Begin forwarded message:

From: Imports <Imports@aff.gov.au>

Subject: RE: attention plant tier 2 inquiry [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Date: April 9, 2025 at 8:54:06 PM PDT

To: Simon Barer <simonbarer@gmail.com>

OFFICIAL

Hi Simon,

 

If the wood is under 200mm thickness, then it would not be considered oversize and the availability of treatment options is significantly higher and would include methyl bromide fumigation, sulfuryl fluoride fumigation, kiln drying and a few others. My apologies for the earlier confusion, from the initial photo the item appeared to be quite thick.

 

There is no exemption for this species when it comes to treatment, however if the species is naturally pest resistant this would greatly decrease the likelihood of insect infestation being found during the inspection, which would then preclude any need to treat on this specific basis (Other risk material could still result in a treatment requirement).

 

Kind Regards,

 

Matt Allwright
Senior Technical Officer | Timber and Plant Fibres | 1800 900 090

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Plant Import Operations | Biosecurity Plant and Science Services Division
185 O’Riordan Street Mascot​, NSW 2020

GPO Box 858 Canberra ACT 2601 Australia

Agriculture.gov.au

 

OFFICIAL

From: Simon Barer <simonbarer@gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, 10 April 2025 10:25 AM
To: Imports <Imports@aff.gov.au>
Subject: Re: attention plant tier 2 inquiry [SEC=OFFICIAL]

 

Thanks for the further clarification, that was really helpful!

 

A few more clarifying points:

- the wood is under 200mm in thickness. would that still be considered oversized?

- the species of the wood is Western Red Cedar, which is specifically sought after for its natural resistance to bugs and rot. Is there any exception for this species when it comes to treatment?

 

Thanks again

Simon

On Apr 9, 2025, at 5:15 PM, Imports <Imports@aff.gov.au> wrote:

 

OFFICIAL

 

Hi Simon,

 

Thank you confirming that the goods will be imported as UPE.

 

That is correct, if the external bark is removed, the internal pockets between the ring growths as highlighted by your initial photos (The arrows) is acceptable under the timber and timber products case. From the link, whilst this web page does pertain to timber packaging, the statement highlighted (regarding acceptability of bark within pockets) is specific to commodity timber such as your item. The subsequent bark tolerance relating to 3cm width or 50 square cm is applicable only to timber packaging treated under ISPM 15 and is not applicable to your product.

 

In short, the only allowance or tolerance for bark within commodity-based timber is where it is contained within ingrown pockets or surrounding knots, such as the marked areas within the photo you provided, there is no tolerance for external bark.

 

With regard to cost of treatment, this is dependant on the type of treatment required based on the specific risk detected associated with the goods. Given the item is likely deemed ‘oversize’ (is over 200mm in all dimensions), this limits the applicability of certain treatments due to the penetrative ability of certain fumigants and thus typically the treatments in scope would be heat treatment, gamma irradiation or ethylene oxide fumigation. Further, treatments are typically charged on a ‘per treatment’ basis by the external providers depending on the number of items requiring treatment and the applicable method. As a guide, please see the attached daff charging guidelines for the mail and traveller pathway in which the department may arrange treatment on behalf of the importer.

 

Additionally, please see the department’s approved arrangements search tool to investigate specific providers in the area the goods will arrive. To utilise the tool, please filter by the applicable arrangement class relevant to the treatment. Specifically in this instance, the applicable classes are likely to be:

• Class 4.2 – Gamma Irradiation
• Class 4.6 – Fumigation
• Class 4.1 – Heat Treatment

 

https://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity-trade/import/arrival/arrangements/sites

 

I hope the above assists. If you have further questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

 

Kind regards,

 

Matt Allwright
Senior Technical Officer | Timber and Plant Fibres | 1800 900 090

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Plant Import Operations | Biosecurity Plant and Science Services Division
185 O’Riordan Street Mascot​, NSW 2020

GPO Box 858 Canberra ACT 2601 Australia

Agriculture.gov.au

 

 

OFFICIAL

From: Simon Barer <simonbarer@gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, 10 April 2025 5:25 AM
To: Imports <Imports@aff.gov.au>
Subject: Re: attention plant tier 2 inquiry [SEC=OFFICIAL]

 

 

Hi Matt,

Thank you for the response.

For clarity, I will definitely be importing as Unaccompanied Personal Effects.

I will definitely be removing as much of the bark on the wood as I physically can.

So I would want this to be imported under the Timber&Timber products.

My question was specifically with regards to the small amounts of bark (pointed to by the arrows) that may not be accessible enough for my to entirely remove.

After looking at the link, I was a bit confused. 

There is the following “note: This bark tolerance is applicable for timber packaging and dunnage that has been treated in accordance with ISPM 15 as well as being treated in a departmental approved method."

