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Ecologically Sustainable Development
Environment Australia, 2002
ISBN 0 642 54771 8
Rationale for inclusion of issue
The sustainable management of forest resources is important to economic well-being, and can contribute to the protection of biodiversity and ecological systems. The aesthetic, heritage and cultural values associated with forests also have immediate importance for individual and community well-being.
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Total area of all forest type at 1998 |
157 million hectares |
Source: State of the Forests Report, 1998
Rationale for selection of indicator
This indicator measures the current level of forest cover, demonstrating whether the overall area and types of forest are increasing or decreasing.
The effect of land clearing/deforestation is incorporated in this indicator because area will reflect losses along with the offsetting effects of regeneration/replanting.
Explanatory and elaborative information
Australia has 157 million hectares of forest representing 20 per cent of the continent, of which 155,835,000 hectares are native forest (SOFR 1998) and 1,377,000 hectares are plantation forest (National Forest Inventory 2000) on both public and private tenure, according to the most recent published figures.