Federal Corangamite MP, Libby Coker, has called for an inquiry and national taskforce to be set up to develop a national supply chain and sovereign capability to address Australias timber supply crisis.
The national timber crisis is now hitting the Greater Geelong Region in new ways, with a medium sized building company (Privium Homes) going bust, leaving several local families stranded (around 250 homeowners on the eastern seaboard), losing tens of thousands of dollars in home deposits, and having their dreams of a new home crushed.
Federal MP, Libby Coker, said in addition to significant individual and family financial losses, the national timber crisis ripple effect was now causing job losses and slowdowns for builders and tradespeople, and driving up the cost of new homes.
A spokesperson for the Association of Professional builders in Queensland recently said more than half of the states builders may be insolvent, operating on ponzi principles as a result of skyrocketing costs.
Timber shortages are one component of the developing home building crisis, that includes labour shortages and other rising costs.
According to industry experts we are seeing the unfolding of a timber train wreck, which will only get worse over the next 12-24 months, and see a lot of home buyers and tradespeople left stranded and losing thousands, Libby Coker said.
Libby Coker condemned the Morrison Government for its inaction on the timber shortage, which has seen timber price increases from 85-125% and major local employers such as Timbertruss Australias largest roof truss and wall frame manufacturer - operating at only 60% of capacity.
For their whole ten years in office Morrison has done nothing. They promised to plant one billion trees and we didnt see even one seed go in the ground," Libby Coker said.
We need concrete short, medium and long term national plans put in place. It dumbfounds me Australia, with our enormous land area, is not self sufficient with well planned, environmentally sustainable plantations.
This is doubly so, when it would create thousands of good jobs, and timber is a great way to absorb and lockup carbon and help address climate change.
We still import around 35% of our timber, and a lot of that is the laminated structural timber. Our manufacturing base is now so low under Morrison we cant even manufacture enough laminated timbers. Timbertruss currently imports approximately forty five semitrailers of timber every month from Europe, a significant component of this is laminated structural timber.
If re-elected, I will make it my personal mission to develop a national environmentally sustainable plantation and timber manufacturing strategy, which addresses supply chain issues and includes incentives for farmers and other landowners to invest in small lot timber.
I understand with climate change and fires there are issues around insurance and challenges around doing plantations in a way that, for example, do not become fox havens, but none of these things are insurmountable.
We just need the right initiatives, the will and determination to get it done.
