National Plantation Inventory regions boundaries

Publication date: 11 June 2026

The National Plantation Inventory regions boundaries (2016) dataset comprises the spatial boundaries of the 15 National Plantation Inventory (NPI) regions for Australia. The NPI is a component of the National Forest Inventory (NFI), managed by ABARES.

The National Plantation Inventory (NPI) regions were established in 1995 to facilitate national reporting on Australia’s commercial (industrial) plantation estate. The boundaries were developed in consultation with the NPI Reference Committee which consisted largely of grower and industry representatives. The first compilation of spatial data for commercial plantations, by NPI regions, was completed in 1996 with the first map-based report published in 1997.

The 15 NPI regions were largely based on the extant plantation estate and represent economic wood supply zones. Wood flows are not constrained by political borders, and thus six regions span state or territory borders: Northern Tablelands (New South Wales/Queensland); Southern Tablelands (Australian Capital Territory/New South Wales); Murray Valley (New South Wales/Victoria); East Gippsland/Bombala (Victoria/New South Wales); Green Triangle (Victoria/South Australia); and Northern Territory (Northern Territory/Western Australia).

The NPI regions were designed to capture most of the plantation estate. However, commercial and farm forestry plantations can occur outside the currently defined NPI regions, in accordance with landholder decision making.

The National Plantation Inventory regions boundaries dataset is used by the Australian Government for domestic reporting.