ALMOST 100 years ago, the then attorney-general told the Tasmanian Parliament he was concerned by the amount of timber exported and not worked up in the state.
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As Hobart looks set to begin the retro practice of exporting woodchips, the state does the timewarp instead of finding new ways to make money off residue.
It is incredible how history repeats itself in Tasmania, especially with forestry.
In 1920, the first forestry act was passed in the Tasmanian Parliament.
It created a forestry department and aimed to regulate the industry, which had been described as chaotic.
The attorney-general, Mr McDonald, said in his second reading speech that the forests were not being looked after and immature timber was frequently spotted on railways.
He also used the speech to say serious consideration should be given to the amount of timber exported.
Half of the wood taken from the forests went out of the state, he said, and if it were worked up in Tasmania it would mean the state could benefit from the industry.
As we go full circle, have we learnt nothing?
Last week at the Parliament House garage sale, a poster of a Tasmanian newspaper headline was among items up for grabs.
At $15, it was snapped up by a collector.
"Pulp Mill A Step Closer" it read, circa 1995.
That poster could very well be next week's headline.
In the same week during Parliament, Resources Minister Paul Harriss said in his ministerial statement on a Southern residue export option if Labor and the Greens opposed Macquarie Wharf as an export facility there was one other solution.
A pulp mill.
Mr Harriss said if ever there was a project designed to reduce the need to ship raw product overseas, provide jobs and add value here in Tasmania, it was the pulp mill.
It's the issue that won't die.
Just when you think it's cactus, it comes back from the dead.
While a pulp mill is an option, every time it rears its ugly head it symbolises conflict and divide.
For many, it's a mirage. The closer you get to it, the further away it seems.
Australia imports $2 billion more of wood and wood fibre products than it exports.
More than half of that is white paper.
We know a pulp mill could have paid more for wood at its door than exporting chips.
Rather than shipping wood for thousands of kilometres overseas, it could be sent just 100 within Tasmania.
But what would take the state forward rather than backwards is putting real effort into exploring other options, such as dissolving pulp rayon viscose to create fabric and getting creative with engineered wood products.
Tasmania needs to get smart with residue, and is desperate for downstream processing.
As a new kid on the block, it's frustrating the issue still isn't solved.
While the expired practice of exporting woodchips is a necessary solution for the time being, and will always need to occur in some quantity, the state needs to add value here in our backyard.
If the government is committed to rebuilding the forest industry, it needs to drive change and innovation.
Let's wean ourselves off woodchips and get smart.