Regional Forest (Dis)Agreements: The RFA Process and Sustainable Forest Management

The Regional Forest Agreement process was initiated by the Federal Government in the early 1990s in an attempt to defuse the political sensitivity of forest management decisions. It created a mechanism by which State and Federal governments could agree on the long-term management and use of forests, providing secure industry access while protecting environmental and cultural values. It is the largest inter-governmental natural resource planning process undertaken in Australia to date and as such serves as a useful case study for natural resource managers in Australia and elsewhere. This article assesses the extent to which the Regional Forest Agreement process has achieved these goals.