THE HUON VALLEY GROVE OF GIANTS

Recently published research has found that the Huon Valley’s Grove of Giants is the most carbon-dense forest ever measured in Tasmania. In November last year, a group of 15 of the best professional tree climbers from across Australia and New Zealand came to the Grove to measure how much carbon was stored in the forest. The lead researcher, Dr Jennifer Sanger from The Tree Projects, found that the Grove of Giants contained 1312 tonnes of carbon per hectare, making it the highest estimation of carbon for any Tasmanian forest.

“This is one of the most comprehensive forest carbon studies ever to be undertaken in Tasmania, and given the sheer size of the trees in the Grove of Giants, I am not surprised that it is the most carbon-dense forest ever measured in the state,” says Dr Jennifer Sanger, co-founder of The Tree Projects.

“By involving professional tree climbers, we were able to take accurate measurements of the tree’s volumes, which allows us to gain a precise estimate of how much carbon these giant trees store”, says Dr. Sanger. “We also had teams of volunteers undertaking measurements of the understory trees, the fallen logs and the soil carbon.”

For the tree climbers, the experience of working in such an impressive forest was an opportunity of a lifetime. “Visiting and climbing the ancient trees in the Grove of Giants will be one of the most memorable and captivating experiences of my life”, says Samantha Brukinshaw, a professional arborist from Victoria. “I'm so thankful to have been part of the carbon research project working towards protecting these irreplaceable towering giants of the great Tasmanian forests.”

“It was a really fun experience getting to be able to measure these giant trees, but it’s been confronting standing between the forest and seeing the destruction of the nearby logging coupe,” says Sam Hardingham from Everyday Arbor in Newcastle. “I feel a great sense of responsibility for what was happening there.”

Over the last few years, The Tree Projects have been campaigning for the protection of the Grove of Giants, which was scheduled to be logged in 2023. The organisation and its supporters were successful in July this year in having the Grove of Giants removed from the logging schedule. However, there has been no commitment from Sustainable Timber Tasmania or the State Government about putting the Grove into a permanent reserve.

“This research shows why the Grove of Giants is worthy of permanent protection. It also shows that all of Tasmania’s forests, especially our mature forests, store a massive amount of carbon and need to be protected,” says Dr Sanger. “Protecting our forests is the single biggest and easiest thing that Tasmania can do to address climate change.”

MEASUREMENT DATA SNAPSHOT

The total forest carbon measured in the Huon Valley Grove of Giants was estimated to be 1312 tonnes per hectare. The previous record was held by a study in the Styx Valley that measured live above-ground biomass at 850 tonnes per hectare.