GUEST EDITORIAL: AUSTRALIAN FORESTRY— AT THE CROSSROADS?

In this opinion piece, I discuss a few current issues facing the forestry and wood industries sector in Australia. Not everybody will agree with these thoughts, the idea being to promote thinking, debate and discussion. Most outsiders associate Australia with sheep grazing in paddocks, and increasingly as a mineral supply powerhouse. Forestry and wood industries do, however, play an important role in regional economies and employment and have suffered setbacks in recent years due to a complex array of factors. Australia has a relatively short history of European colonisation resulting in significant removal, damage and major modification of its limited forest and woodlands.