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Forest Products

Commercial forest products

VicForests is the Victorian government business with responsibility for the sustainable harvest and commercial sale of Victoria's timber in eastern Victoria. DSE remains responsible for the management and licensing of timber harvesting in State forests in western Victoria. DSE also manages the sale of domestic firewood and some other minor forest products throughout the State.

The Sustainable Forests (Timber Harvesting) Act 2004 requires anyone engaged in commercial timber harvesting in Victoria’s State forests to hold a Timber Harvesting Operator’s Licence (THOL). ‘Timber harvesting’ is the harvesting of any tree, or part of any tree for the purpose of sale or processing and sale. This excludes harvesting firewood for personal (domestic) use, which is regulated under the forests (licences and permits) regulations.

Persons interested in commercial timber harvesting in State forests in western Victoria must obtain a Forest Produce Licence. To apply for a Forest Produce Licence, complete the application form below and submit it to your nearest DSE office for assessment.

Application for a Forest Produce Licence for commercial harvesting of forest produce in State forest in Victoria [PDF File - 101.1 KB]

In eastern Victoria, persons interested in commercial timber harvesting should contact VicForests.

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 Logs

Domestic firewood collection

Changes to the collection of firewood on public land have now been finalised.

The changes will make firewood collection from public land more affordable and straightforward for the community, and will safeguard the environmental sustainability of our forests and parks.

For further information visit Firewood collection on public land.

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Apiculture/Beekeeping

Commercial beekeeping (also known as apiculture) on public land is a licensed activity, controlled by the Department of Sustainability and Environment under a range of Acts including the Land Act 1958, the National Parks Act 1975 and the Forests Act 1958. For further information visit beekeeping on public land.

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Other forest products

Visit your local DSE office to find out more about the other forest products that you may be able to obtain from State forests. Forest products may only be removed from State forests under the authority of a Forest Produce Licence issued by DSE.

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Related links

DSE office location details - regional and local office contact details.
Our Forests, Our Future - Victorian government statement on forest policy.
Allocation Order under the Sustainable Forest (Timber) Act 2004 - detail on the system of timber allocation introduced in 2004.
Wood Utilisation Plans - details of planned commercial harvesting operations in a Forest Management Area.
Monitoring Annual Harvesting Performance - DSE's independently reviewed monitoring process of the areas harvested.
VicForests - information about commercial timber harvesting and sale on State forests in eastern Victoria.
Victorian Legislation and Parliamentary Documents - copies of all Victorian legislation are available from this site.

Please note: Document(s) on this page are presented in PDF format. If you do not have the Adobe Reader, you can download a copy free from the Adobe web site.

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