Every tree has a story to tell on National Tree Day

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MEDIA RELEASE

28 July 2017
Embargo: 11:30 am (Canberra Time)
92/2017
Every tree has a story to tell on National Tree Day


The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) takes inspiration from Andy Griffiths’ Treehouse series to highlight some top statistics about trees, to help mark National Tree Day on 30 July.

"Trees play an important role in so many parts of our everyday lives and the ABS has a wealth of information that underlines this," said Peter Meadows from the ABS Environment and Agriculture Accounts Development section.

"From their economic value, to their production of food or use in the home, trees are valuable to us.

"With the Andy Griffiths series of children’s books in mind, the ABS has compiled figures about trees to mark National Tree Day."

A tale of trees and people
In 2012, over one in every three people planted or cared for Australian native trees or plants. Tasmanians were the most prevalent (1 in every 2 people) followed by Queensland (42 per cent).
Community Engagement with Nature Conservation, Australia, 2012, 4602.0.00.002

A tale of trees in nature
Tree cover in Queensland and South Australia have changed in recent years. Queensland's trees decreased between 2011 and 2015, by 11 per cent (or 7.8 million hectares). In comparison, South Australia's trees increased by 0.6 million hectares between 2006 and 2011.
Land Account: Queensland, Experimental Estimates, 2011 - 2016, 4609.0.55.003
Land Account: South Australia, Experimental Estimates, 2006 - 2011, 4609.4.55.001

A tale of the economy
Trees are worth about $12 billion ($10.2 billion in plantations and $1.8 billion in native trees in the economy) and are responsible for about 13,000 jobs. The forestry industry contributes about $1.7 billion to the economy. Australian System of National Accounts, 2015-16 , 5204.0

A tale of trees and food
There are over 58 million trees and nearly 4,500 farms which bear orchard fruits and nuts in Australia. Australia produces over 1.4 million tonnes of food based on trees. Agricultural Commodities, 2015-16, 7121.0

A tale of warmth in winter
Australians use wood (50 PJ or 3.1 million tonnes) as a source of heat. In fact 10 per cent of households use wood as a main source of heating (2014).
Energy Accounts for Australia, 2014-15, 4604.0

Last year nearly 310,000 people took part in National Tree Day at more than 3,500 sites across the country, planting more than 1.1 million native trees, shrubs and edibles and helping to green urban areas, according to the Planet Ark website.

To find out more visit treeday.planetark.org, call the National Tree Day Hotline on 1300 88 5000
For ABS research refer to publication 8155.0 - Australian Industry, 2015 - 16

Media note:
· When reporting ABS data, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) must be attributed as the source.

· For media requests and interviews, contact the ABS Communications and Partnerships Section on 1300 175 070 (8.30am - 5pm Monday - Friday AEST).

· The ABS produces trend estimates to provide a more reliable indicator of the underlying behaviour of the Labour Force series. Trend estimates were introduced into the Labour Force series in the mid 1980s and are available back to February 1978. Trend
estimates are considered the best indicators of the underlying behaviour in the labour market. See paragraphs 28 to 37 of the Explanatory Notes in Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0).

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