| Post: | Minister for Forests |
| Body: | New South Wales |
| Insignia: | Coat of Arms of New South Wales.svg |
| Insigniasize: | 120px |
| Appointer: | Governor of New South Wales |
| Formation: | 15 November 1916 |
| First: | William Ashford |
| Last: | Paul Toole as Minister for Lands and Forestry |
| Abolished: | 23 March 2019 |
The Minister for Forests was a ministry in New South Wales responsible for the management of forests for the purpose of the timber industry and was established in 1916 and abolished in 2019. While it was a separate portfolio for much of this period, it was generally held in conjunction with another portfolio, typically Lands or Agriculture.
Forests had been the responsibility of the Lands Department since 1897. In 1907 a Royal Commission was appointed to investigate the management and sustainability of forests for the purposes of the timber industry, comprising Alexander Kethel MLC, William Fehon/J A Curtis, and William Freeman.[1] The Royal Commission found that at the rate of consumption, commercial hardwood would be exhausted in 36 years and softwood within 20 years. Their recommendations included that the administration and control of forests should be given to 3 independent commissioners instead of the Department of Lands.[2] This recommendation was only partially implemented, with the Forestry Act 1909,[3] creating a Forestry Department that reported to the Minister for Agriculture.[4] The department was abolished in 1916 and replaced with the Forestry Commission which reported directly to the newly created Minister for Forests,[5] who concurrently held the portfolio of Minister for Lands.
In 2011 the portfolio was absorbed into Lands and Water. Since 2013 forests in NSW are managed by the Forestry Corporation of NSW, a state owned corporation.[6]
| Title | Minister | Party | Term start | Term end | Time in office | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Secretary for Lands Minister for Forests | 15 November 1916 | 12 April 1920 | ||||||
| 12 April 1920 | 20 December 1921 | |||||||
| 20 December 1921 | 20 December 1921 | 7 hours | ||||||
| 20 December 1921 | 13 April 1922 | |||||||
| 13 April 1922 | 17 June 1925 | |||||||
| 17 June 1925 | 19 November 1926 | |||||||
| 25 November 1926 | 26 May 1927 | |||||||
| 26 May 1927 | 18 October 1927 | |||||||
| Minister for Forests | 18 October 1927 | 15 April 1929 | ||||||
| 15 April 1929 | 3 November 1930 | |||||||
| Minister for Agriculture and Forests | 4 November 1930 | 15 October 1931 | ||||||
| 15 October 1931 | 13 May 1932 | |||||||
| Minister for Agriculture Minister for Forests | 16 May 1932 | 17 June 1932 | ||||||
| Minister for Forests | 18 June 1932 | 16 May 1941 | ||||||
| Minister for Agriculture and Forests | 16 May 1941 | 8 June 1944 | ||||||
| Minister for Lands Minister for Forests | 3 January 1975 | 30 June 1975 | ||||||
| 30 June 1975 | 23 January 1976 | |||||||
| 23 January 1976 | 14 May 1976 | |||||||
| Minister for Lands Minister for Forests Minister for Water Resources | 29 February 1980 | 2 October 1981 | ||||||
| Minister for Water Resources Minister for Forests | 1 February 1983 | 5 April 1984 | ||||||
| Minister for Forests | 5 November 1986 | 21 March 1988 | ||||||
| Minister for Lands and Forests | 24 July 1990 | 6 June 1991 | ||||||
| Minister for Forestry | 1 December 1997 | 2 April 2003 | ||||||
| Minister Assisting the Minister for Natural Resources (Forests) | 2 April 2003 | 1 July 2004 | ||||||
| Minister for Mineral and Forest Resources | 4 December 2009 | 4 June 2010 | ||||||
| 4 June 2010 | 1 September 2010 | |||||||
| 6 September 2010 | 28 March 2011 | |||||||
| Minister for Lands and Forestry | ||||||||