Hekiko (Gulf Province)
View PublicationThe sustained timber yield principle has been complied with. The project is not in compliance with the Act in that it is not listed in the National Forest Plan for development. Sensible operational procedures have not been complied with in that there has not been any field volumetric inventory. A very significant proportion (38%) of the forest is classified by the Office of Environment and Conservation as “fragile”. The estimated sustainable annual cut is not sufficient to support a conventional stand-alone log export project (or a financially efficient logging operation if “fragile” forests are excluded from logging). The right of the PNGFA to implement conservation set asides as
provided for in the Forest Management Agreement (and the consequences thereof) has not been bought forward into the Project Agreement.