PLANTATION REVISION DATE DESCRIPTION PREPARED BY REVIEWED BY APPROVED BY. A. Archer W. Hammond

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1 PLANTATION Document No: MANUAL 011 REVISION DATE DESCRIPTION PREPARED BY REVIEWED BY APPROVED BY 00 Jul 2009 Initial issue 01 Jan Mar 2012 A. Archer W. Hammond R. Breidahl R. Breidahl Reviewed regarding incorporation of FSC CoC A. Archer W. Hammond R. Breidahl Changes to green triangle link, reestablishing plantation A. Archer R. Breidahl R. Breidahl the future Hard copies of this document are not controlled. You are required to ensure the document is up to date by checking the controlled read-only version on the WAPRES Intranet.

2 Document Title: Plantation Page: 2 of Plantation At the Farm Gate "With the closing down of much of the native forestry industry, we have become dependent on plantations to provide virtually all of our resource. We now manage a total of 30,000 hectares of plantations in WA, mostly on land leased to us by farmers". Richard Breidahl, General Manager, Treefarms Operations Why Do Farmers Lease Their Land to Us? Besides the obvious economic benefit of receiving a regular, secure income from the leasing of their land farmers can gain additional benefits through the integration of the plantation onto the farm. Trees can be integrated onto farms to manage the water balance of a property, especially where the groundwater table needs to be lowered. They can also be placed across the path of prevailing winds to protect crops and soil. Plantations can also improve the stability of farming families and rural communities. Farmers are given the piece of mind that they have a regular income coming in and their time is not consumed by tending to the plantation - WAPRES takes care of almost everything from establishment to management to harvesting. This gives landowners the opportunity to diversify their interests both on and off the farm. Over the years, WAPRES have established an excellent rapport with a total of more than 400 individual landholders, as we have recognised them as being critically important to the success of our business. A lot of effort is made to ensure that lease payments are accurate and on time and the landholders are kept regularly informed of company and industry activities through newsletters and briefing sessions. The Benefits of Leasing Land Landowner retains the freehold title of the land Landowner has a major input into the design of the Treefarm Trees can be integrated into existing farm plans (e.g. shelterbelts, woodlots) Treefarming compliments farm planning Provides a secure cash flow, with attractive rates per hectare Treefarming can have positive impacts on the health of the land.

3 Document Title: Plantation Page: 3 of 6 Why Do We Manage a Plantation Estate? The total extent, productivity and age of bluegum plantations throughout the south west of Western Australia is vitally important to WAPRES because it determines how much timber we can secure for wood chipping now and into the future. Since 1990, WAPRES has been entering into leasing arrangements with individual landholders, whereby the landowner retains the freehold title and the company only owns the wood. This has been very popular with farmers wishing to diversify their income and improve the value of their property. Under this arrangement landowners gain a secure cash flow, receiving rent quarterly in advance that is also indexed to inflation. Payments are determined on the productivity of the site and the distance to the closest mill. In the mid 1990's, sub-leasing arrangements gained popularity with many new companies wanting to invest in bluegums. Under this scenario, WAPRES managed the plantation whilst the client provided the finances. Resource security was achieved by negotiating a wood purchase agreement prior to establishing the plantation. WAPRES still manages about 7,000 hectares of bluegums on behalf of its clients and owns the remaining 23,000 hectares of the total of 30,000 hectares under management in WA. Most of the clients now have their own plantation teams and look after their recent plantings with WAPRES now only establishing new plantations on behalf of one of the clients W.A Blue Gum. The Future The future of WAPRES will lie in developing its expertise in establishing second and subsequent rotation crops on existing leases where viable yields were produced in the first rotation, and continuing to lease quality land that is offered where appropriate. WAPRES will also continue to enter into wood purchase agreements with growers and clients to ensure reliable ongoing wood supplies. To ensure optimal productivity and quality of resource, WAPRES will continually review and seek ways to improve the performance of its plantation estate. As part of this it will maintain an active role in collaborative research programs such as the Southern Tree Breeding Association. The Green Triangle Link WAPRES also manages a plantation program in the Green Triangle area of Victoria and South Australia, on behalf of Southern Plantation Forest Pty Ltd (also a subsidiary of Marubeni Corporation). A total about 7,000 hectares were established under this program and harvesting of these plantations commenced in 2011 and is expected to be completed in 2016.

