Private forests are native forest and plantations under private management control on private land and crown land.

There are industrial and non-industrial private forest growers:

• Industrial owners are companies that own native forests and/or plantations and arrange for the processing of their own timber.
• Non-industrial owners are farmers, individuals, and family and investment companies who own native forests and plantations and usually sell their wood for processing by other parties.

The extent of private forests in Tasmania:

Tasmania’s forests cover about 50% of the total area of the State, with private forests making up about 33% of the forest area – the highest proportion of any state in Australia. In total Tasmania’s private forests cover more than 1.09 million hectares, approximately 16% of the state’s landmass.

About 842,000 hectares of forest on private land is native forest.

There are more than 245,000 hectares of privately owned or managed plantations in Tasmania. Tasmania has 16% of Australia’s plantation forest cover yet only 1% of its landmass.

A significant portion of Tasmania’s private forests are protected, either through voluntary conservation covenants or because they are in riparian areas or contain rare, threatened or vulnerable species and communities.

In addition, Tasmania has a Permanent Native Forest Estate Policy, which prohibits broad scale clearing and conversion of native forest, other than in limited prescribed circumstances.

The importance of private forests:

Forests on private land provide a range of benefits, from supplying wood products (sawlogs, veneer logs, wood fibre and fuel wood), assisting farm productivity (reduced wind, animal shelter, protection of soil and water), providing habitat for native species, and improving aesthetics.

Private forestry is a significant contributor to Tasmania’s economy and a large employer.

• Private forests contributed 70% of Tasmania’s forest production by wood volume as of December 2023.
• Plantations accounted for 96% of the total Tasmanian private forest harvest as of December 2023.

As private forests grow they remove carbon from the atmosphere and when harvested they provide a renewable resource associated with low carbon emissions. For example, emissions are reduced in construction when wood is used in place of metals, concrete or plastics.

For more details please see Private Forests Tasmania Annual Reports.