Victorian regional communities are being dealt the brunt of brutal job and skills losses since experiencing timber supply issues.
The timber supply issue relates to a Victorian Supreme Court order in November 2022 which the Timber Towns Victoria group says has locked up the state’s native forests, causing mills to close down.
In 2019, the State Government announced the native timber industry would be phased out by 2030.
However, Timber Towns Victoria president, Karen Stephens, said since then activists “have been relentless in attempting to speed up the process by taking out court injunctions stopping timber harvesting operations, leading to short supply”.
“The loss of jobs in these rural Victorian communities are huge and they are very real,” Ms Stephens said.
IMAGE: Timber supply issues have seen regional communities in Victoria bear the brunt of job and skills losses, with mills continuing to close down.