4 Document Title: Plantation Page: 4 of 6 At the Plantation "Plantation management techniques including site selection have become increasingly sophisticated in the last decade as our experience in growing bluegums in local conditions has developed." Richard Breidahl, General Manager, Treefarms Operations What Is The Process For Establishing And Tendering To Our Bluegum Plantations? Plantation management techniques have improved dramatically since the early 1990s. For example WAPRES now uses a model developed in collaboration with the Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) to accurately assess the potential productivity of a site prior to planting. It also now has the benefit of being able to cross reference this with actual yields produced from a wide range of sites and rainfall zones. The routine use of leaf tissue analysis has enabled fertilizer applications to become much more site specific and effective and the use of complete weed control on all sites during the second year has boosted the uniformity and growth of the plantations. As the area of bluegum plantations expanded rapidly during the 1990s, so did the populations of a range of insect pests. Research being conducted by the Industry Pest Management Group, of which WAPRES was a founding member, has developed sophisticated monitoring systems that have enabled us to use chemical control as an absolute last resort, which apart from reducing costs also greatly reduces the possibility of negative environmental and safety impacts. On-going research will be directed at seeking environmentally responsible control measures including biological control. a. Selecting the Site The client must have a minimum of 20 hectares of land with a long-term average rainfall of around 700mm or more and suitable well-drained soils to undertake a plantation lease with WAPRES. Major advances have been made in site selection over the last decade as bluegum crops reach maturity on a wide range of sites throughout the south west of WA. WAPRES has a comprehensive set of permanent sample plots (PSPs) strategically located across its managed estate. Detailed soil and environmental measurements on these plots are related to tree growth to develop models that now enable accurate assessments of potential productivity for a site. The major factors found to affect plantation productivity in the southwest are in order of importance; soil depth, effective rainfall (rainfall/evaporation), soil nutrition and the level of salinity. b. Writing a Management Plan for the Site The first task of a forester responsible for the management of a new plantation is to develop a management plan for the plantation. This provides a clear blueprint for the development of the plantation and is used to schedule day-to-day operations. The management plans are also required by shire councils to enable shire development applications for new plantations to be approved. All management plans strictly adhere to the principles, goals and guidelines documented in the Code of Practice for Timber Plantations in Western Australia.

5 Document Title: Plantation Page: 5 of 6 c. Planting the Seedlings The site is generally prepared for tree planting by ripping and mounding the soil. This is done on the contour to reduce the flow of surface water and to improve infiltration into the soil. Seedlings are planted in rows typically spaced 4-5 metres apart, with a distance of 2 to 3 metres between each seedling depending on the site condition. Tree stocking rates vary from about 750 to 1000 stems per hectare, depending on the site. Stocking rates have decreased by about 30% compared with a decade ago as research has demonstrated that this can greatly reduce harvesting costs without adversely impacting on yields. d. Maintaining the Site Weeds and other agents such as insects and vertebrate pests that have the potential to significantly affect plantation growth are controlled as required, in accordance with health and environmental regulations, using licensed contractors and detailed prescriptions. Fertilisers are used to correct nutrient deficiencies and to enhance the growth of the bluegums. Care is taken to match fertiliser applications with plant requirements not only to optimize the response, but to minimize wastage and to ensure that the groundwater and surface water bodies are not adversely impacted. Thinning is occasionally used as a management tool to either alleviate drought stress in a stand or as a means of spreading out wood flows. Firebreaks are maintained on all plantations, in accordance with local government regulations. Erosion of firebreaks is minimised by applying surface water control and drainage measures on steep slopes and on erodible soils. e. Conducting an Inventory f. Re-establishing the Plantation The growth of the plantations is monitored at key stages during the rotation and the information is fed into our Forest Information System (FIS) after being grown on to the nominal age 10 harvest date using growth models developed by WAPRES staff. A sophisticated forest optimisation software package called Woodstock is available to assist in the preparation of the company's harvesting schedule using this data. WAPRES uses a mixture of coppicing (regrowth from the stumps) and replanting with improved genetic material to establish its second/third rotation plantations. Where replanting is used the stumps are usually sprayed with herbicide within days of harvesting to prevent regrowth and then a new mound is simply made over the existing row of stumps as a seedbed for the new seedlings. Where coppicing is used the shoots are left to develop for about two years after harvesting before they are thinned to an average of about two stems per stump with the most vigorous and well formed shoots being retained. Previously only one stem per stump was retained however this has been shown to lead to a loss of volume. Although some further re-sprouting occurs after the thinning operation it is quickly suppressed, particularly under the new multi-stem prescription and does not affect the growth of the retained shoots.

6 Document Title: Plantation Page: 6 of 6 The Future The company's plantation establishment and management business is a leader in the field - it has had over 30 years experience in professional plantation management. WAPRES offers these services to other companies and individuals. WAPRES is committed to the long-term viability of bluegum plantations in the southwest of Western Australia. Hence, it is collaborating with other leading plantation growers and CSIRO on managing productivity and drought risk to bluegum plantations. It is also addressing issues associated with chemical use for pest control by its involvement in the activities of the Industry Pest Management Group.