Jim O’Hehir took up the position in April 2018 of General Manager Forest Research at Forest Research Mount Gambier. Previously working as the General Manager, Planning and Development for ForestrySA, Jim has a wealth of experience in forestry, wood production and environmental management. Having over 30 years’ experience in the South Australian plantation forest industry, Jim has significant insight into the contemporary issues and solutions needed by the Australian forest industry.
UniSA is undertaking nine forest research projects under the National Institute for Forest Products Innovation program worth $5.2M. These projects cover a broad range of topics including: characterising softwood sawn products; solutions for... Read more
About me
Jim O’Hehir took up the position in April 2018 of General Manager Forest Research at Forest Research Mount Gambier. Previously working as the General Manager, Planning and Development for ForestrySA, Jim has a wealth of experience in forestry, wood production and environmental management. Having over 30 years’ experience in the South Australian plantation forest industry, Jim has significant insight into the contemporary issues and solutions needed by the Australian forest industry.
UniSA is undertaking nine forest research projects under the National Institute for Forest Products Innovation program worth $5.2M. These projects cover a broad range of topics including: characterising softwood sawn products; solutions for optimising the use of remote sensed data; developing best practice fatigue guidelines; wearable sensors for health and safety monitoring; improved wildlife detection; plantation water use and licencing; automated bushfire fire detection and forest health and biosecurity systems. UniSA also undertakes consultancy services for the forest industry.
Jim’s special interest area is in plantation growth and yield management, including long term sustainability, growth, yield, modelling and plantation water use. He has facilitated a number of national research projects and worked on the development of various modelling projects for predicting pine thinning and fertiliser growth and yield responses.He has also published papers, chaired seminars and workshops and presented at conferences both internationally and locally. Jim has qualifications in forest science, including a Bachelor of Science (Forestry) from ANU and a Master of Forest Science and PhD from the University of Melbourne.
About me
Member Forestry Australia
Registered Professional Forester (No:12) – Institute of Foresters of Australia, categories: business planning; strategic marketing; management systems; and, forest resources management including growth modelling.
About me
Doctor of Philosophy The University of Melbourne
Master of Forest Science The University of Melbourne
Bachelor of Science (Forestry) Australian National University
UniSA General Manager Forest Research (2018-present)
South Australian Forestry Corporation – ForestrySA, Mount Gambier, South Australia
General Manager Strategy & Development (2015-2018)
Tree Breeding Australia (TBA), Mount Gambier, South Australia
Chair (2013-2017; Board Member since 2005) and Plant Plan Genetics Director (2010-2018)
South Australian Forestry Corporation – ForestrySA, Mount Gambier, South Australia continued:
General Manager Ranges & Research (2013-2015)
General Manager Planning & Development (2005-2013)
Manager Sales Green Triangle (2003-2005)
Manager Strategic Planning (Manager Corporate Affairs) (2000-2003)
Various Positions (1983-1999) Manager Forest Resources, ForestrySA, Mount Gambier, SA
· Forest Resources Officer, Woods and Forests Department, Mount Gambier, SA
· Forest Officer, Mount Burr District, Woods and Forests Department, Mount Gambier, SA
· Project Officer, Operations Research Section, Woods and Forests Department, Mount Gambier, SA
· Assistant Forester, Australian Newsprint Mills Ltd, Maydena, Tasmania
Research
Excludes commercial-in-confidence projects.
