Western Australia Releases Forest Management Plan 2024–33

The State of Western Australia on Friday (12-15-23) released the Cook Government’s Forest Management Plan 2024–33. The plan includes the end of commercial logging in native forests as a part of the latest framework for managing more than 2.5 million hectares (6.18 million acres) of native forest throughout Western Australia’s southwest.

The Forest Management Plan will go into effect on January 1st and includes the following:

• An end to commercial-scale timber harvesting in native forests
• Commitment to add more than 400,000 hectares of karri, jarrah, and wandoo forests as nature reserves, national parks, and conservation parks
• Support for Traditional Owner involvement in forest management, consistent with the intent of the South West Native Title Settlement
• Promotion of healthy forests that are more resilient to climate change

According to the press release, the plan was developed through extensive consultation, assessment, and analysis by the Conservation and Parks Commission, which received more than 3,500 submissions when it released the draft plan for public comment.

The full plan is available here.