Does that mean that everything on the page only applies to wood that has been treated (which mine has not)?

 

Additionally. no answer was provided on what the cost of treatment would be, if the agent inspecting my shipment deemed it necessary.

If you do not have the prices available, can you please provide some of the vendors that this work is typically sent to?

For reference, I will be shipping my container to Sydney, NSW.

 

Thank you,

Simon

On Apr 6, 2025, at 6:38 PM, Imports <Imports@aff.gov.au> wrote:

 

OFFICIAL

 

Hi Simon,

 

Thank you very much for your email and the comprehensive photo, it is greatly appreciated.

 

From your description below, it seems as though this product will be imported as ‘Unaccompanied Personal Effects’, which is a method of lodgement utilised in place of an Import Declaration when importing personal items that are arriving separately from your person.

 

If the item is to be imported as unaccompanied personal effects (UPE) this particular item would be likely be considered under non-commercial conditions for Wooden manufactured articles containing bark as opposed to the Timber and Timber Products case you have referred to below. Under personal use/non-commercial conditions this product would require inspection, followed by treatment via Ethylene Oxide fumigation or Gamma irradiation to manage associated pathogen risks with the bark. However, please note that treatment providers may be limited for a product of this size and also depending on where the container will be shipped into. If leveraging this option, I would highly encourage you or your broker if one is being used to investigate the availability of treatment providers within the state/city of arrival prior to shipment to ensure the availability of treatment and clearance of the goods.

 

Alternatively, if you were to proceed with removal of the exterior bark, then the item could reasonably be considered under the personal use conditions of the Timber and Timber products case, which would solely require inspection without the need for mandatory treatment unless risk material was detected during the inspection. In this circumstance, the internal ingrown pockets of bark (those highlighted by the yellow and red arrows) are considered acceptable per statement 3 on the department’s webpage: https://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity-trade/import/goods/timber-packaging/bark

 

<image002.png>

 

The last alternative, should the timber have undergone any prior heat treatments, fumigations etc as part of manufacture or whilst in Canada with you, you may consider applying for an import permit in which we would assess any of these previous treatments in considering applicable import conditions specific to your product. In this case, however I must advise that we cannot guarantee that no further treatment would necessarily be required as it would be dependant on factors such as the initial treatment rates, treatment type, how the product has subsequently been stored etc.

 

I would encourage you to initially confirm whether the items are to be lodged/considered as UPE, in addition to reviewing the conditions of the above BICON cases as the manner of lodgement will affect the applicable import conditions for the product. From there, if you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us for any further assistance.

 

Kind regards,

 

Matt Allwright
Senior Technical Officer | Timber and Plant Fibres | 1800 900 090

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Plant Import Operations | Biosecurity Plant and Science Services Division
185 O’Riordan Street Mascot​, NSW 2020

GPO Box 858 Canberra ACT 2601 Australia

Agriculture.gov.au

 

 

OFFICIAL

From: Simon Barer <simonbarer@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, 4 April 2025 11:52 AM
To: Biosecurity Portal <Biosecurityportal@aff.gov.au>
Cc: Imports <Imports@aff.gov.au>
Subject: attention plant tier 2 inquiry

 

 

Hi,

I am planning on sending a shipping container of personal belongings when I move to Australia later this year, from Vancouver, Canada to Sydney, NSW.
I will be including some lumber products and was just hoping to get specific confirmation on a couple open questions, so that there aren’t any surprises when it arrives on your shores.
I have already looked at BICON and the “Timber and Timber Products” BICON case, but the information was either missing, vague, or overly general to my specific situation.

I have confirmed with a helpful representative of the imports team that timber beams measuring 2”x6”x8’ do not need any treatment, other than being bug/bark free.

When it comes to my cross section pieces, I am still a bit unclear.
I have attached a picture for reference. These are cuts of Western Red Cedar, that happen to have some interior bark, where the tree had since grown outward and “encased” the bark.
While I can remove all of the exterior bark, these entombed pieces will not be possible to fully remove.

For reference, all of these cuts were made 5 years ago, and have been stored in a dry location ever since.

In the image below, the red arrow points to a section fully encased by wood, the yellow areas point to invaginations in the wood that are no longer exposed to the outside.

Currently, these pieces of wood are either completely raw, or treated with some mineral oil.

I was wondering if any of these options would be acceptable for imports:
1) fine as is, as long as all “exterior” bark is removed
2) fine if I apply polyurethane/varnish/laquer to the entire piece
3) chisel out a bit of the bark from both sides and fill the cavity with epoxy

If different answers apply to the red & yellow areas, please let me know 

If none of these options are acceptable, then I suppose my only option would be to get it treated upon arrival.

I was wondering if you had any specific information on the price that something like this would be?
Even an ballpark of like, $100 or $250 or $1000 would be helpful.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Simon

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