THE silent and devastating toll of firewood theft from Victoria’s forests and parks has been revealed as public land authorities announce a crackdown on escalating illegal firewood take and habitat destruction threatening the survival of native wildlife and Aboriginal cultural heritage.

In 2023 alone, firewood thieves damaged or destroyed more than 9200 native trees or cleared roughly 462 hectares – approximately 178.5 MCGs worth – of public land in Victoria, with much of the stolen wood sold on to unsuspecting Victorians by illegal firewood operators.

The Conservation Regulator and Parks Victoria have launched Taskforce Ironbark, a joint statewide initiative targeting illegal commercial firewood removal from public land and empowering Victorian firewood consumers to make choices which help protect our forests and native wildlife.

With factors like rising living pressures and a lack of community awareness, the demand for cheap firewood is likely to increase, exacerbating illegal firewood theft and the destruction of vital habitat.

“We have seen a rapid rise in firewood-related damage on public land, and native trees are being stolen from Victoria’s forests and parks faster than they can be replaced, leaving our native birds, reptiles, and small mammals without crucial habitat," Taskforce Ironbark manager from the Conservation Regulator, Brady Childs, said.

When Victorians unintentionally buy illegally sourced firewood, often through online marketplaces, roadside stalls, and word-of-mouth, they could also be inadvertently supporting the individuals and syndicates destroying native forests and wildlife habitat.

To help buyers recognise reputable firewood sellers and tell if wood has been illegally sourced, they are encouraged to ask them:

• Where does your wood come from? They should be able to detail where their wood was sourced.

• Can I get a receipt? They should provide a tax receipt with a business name and ABN listed.

• Why is the wood so cheap? If the firewood seems cheaper than similar nearby, ask them why.

Many of the trees targeted by thieves are large, old, slow-growing species that are unlikely to recover or be replenished in this generation or the next, and their illegal felling directly risks the survival of some of our most threatened native species, including the red-tailed black cockatoo and the brush-tailed phascogale, who rely on hollows in both standing and fallen trees for habitat.

Victoria is also rich with Aboriginal cultural heritage and only a small percentage of historical sites have been recorded.

Firewood theft has serious potential to damage Aboriginal scarred trees, and once gone, these important cultural representations and reminders of Indigenous land use practices are lost forever.

Authorised Officers are conducting targeted patrols across public land and using intelligence-gathering methods, such as concealed cameras and community reports, to catch commercial firewood thieves.

Last year, the Conservation Regulator and Parks Victoria issued 130 infringement notices and laid more than 220 charges related to habitat destruction and the illegal cut and take of firewood from forests and parks.

In Victoria, it is illegal to cut and take timber from public land without authorisation and offenders face maximum penalties of more than $9879 and/or 12 months in prison for each charge.

Chainsaws, trailers, and vehicles used in the offending can also be seized.

The community can help by reporting suspicious sellers or firewood theft from public land to 136 186.

For more information on responsible sourcing of firewood, visit: www.vic.gov.au/sourcing-firewood.