The Government must immediately stop exports of unprocessed West Coast windblown rimu and beech, New Zealand First says.
The Coast timber was the only native timber that could be exported without processing, the party said.
The West Coast Windblown Timber (Conservation Lands) Act, which was "bulldozed" through Parliament under urgency a year ago, had removed from Coast timber the protections recently confirmed for Northland swamp kauri, said primary industries spokesman Richard Prosser.
"New Zealand First opposed the bill because the Government refused to require windblown timber to be processed before export, as is required of any other native timber from any source.
"The Act specifically allows for rimu and other timber recovered after the 2014 storm on the West Coast to be exported in plain-sawed form, when this is specifically disallowed under all other forestry-related legislation.
"The Government must put an immediate stop to exports of windblown rimu and beech unless it is processed - as is the case for the 20,000-year-old swamp kauri and all other native timber."
Windfall rimu was very high-value timber, Mr Prosser said. It could lie for up to five years without degrading. As sawn timber it could be stored almost indefinitely before being used.
"The windfall rimu has an estimated value of $26 million - this is worth adding value to and will create jobs and build the West Coast regional economy.
"It is short-sighted and economically foolish to export unprocessed rimu to sawmills and furniture factories overseas."
A spokesman for Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy said he was in rural Southland yesterday and could not be reached for comment.
