The Timber, Furnishing and Textiles Union (TFTU) has welcomed the proposed Rushy Lagoon plantation project, saying it would strengthen Tasmania’s timber manufacturing sector by improving long-term resource security, supporting local processing jobs and creating employment opportunities across the forestry supply chain.
In a statement, TFTU Tasmanian Secretary Danny Murphy said the investment would help underpin jobs in planting, forest management, harvesting, haulage, sawmilling and manufacturing by securing future timber supplies.
“Resource security is job security,” Murphy said.
“Tasmania has skilled forestry and timber workers, sawmills and manufacturing capacity—and we want more of all three.”
“To achieve that, the industry needs productive trees in the ground, and this project delivers that.”
Murphy said the project would contribute to securing the timber required to support future housing construction, arguing that long-term investment was needed across plantations, processing and manufacturing.
“The timber needed to build Tasmania’s future homes must be planted today,” he said.
“Australia cannot solve the housing crisis without securing the renewable timber needed to build more homes. That requires long-term investment in plantations, processing and manufacturing—and good and decent jobs throughout the supply chain.”
According to the union, the proposal aligns with Australia’s Timber Fibre Strategy, the national long-term strategic plan for the forest and wood-products industry, which supports the use of Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) to encourage investment in productive plantations.
Murphy said the union supports nature-based climate solutions, including tree planting projects that deliver benefits for workers, communities and the environment.
“The union supports Nature-based Solutions to climate change, including tree planting, that deliver genuine benefits for workers, communities and the environment. This project has enormous potential on all three fronts,” he said.
He also welcomed the continuation of farming activities at Rushy Lagoon, saying the proposal demonstrated that agriculture and commercial forestry could operate alongside one another.
“It is also welcome that farming will continue at Rushy Lagoon. This project demonstrates that agriculture and productive forestry can coexist, with different parts of a large property used for what they are best suited to—maintaining productive farming while growing the timber needed to support Tasmanian jobs and future housing supply,” Murphy said.
Murphy added that the union’s support for ACCU generation reflected the need for credible carbon offsets to complement emissions reduction efforts by Australia’s heavy industries.
He said the project could also benefit workers in aluminium, pulp and paper, iron ore pellet and cement manufacturing, as well as mining, by contributing to emissions targets while supporting industrial viability through carbon credits.
“Investment in productive plantations can help Australia meet its emissions targets, provide carbon credits that support the viability of heavy industry, secure future timber supply and create jobs,” Murphy said.
“It’s simple: if you genuinely support Tassie timber and other blue-collar jobs, you support this project.”
The TFTU, formerly the CFMEU Manufacturing Division, represents workers across forestry, timber harvesting and haulage, sawmilling, wood processing, pulp and paper, furniture, cabinetry, joinery, glass and glazing, floorcoverings, textiles, clothing, footwear, commercial laundries and related manufacturing industries.
