The Regional Forest Agreement and the use of publicly owned native forests in Tasmania : an investigation into key decision making processes, policies, outcomes and opportunities

The Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement is a defining policy tool that governs the use and management of the publicly owned native forests positioned at the centre of one of the most protracted and conflict-ridden debates over natural resource management in Australia's history. Drawing on multi-disciplinary discourses and data, and employing a qualitative approach including interviews with prominent participants in the RFA process and implementation, this thesis examines key aspects of the conflict, positions Tasmania's forestry system within a national and global environmental policy context, and undertakes a critical analysis of the scientific, political and governance processes and outcomes generated by the Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement. It finds that the management of Tasmania's publicly owned native forests is still a contested issue and that, despite some successes, the RFA has largely failed to provide the anticipated win-win solutions to Tasmania's forest conflict.