- Total forestry employment multiplier effect created 170,000 jobs including indirect in 2021-22
Employment Statistics Interpretation
While the Australian timber industry provides sturdy support for 68,000 workers who earn well above average and more women and Indigenous workers are carving out their place, its roots are visibly shifting from native forests toward plantations, leaving some regional communities precariously balanced as mills close and the future depends on carefully managing this growing and changing resource.
Environmental and Sustainability Statistics
- Total forestry estate certified under PEFC was 10.5 million hectares in 2022
- Native forest regrowth after harvesting covered 85% of coupe areas within 5 years in 2021-22
- Plantation carbon sequestration averaged 12 tonnes CO2e per hectare per year in 2022
- FSC certification held on 6.2 million hectares of public native forests in 2022
- Biodiversity offsets protected 150,000 hectares adjacent to harvest areas in 2021-22
- Soil erosion rates post-harvest were below 2 tonnes per hectare annually in monitored sites 2022
- 92% of plantation estate managed under Australian Forestry Standard in 2022
- Water use in softwood plantations averaged 800mm per hectare annually, sustainable yield
- Old growth forest protection expanded to 1.8 million hectares since 1992
- Fire management burnt 450,000 hectares of forest estate prophylactically in 2021-22
- Eucalypt plantation survival rate post-planting was 95% in 2022
- Greenhouse gas emissions from forestry operations were 2.5 Mt CO2e in 2021-22
- Riparian buffers of 30m width protected 95% of streams in harvest zones 2022
- Wildlife corridor networks spanned 2.5 million hectares in production forests 2022
- Pesticide use reduced 40% since 2010 to 1.2 kg active ingredient per ha in 2022
- Recycled wood fibre in panels reached 25% of input materials in 2021-22
- Forest cover increased by 0.5% to 134 million hectares total in 2022
- Invasive species control treated 50,000 ha in plantations 2022
- Third-party audits conducted 450 site visits for certification compliance in 2022
- Biomass energy from residues generated 1.2 TWh electricity in 2021-22
- Threatened species monitoring covered 1,200 sites annually in 2022
Environmental and Sustainability Statistics Interpretation
While the timber industry certainly cuts down trees, the data shows it's increasingly busy trying to be the world's most meticulous arborist, stitching forests back together with certified thread, carbon-absorbing patches, and wildlife-friendly corridors.
Production Statistics
- In 2021-22, Australia's total sawn timber production reached 3.2 million cubic meters, with native hardwood accounting for 1.1 million cubic meters and softwood plantations contributing 2.1 million cubic meters
- Victoria produced 1.05 million cubic meters of sawn timber in 2021-22, representing 33% of national production primarily from radiata pine plantations
- New South Wales sawlog harvest from native forests was 1.2 million cubic meters in 2020-21, down 5% from previous year due to regulatory changes
- Queensland's plantation-grown pine sawlog production hit 0.85 million cubic meters in 2022, with Gympie region contributing 40%
- Tasmania's native forest wood production totaled 2.4 million cubic meters in 2021-22, including 1.8 million for sawlogs and pulpwood
- Western Australia's hardwood sawlog production from karri forests was 280,000 cubic meters in 2021-22
- South Australia's softwood plantation harvest yielded 450,000 cubic meters of sawlogs in 2022, mainly radiata pine
- National roundwood production for 2021-22 was 28.5 million cubic meters, with 45% from plantations and 55% from native forests
- Radiata pine plantation area under production harvest in Australia spanned 650,000 hectares in 2022, yielding 15 million cubic meters annually
- Native eucalypt sawlog production declined to 2.9 million cubic meters in 2021-22 from 3.1 million in 2020-21
- Blackwood plantation production in Tasmania reached 50,000 cubic meters of specialty timber in 2022
- Pine chip production from plantations was 4.2 million green metric tonnes in 2021-22
- Hardwood pulpwood harvest from native forests totaled 5.1 million cubic meters in 2021-22
- Total veneer and plywood production was 250,000 cubic meters in 2022, with 70% from softwood
