Expenditure on forest and forest products research in Australia 1981–1982 to 2001–2002

Summary

Expenditure on production-oriented forest and forest products research within Australia over a 12-month period in 2001–2002 was compared with a series of research expenditure reviews completed over the past 20 y to analyse changes and provide a historical perspective of investment patterns in research over that period. The expenditure in 2001–2002 on forest research and forest products research was $50.51 million and $19.73 million respectively, a total overall of $70.24 million. The actual expenditure in 1981–1982 was $24.32 million and $14.30 million respectively, but when expenditure over this 20-y period was adjusted for inflation by the Consumer Price Index there were significant and continual declines from $60.59 million and $35.63 million respectively in 1981–1982. Although the study in 2001–2002 focused on research expenditure, costs of technical services and research management were also compiled.

Considering the total forest research expenditure from 1981–1982 to 2001–2002 by the main sectors (Commonwealth, companies, State agencies, universities), the Commonwealth proportion increased from about 40.9% to 45.2% as a result of increases in expenditure through the Cooperative Research Centres and the Forest and Wood Products Research and Development Corporation, and the university proportion increased from 4.4% to 6.7%. The proportional input to research by organisations with the responsibility for managing forests, that is, State agencies and companies, reduced from 54.7% to 48.1%. There were also changes from 1981–1982 to 2001–2002 in the relative emphasis on different categories of research.

Keywords:

• research expenditure
• plantations
• native forests
• forest products
• environment
• surveys