Green Triangle Forest Health and Biosecurity Program, Australian Bluegum Plantations, 13/02/2025 - 01/11/2029
Transforming future softwood productivity through optimal site-specific silviculture - PhD stipend - Thuy Thi Phuong Vu, McGrath Forestry Services Pty Ltd, 05/05/2025 - 05/05/2029
Integrating APSIM into resource management systems for estate wood flows and valuations that account for climate change, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 21/06/2024 - 01/06/2028
Koala Detection using Biologically Inspired Vision, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 18/06/2024 - 31/05/2027
Future Lightweight Timber Framing: Productivity, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, 24/02/2025 - 12/12/2026
NIFPI Project , SA Dept of Primary Industries and Regions, 31/03/2023 - 30/06/2026
On-orbit evaluation and demonstration of energy-efficient fire smoke detection on the Kanyini and the Phi-Sat-2 CubeSat during 2025 and 2026 fire season using HS2 imagery and onboard AI., SmartSat CRC, 18/12/2024 - 18/04/2026
Assessment of current best practice techniques for handling pesticides in forestry applications, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 15/06/2023 - 31/03/2026
Weed Identification Using Remote Sensing, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 05/06/2023 - 30/09/2025
Intelligent Image-based Hazard Identification System for Worker Safety in Forestry Operations, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 21/06/2024 - 31/07/2025
Plantation water use and environmental asset management in plantation forests, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 05/06/2023 - 21/06/2025
Enhancing softwood and hardwood plantations site productivity and subsequent operational efficiency by use of an innovative clean-row establishment system, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 06/06/2023 - 15/03/2025
Green Triangle Forest Health and Biosecurity Program, Australian Bluegum Plantations, 02/05/2022 - 31/12/2024
Characterising utility performance and in-grade properties of solid structural timber recovered from radiata pine T2, top logs, and core wood, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 01/09/2023 - 15/11/2024
Operational Transition of PINT Software, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 01/01/2024 - 15/09/2024
A development program for future revision of AS/NZS 4063.1:2010 Characterization of structural timber Part 1: Test methods, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 06/06/2023 - 15/08/2024
Cwth: Optimising the management of plantation, water and environmental assets, Forest and Wood Products Australia, 01/03/2019 - 15/12/2022
Ind: Optimising the management of plantation, water and environmental assets, OneFortyOne Plantations, 01/03/2019 - 15/12/2022
Geospatial positioning and fusion: is real-time sub-metre, accuracy operationally feasible in forestry environments? Forest and Wood Products Australia 2022-2024
Development of a portfolio of alternative weed control strategies for use in plantations. Forest and Wood Products Australia 2020-2022
Development of fit-for-purpose silviculture linking plantation management and productivity to wood properties. Forest and Wood Products Australia 2020-2022
Next Generation Resource Assessment and Forecasting for Australian Plantation Forestry. Forest and Wood Products Australia 2020-2022
Establishing the relationship between random and biased testing for structural verification of Australian sawn softwood. Forest and Wood Products Australia 2020-2023
Development of best-practice fatigue management for the Australian forestry industry. National Institute for Forest Products Innovation 2020-2023
Development of Guidelines for Fire Salvage and Burnt Log Storage and Processing. Forest and Wood Products Australia 2020
Scoping an automated forest fire detection and suppression framework. National Institute for Forest Products Innovation 2019-2021
Development and implementation of forest health and biosecurity systems and protocols based on quantitative pest risk and economic impact assessment. National Institute for Forest Products Innovation 2019-2023
Options for operating efficiently and sustainably within forest water licence rules. National Institute for Forest Products Innovation 2019-2021
Characterising softwood sawn products in Australia. National Institute for Forest Products Innovation 2019-2023
Future proofing blue gum plantations through improved detection of wildlife in early planning and forestry operations. National Institute for Forest Products Innovation 2019-2023
Optimising the management of plantation, water and environmental assets.National Institute for Forest Products Innovation 2019-2023
Wearable sensor-controlled vests for health and safety hazard monitoring and early warning in forestry activities. National Institute for Forest Products Innovation 2019-2021
Solutions for the optimal use of dense, remotely acquired data by forest growers. National Institute for Forest Products Innovation 2019-2022
Investment plan development: Resource modelling and remote sensing. Forest and Wood Products Australia 2019
Investment plan development: Silviculture. Forest and Wood Products Australia 2019
Scan of Tumut trial sites with 4 sensors capturing multiple types of data for fusion. UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Tree Water Use measurement - Distributed humidity sensor. UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Low cost remote sensing data for improving forest management. UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Evaluating the performance of ForestrySA Mount Burr Fire tower detection system. UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Conduct pilot study to check the feasibility of the proposed new FRP/Cold-formed steel. UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Capture 2018 LiDAR data. UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Process all keyed PMS data to validate plot volumes and consolidate PMS masterfiles. UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Trial of UniSA developed moisture meter for woodchip testin.g UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Forest yield predictions from multi-temporal LiDAR. UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Based Monitoring of Forest Stands. UniSA-ForestrySA 2018
Research
Research outputs for the last seven years are shown below. Some long-standing staff members may have older outputs included.
Open access indicates that an output is open access.
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2025 |
Open access
|
| 2024 |
Open access
6
5
127
|
| 2024 |
Open access
|
| 2024 |
Open access
3
1
1
|
| 2023 |
Open access
5
1
|
| 2022 |
Open access
14
13
1
|
| 2022 |
Open access
|
| 2022 |
Open access
|
| 2021 |
Open access
16
15
|
| 2021 |
Open access
4
4
1
|
| 2020 |
Open access
|
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2024 |
Open access
|
| 2024 |
|
| 2024 |
|
| 2023 |
Open access
|
| 2023 |
|
| 2023 |
Open access
|
O'Hehir J.F. and Nambiar E.K.S. (2010) Productivity of three successive rotations of radiata pine plantations in South Australia over a century. Forest Ecology and Management 259: 1857-1869.
