29Additional requirements for a forest management plan for a conversion CEA

29  Additional requirements for a forest management plan for a conversion CEA

 (1) This section applies to a forest management plan in relation to a conversion CEA.

 (2) If either the default baseline management regime or the current management regime includes a UR species, the forest management plan must also:

 (a) outline how the management of the plantation forest will change or has changed since its establishment as a conversion CEA; and

 (b) provide evidence that demonstrates that all management actions to be undertaken or that have been undertaken in relation to the CEA are consistent with the current management regime and default baseline management regime; and

 (c) include a statement made by a qualified independent person that certifies that the person is of the opinion that the management actions and other management activities to be undertaken in relation to the CEA are consistent with paragraph (b).

Note: Where the forest management plan does not change in a reporting period, there is no requirement for a qualified independent person to provide additional certification.

 (3) If thinning or pruning to which subparagraph 3(c)(ii) and clause 5(2) of Schedule 2 applied was undertaken within the CEA before the eligibility date, the forest management plan must include a statement by a qualified independent person that certifies that the person is of the opinion that the thinning or pruning conducted was necessary for ecological purposes or drought resilience purposes.

Note: Those provisions relate to thinning or pruning that would have made the land ineligible if it had not been conducted for the health of the plantation.

 (4) If subparagraph 3(c)(iii) of Schedule 2 applied, the forest management plan must include the evidence and statements mentioned in clause 6 of that Schedule.

 (5) For this section, a person is a qualified independent person if, at the time the statement is made, they:

 (a) hold qualifications, determined by the Regulator to be necessary to hold, to provide an opinion for paragraph (2)(c); and

 (b) have no financial interest in the project

Note: A person does not have a financial interest in the project merely because they are being paid to review the forest management plan.

Subdivision 3.5.3—Continuing plantation CEAs