Southern Tasmania Field Day

SFM recently held a field day at Buckland to highlight current markets available to landowners with hardwood plantations in southern Tasmania. The day was well attended with attendees getting to see modern harvesting equipment in actions and to speak to the operators, TP Bennett & Sons, about segregation, log measurements and technology.

Participants were shown that logs down to 6cm small end diameter could be taken into the current Springwood market, SFM’s export partner, meaning that utilisation of the log was exceptionally high and waste is minimised.

As part of the field day SFM setup some alternate, non clearing options such as seed tree retention and thinning, interest from landowners on the Stand Improvement section was high with many expressing an interest in growing bigger logs.

The field day then moved to Brighton where attendees got to view the log stockpiles and understand how the logs are aggregated, measured and readied for shipment via bulk ships out of the port of Hobart.

Despite a wet and windy morning participants were pleased and surprised to find out that all hardwood plantation logs could be sold in the south rather than having to haul part or all of the volume to northern ports.

SFM currently bulk exports plantation logs in conjunction with Springwood Resources from Hobart Port. Springwood currently export in excess of 100,000 tonnes per annum from Hobart.