International forestry students tour forests of the South Coast

Thirteen forestry students from the Agricultural University of Norway, near Oslo, were earlier this week treated to a guided tour of State Forests operations and forestry management on the South Coast.

“The students seemed particularly interested in the complexities of our native forest management,” State Forests planning manager, Mr Ian Barnes, said. “There are only two tree species of significant commercial value in Norway, the Norway spruce and the Scots pine, so they were curious to learn how State Forests manages stands of multiple timber species.”

Mr Barnes said the students and their professor were shown a variety of different forest types demonstrating a range of forest operations, including hazard reduction burning, thinning and harvesting procedures.

“Emphasis was placed on silviculture, fire and environmental management as essential aspects of State Forests’ operations,” Mr Barnes said. “In Norway, clear-felling in native forests is standard practice, and the students were interested to hear about our strict environmental policies and procedures.”

Mr Barnes said it was important to assess domestic forestry operations in an international context. “The standard of Australia’s forestry practice is considered world class, a position which is reaffirmed by the positive response of our international visitors.”

Media contact: Ian Barnes on (02) 4472 6211.