- Engineered wood products output reached 1.5 million cubic meters equivalent in 2021-22
- National sawmilling capacity operated at 75% utilization in 2022, processing 4.5 million cubic meters
- Ta Ann Tasmania's sawmill produced 120,000 cubic meters of eucalypt timber in 2022
- Hyne Timber's pine sawmill in Tumut processed 400,000 cubic meters in 2021-22
- Gunns Ltd historical peak production was 1.2 million cubic meters pre-2012, now shifted to plantations at 800,000
- Blue gum plantation harvest for pulp reached 3.8 million tonnes in 2022 from 300,000 ha
- National particleboard production was 850,000 cubic meters in 2021-22
- MDF production totaled 1.1 million cubic meters, with Mid West Fibre supplying 60%
- Laminated veneer lumber output from plantations was 150,000 cubic meters in 2022
- Cross-laminated timber production commenced at 20,000 cubic meters capacity in Melbourne 2022
- Total wood panel production value was AUD 2.5 billion in 2021-22
- Sawntimber recovery rate from radiata pine logs averaged 45% in 2022
- Native forest thinning operations yielded 500,000 cubic meters of poles and posts in 2021-22
- Plantation establishment rate was 15,000 hectares per year average 2018-2022
- Fuelwood production from forestry residues was 1.2 million cubic meters equivalent in 2022
- Total forestry product harvest intensity in native forests averaged 25 cubic meters per hectare in 2021-22
Production Statistics Interpretation
Australia's timber industry shows a cautious but determined pivot, with plantations now shouldering nearly half the national production while native hardwood harvests gently recede, suggesting we are learning to build our future without entirely cutting down our past.
Trade Statistics
- Australia exported 7.8 million cubic meters of wood products worth AUD 8.9 billion in 2021-22
- China received 55% of Australia's sawn timber exports valued at AUD 2.1 billion in 2022
- Japan imported AUD 1.4 billion in hardwood chips from Australia in 2021-22
- Vietnam was the top destination for softwood exports at 1.2 million cubic meters in 2022
- India's plywood imports from Australia grew 15% to AUD 450 million in 2021-22
- South Korea purchased 850,000 tonnes of eucalypt pulpwood chips worth AUD 380 million in 2022
- US market for Australian hardwood flooring exports was AUD 120 million in 2021-22
- Malaysia imported 500,000 cubic meters of pine logs from Australia in 2022
- Total wood chip exports reached 4.9 million air-dry tonnes in 2021-22, down 2% YoY
- Sawn softwood export volume was 2.1 million cubic meters valued at AUD 1.8 billion in 2022
- Recovered paper exports to Asia totaled 1.5 million tonnes worth AUD 250 million in 2021-22
- EU imported AUD 300 million in certified sustainable timber from Australia in 2022
- Pine plywood exports to Middle East grew to 150,000 cubic meters in 2021-22
- Taiwan hardwood chip imports from Tas/NSW were 1.1 million tonnes in 2022
- Total imports of sawn timber into Australia were 1.4 million cubic meters in 2021-22, mainly radiata pine from NZ
- Radiata pine imports from New Zealand reached 1.1 million cubic meters valued at AUD 650 million in 2022
- Hardwood imports for furniture totaled 300,000 cubic meters from SE Asia in 2021-22
- Plywood imports grew 8% to 450,000 cubic meters in 2022
- Trade balance for wood products was AUD 6.2 billion surplus in 2021-22
- FSC-certified timber exports comprised 45% of total volume in 2022
- Log export restrictions reduced native log shipments by 20% to 200,000 cubic meters in 2021-22
- Containerised timber exports via ports totaled 2.5 million TEU equivalent in 2022
- Burnie port handled 1.8 million tonnes of wood chips for export in 2021-22
- Geelong woodchip terminal exported 2.1 million ADt to Japan in 2022
- Freight costs for timber exports rose 25% to AUD 150 per cubic meter in 2022
- Digital trade platforms facilitated 15% of timber export deals in 2022
- Tariff reductions under CPTPP boosted exports to Japan by 12% in 2021-22
- Australia met 65% of China's sawnwood import needs from plantations in 2022
Trade Statistics Interpretation
While our forests have become a geopolitical cash crop, sending everything from chips to certified planks to prop up half the world's construction boom, we're quietly bringing in a different kind of pine to keep our own fences standing.
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