Railways made a large contribution to the expansion of Victoria's economy, and in the process enabled and drove environmental change. This article focuses on one industry, forestry. It first examines railway demand for timber in construction and maintenance, particularly for sleepers. This demand caused tensions – a bitter dispute in the 1890s between the Railways Department and the Conservator of Forests, George Perrin, over timber cut on state land led to uneasy co‐existence after the turn of the century. Railways not only required timber but also carried commercial quantities in bulk, providing forest industries with access to profitable markets – in particular firewood, the significance of which has been underappreciated previously. Forest products contributed substantially to railway revenue, representing a more stable source of income than other major categories of freight such as wheat, wool, and coal.

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1880 年代至 1920 年代的铁路和维多利亚森林的开发

铁路为维多利亚州经济的发展做出了巨大贡献，并在此过程中促成并推动了环境变化。本文关注一个行业，林业。它首先检查了铁路在建筑和维护中对木材的需求，尤其是轨枕。这种需求造成了紧张局势——1890 年代，铁路部门与森林保护员乔治·佩林 (George Perrin) 之间就国有土地上砍伐的木材发生了激烈的争执，导致世纪之交后的不安共处。铁路不仅需要木材，还需要大量运输商业数量的木材，为林业提供了进入有利可图的市场的机会——尤其是木柴，其重要性在以前被低估了。林产品对铁路收入的贡献很大，