Visions and realities for a Wik Forestry Industry on Cape York Peninsula, Australia

Abstract

The large and unutilised native forest timber resource on traditional Wik land on Cape York Peninsula, Australia, could be managed for timber production to contribute to Wik socio-economic objectives. Wik elders have a set of forestry objectives and envisage that these will be best achieved by a timber industry selling unprocessed logs and woodchips. On the other hand, Balkanu Cape York Development Corporation, a government-funded indigenous community development organisation, anticipate that an industry utilising high-technology equipment and producing dried and dressed finished products including strip-flooring will best satisfy Wik forestry objectives. The Wilderness Society envisages small-scale ‘community development’ activities such as protable sawmilling and niche market furniture manufacture as being appropriate types of forestry activities on Wik land. Goal programming analysis of forest use opportunities indicates that Wik forestry objectives are unlikely to be best satisfied by adopting the timber utilisation options espoused by any one of the stakeholder groups.