THOUSANDS of hectares of new national parks along the Murray will have a lasting effect on the people who rely on timber mills to survive, writes SANDRA GODWIN

For more than 150 years, the red gum forests along the Murray River have echoed with the ring of axes, the buzz of chainsaws and the thump of falling trees as timber cutters plied their trade.

Earlier this month, the Victorian and NSW governments brought the red gum timber industry almost to a halt with the creation of a chain of national parks and reserves totalling 250,000ha: 143,000ha in Victoria and 107,000ha in NSW.

Included is the Barmah-Millewa forest - which covers about 70,000ha and is thought to be the world's largest red gum forest - where logging is to be phased out over the next five years

Environment and Climate Change Minister Gavin Jennings officially opened national parks at Barmah and Gunbower, and on the Goulburn and Ovens rivers, saying they had been established to "protect Victoria's precious natural assets".

However, the decision had far-reaching implications for those in the timber industry.

The Victorian Environment Assessment Council, which studied the forests and recommended the creation of the national parks, warned of loss of employment, hardship and "intergenerational welfare dependence" if the parks were created.

While local environmental and indigenous groups - which will co-manage two of the parks - joined in celebrations at each opening, most sawmillers and timber workers stayed away.

Mills at Darlington Point, Barmah and Balranald have closed and the future of another 20 mills remains uncertain.

Arbuthnot Sawmills manager Paul Madden said his mill, at Koondrook, still had a year-by-year Victorian licence to take timber from the west end of Gunbower Island, which is a state forest, but the short licence made it "extremely difficult" to do business.

"There is supposedly a transition arrangement being worked out for NSW until these other wood supply agreements are sorted," Mr Madden said.

"We hope to access enough logs to keep running until then. All our staff are wondering whether they'll have a job in the new year or whether the mill will close."

Arbuthnots, now 121 years old, employs more than 20 staff in the mill and as contract hauling and felling crews.

In its heyday, there were 200 workers.

The mill supplies timber for the restoration of the heritage-listed Port of Echuca wharf, along with cladding and decking timber for paddlesteamers and a variety of timbers for government infrastructure, such as bridges and railway sleepers.

Mr Madden is adamant the end of logging red gums was purely a political decision.

"It's got nothing to do with the actual management of the forests, because the forests have been managed extremely well for the past 150 years under a sustainable timber industry that's kept economies strong in these small towns," he said.

Campbell Sawmills owner Graham "Jock" Campbell said a shortage of timber forced him to close the doors of his sawmill at Balranald four months ago, putting 30 staff out of work.

Mr Campbell relocated most of his family to a town south of Grafton, in northern NSW, where he bought a sawmill.

Mr Campbell said his $6 million Balranald mill was now only fit for sale as scrap.

"If there's nothing to cut, sawmilling equipment is worthless. It was worth $6 million and now it's worth nothing," he said.

Mr Campbell said Balranald would be "a sad old town" in 18 months.

The town's football, racing and gun clubs have lost a major sponsor and, along with the sawmill workers, an estimated 100 woodcutters producing firewood would be out of a job.

"That 130 people feeds 700 out of a population of 1400, so it's not going to be a very nice place to be," Mr Campbell said.

"There was no consultation, they just moved in and they'd already made their mind up. Victoria was exactly the same. These Labor governments are prepared to tear the heart and soul out of these small country towns. It's not good."

Mr Campbell and Mathoura sawmiller Dawn Crump both recalled a meeting at Deniliquin where they said NSW Environment Minister Frank Sartor told people the parks were required as part of a deal to ensure Labor held on to the Green vote.

"The whole thing was nothing to do with the environment it was just about getting the Green votes," Mrs Crump said.

Some timber workers have been re-employed as forest service officers to thin trees, spray weeds and maintain tracks in the parks.

A spokeswoman for Mr Sartor rejected the recollections of Mr Campbell and Mrs Crump.

"Claims that this decision has been to win Green votes are not true," she said.

"These forests are of national and international significance and they will now be protected for future generations.

"The NSW Government has listened to industry, which told us they were prepared to cease logging sooner provided they have access to additional compensation.

"Financial assistance from the structural adjustment package will be available when the individual businesses cease operation."

The NSW Government has allocated $80 million to manage the new parks, make payments to mills which close, and includes $16 million to pay redundancies to affected workers.

The Victorian Government has allocated $38 million for creating new jobs.