Elizabeth Heeg

Foresters are seething at the lack of understanding they claim exists in the Helen Clark Foundation report on the role their sector can play in New Zealand’s future growth opportunities in adding value to food and fibre products. Earlier this month the Pathways to Prosperity report was released by a public policy think tank hosted by Auckland University of Technology. It cited the looming impact of aging demographics as a key driver for a need to increase the country’s wealth to pay for greater superannuation and health care. …Forest Owners Association CEO Dr  Elizabeth Heeg said the report’s single biggest failing was its lack of appreciation and recognition of the level of global demand for timber and timber products in the future. “Not only will the worldwide demand for timber to replace carbon-emitting concrete and steel rise rapidly, but so too will the demand for wood-based biofuels and plastic-substitute products,” Heeg said.