O’Hehir J.F. (2001) Growth and Yield Models for Radiata Pine In South Australia: Incorporating Fertilising and Thinning. (unpub.) PhD Thesis, University of Melbourne, 227 pp.
O'Hehir, J.F., Leech J.W., and Lewis, N.B. (2000) The evolution of growth and yield models for South Australian radiata pine plantations. Australian Forestry, 63(4):159-165.
O'Hehir, J.F. and Leech. J.W. (1997) Logging residue assessment methodology for South Australia. Australian Forestry, 60(3): 196-201.
O'Hehir J.F. (1993) Logging residue assessment. (unpub.) MFSc Thesis, University of Melbourne, 126 pp.
CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS & OTHER PAPERS
O’Hehir, J.F. (2017) New Users for Old Data, Green Triangle Permanent Growth Plot Projects. Institute of Foresters of Australia Conference, 15-18 August, Cairns, Australia.
O’Hehir, J.F. (2014) Silvicultural tools: maximising asset value & cash flow - mid rotation thinning & fertiliser IFA plantation productivity symposium: proving R&D pays. 12-13 May 2014 Mount Gambier SA.
O’Hehir, J.F. (2012) Recent Advances in Precision Forestry in South Australia. Precision Forestry in Advance Symposium, 27–28 March 2012, Mount Gambier, Australia.
O'Hehir, J.F. (2011) Opportunities, Current & Future for Precision Forestry Application in South Australia.(unpub.) Gottstein Trust Travel Scholarship Report, 72 pp.
Nambiar, E.K.S. and O’Hehir, J.F. (2010) Increasing Production from Pine Plantations in the Green Triangle. Australian Forest Grower. Winter 2010: 35-37.
O’Hehir, J.F. (2010) Future Visions: Opportunities, Current and Future, for Precision Forestry Application in South Australia. Precision Forestry Symposium, 1–3 March 2010, Stellenbosch, South Africa.
O'Hehir, J.F. and Rombouts, J.H. (2007) Using the Results from Thinning and Fertiliser Interaction Models In Combination with Wood Quality Studies To Maximise Commercial Benefit in South Australian Radiata Pine Plantations. Proc. Forest Growth and Timber Quality: Crown Models and Simulation Methods for Sustainable Forest Management, 7-10 August 2007, Portland, USA.
O'Hehir, J.F. (2003) Integration of Corporate Strategies with Forest Production Imperatives and Forward Planning in a Changing Business Environment, Proc. Australasian Forestry – A Strategic Vision, Joint Australia and New Zealand Institute of Forestry Conference, 27 April-1 May, 2003, Queenstown, New Zealand, pp. 321-325.
O'Hehir, J.F. (2000) Use of the regional volume table to determine stem volume in thinning and fertiliser trials in radiata pine stands, Proc. Research Working Group 2, Forest Measurement and Information, 27 November-1 December 2000, Perth, Australia, pp.17.
O'Hehir, J.F. (1998) Applied land and forest valuation, Proc. For Research Working Group 2, Forest Measurement and Information, 11/1998, Coffs Harbour, Australia, pp. 6.
O'Hehir, J.F., Boardman, R., and Leech, J.W. (1996) Mid rotation fertiliser and thinning : South Australia Project EP190, Proc. RWG2, Mt Gambier, Australia, pp.17.
O'Hehir, J.F. (1995) Yield Regulation in South Australia, Tools or Toys: The certainty of the past, the challenge for the future, Proc. Applications of New Technologies in Forestry, 16th Biennial Institute of Foresters of Australia Conference, 18-21 April, Ballarat, Australia, pp. 275-280.
O'Hehir, J.F., and Leech, J.W. (1994) Logging residue assessment methodology for South Australia, Proc. For Research Working Group 2, Forest Measurement and Information, November 1998, Wynyard, Australia, pp. 13.
External engagement & recognition
| Organisation | Country |
|---|---|
| Curtin University | AUSTRALIA |
| Dalian Maritime University | CHINA |
| Esk Spatial | AUSTRALIA |
| Geoscience Australia | AUSTRALIA |
| OneFortyOne Plantations | AUSTRALIA |
| Swinburne University of Technology | AUSTRALIA |
| University of South Australia | AUSTRALIA |
| University of Tasmania | AUSTRALIA |
Teaching & student supervision
Teaching & student supervision
Supervisions from 2010 shown
| Thesis title | Student status |
|---|---|
| 110321 - Estimating plantation forest water use in the south east of South Australia | Current |
| Management of timber's moisture content during storage | Current |
| Strategies for Implementation of Immersive Analytics Tools in the Forestry Sector | Current |
| Verification of the stress grade of Australian softwood through alternative testing methods | Current |
