Passports and birth certificates will no longer be printed on Australian-made paper following the Australian Paper's decision to close its Shoalhaven mill.
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Australian Paper's chief operating officer, Peter Williams, said despite the company's best efforts and ongoing support from the local community, the market for specialty and security papers, including cheque and watermark papers, had continued to decline over recent years.
"Unfortunately, this has made the ongoing operation of the site progressively unviable," Mr Williams said.
"This situation has left us with no choice but to close the Shoalhaven facility which will result in the loss of 75 jobs.
"We understand this decision will be difficult for employees at Shoalhaven who have witnessed machine closures at the site in recent times as market conditions have deteriorated. We greatly appreciate their sustained hard work and commitment over many years."
The timing of the closure is yet to be finalised, but production will stop some time this year, taking customer needs into consideration.
"As we work through the details of the closure with employees, and their respective unions, I want to assure them that we will be there to help them through this process," Mr Williams said.
The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, which campaigned to save the mill, said the closure was avoidable.
Alex Millar, Secretary of the CFMEU Pulp & Paper Workers District, said the Abbott government failed to listen to the Shoalhaven community, the mill workers, and its own local member.
"They weren't asking for a handout or injection of cash, simply a change in the government's purchasing arrangements to buy more paper supplied by the mill, and less from overseas," Mr Millar said.
"This is a devastating blow to the 75 workers at the mill, and the broader Shoalhaven community. It will result in the loss of 150 flow-on jobs and $20 million in regional household income in the local economy."
The union said the decision to close the plant would be hard felt in a region already facing high unemployment.
"More than 10,000 jobs – 16 per cent of the Shoalhaven and Southern Highlands workforce – have been lost since September 2013," Mr Millar said.
"The mill has been operating since 1956 and once employed 600 people. It has been the manufacturer of Australia's passport paper for more than 30 years and is the only paper mill in Australia with the capability to manufacture security paper," Mr Millar said.
