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The Australian forest and forest products industry is a major part of the Australian economy. Primary forest production was valued at A$1.7 billion in 2005-06 (DAFF A), with the forest products having an industry value turnover of A$18 billion in 2003-04 (DAFF B). In 2005-06, 11,300 people were employed in forestry and logging and a further 71,600 employed in the wood manufacturing industry (ABARE).
Australia has 164 million hectares of forests. This comprises approximately 162.7 million hectares of native hardwood and approximately 1.7 million hectares of plantation timbers (DAFF A). Plantation timbers are made up of 57 per cent softwood species and 43 per cent hardwood species (DAFF A). A focus on industry growth and long term sustainability has resulted in plantations providing about 57 per cent of forestry requirements.
Australia’s forest sector has attracted more than A$6.5 billion in foreign and domestic investment since the early 1990s (DAFF). This has included investments in plantations, various mills and engineered timber manufacturing plants.
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