Timber workers call for industry lifeline amid Great Koala National Park threat

Thousands of jobs will be lost and small towns abandoned if the Minns government goes ahead with its Great Koala National Park, timber workers say, as calls intensify to protect homegrown industries.

More than 9000 jobs will be lost and small towns abandoned if the Minns government goes ahead with imposing its Great Koala National Park on north coast communities, timber workers say.

The warning comes after the government earmarked 176,000ha of state forest for koala protection between Kempsey and Coffs Harbour last year, which would cut timber supply by up to 40 per cent.

With the plans to be decided in the coming weeks, timber workers travelled hundreds of kilometres to Sydney on Wednesday to make a final plea to the government to reduce the park size and save the local hardwood industry.

Macleay Valley Hardwoods employee John Gunst, 65, said the current proposal would kill nearby communities such as Kempsey, Kundabung and Nambucca Heads which have lived off the timber industry for generations.

“All the timber towns rely on the same thing, if you close the timber industry down you’re virtually closing the town down,” Mr Gunst said.

Tumut timber mill worker Sharon Musson and Kempsey compliance manager John Gunst travelled across the state to plead their case in Parliament House in Sydney. Picture: Rohan Kelly

“This scares local people because this is the only job they have and if you take away the timber from these regional towns you’re taking away the main source of jobs and income.”

“And that’s not including associated industries such as those who make mill machinery and saws, builders and carpenters, they are all going to be out of jobs because the timber is not going to be there.”

Industry leaders want the 176,000ha park reduced to as little as 36,000 to 58,000ha after recent data showed koala populations were stable and thriving.

The timber workers said lives and towns will be left behind if the park goes ahead. Picture: Rohan Kelly

They said any more land would be unnecessary with 140,000ha of national park already set aside for the species.

It comes after the CSIRO 2024 National Koala Monitoring Program found there were an estimated 748,000 koalas across the state – more than double the figure reported in the 2016 Adam-Hosking study which first sparked calls to create the park.

Tumut timber worker Sharon Musson, 72, said the decision would put the future of the $3bn timber industry at risk, alongside downstream sectors such as housing and infrastructure.

While Australian Workers’ Union NSW Secretary Tony Callinan warned supply cuts would lead to timber being sought from overseas markets with far less regulation.

The Great Koala National Park proposal map from 2018 referred to combining state forest with existing national parks.

“The worst possible scenario would be to get timber from parts of the world with no environmental standards, or to use more climate change intensive products for our power poles, wharves and flooring,” he said.

However, a NSW government spokesperson did not rule out the park would go ahead as planned.

“The Great Koala National Park is the NSW Government’s biggest environmental commitment, it will be delivered,” they said.

Originally published as Timber workers call for industry lifeline amid Great Koala National Park threat