Forest Officer Returns From United States Visit

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 29060, 24 November 1959, Page 17

Forest Officer Returns From United States Visit

United States methods of mountain lands management and forest protection were not directly applicable to New Zealand conditions, where the problems were so vastly different, said Mr J. T. Holloway, an officer of the Forest Service, who recently returned from a watershed seminar and study tour \in America. Two months of his three months and a half stay there was devoted to a conference at Washington and a tour arranged by the Food and Agricultural Organisation of United Nations and the remaining period was related directly to forestry work on behalf of the department. The first object of the visit was to find out if overseas methods were applicable to New Zealand, said Mr Holloway. The Americans turned out a terrific volume of literature on the subject and although they used the same terms as in New Zealand it was rot possible to know if the material was applicable till a first hand check had been made on their reference terms. The conference provided an excellent opportunity to do this, and to compare problems in other countries, as 22 nations were represented. The tour was strenuous and not one he would like to tackle again, said Mr Holloway, After a four weeks’ conference at Washington, eight weeks were spent travelling to the Pacific coast by a northern route and returning by a southern route. The days were usually spent in travelling or field trips with conferences or briefing at night, often lasting until midnight. At the end of the tour a few days were in general review at Washington. He found little time for social life. Basic Problems Different

Basically the problems confronting Americans were so different from New Zealand’s that, except in a few special cases, their techniques could not be used. The worst erosion problems in the United States, were on the easy plains or downlands with highly productive soils. In most areas the climate was such the Americans were unable to keep their land under grass as was done in New Zealand and this caused them to cultivate erodible soils to grow winter fodder. They, were improving their grassland management, but the climate and traditional methods of farming were against them.

In the American high country problems were of a more localised nature, said Mr Holloway. Except for the North-west pacific area, where the rainfall was from 80 to 100 inches, 40 inches was considered a high rainfall in most of the mountain areas, most of this being winter snow, which thawed slowly and did not cause erosion. They did not have a series of mountains with the high erosion problems of parts of the South Island for the mountains were old and had lost most of the soft erodible rock, and were high plateaus, providing fertile grazing during the summer months. , Lower Rainfall The greater part of America west of the Mississippi had a rainfall of less than 20 inches, said Mr Holloway, and parts of the country, 10 times the area of New Zealand, had less than 10 inches. The bulk of their research was to get more water off the mountains. Even in a state like California they were finding difficulty in developing agriculture further without irrigation. “Most of the western states can’t develop further,” he said, “unless they get and control the last drop of water off the mountains.” Pollution Causes Anxiety There was nothing in Central Otago as dry as some of the American states, said Mr Holloway. It was not only the shortage of water that caused anxiety but its pollution. The conference party had visited one river, with a flow about that of the Avon, along which there was a population of about 500,000 and 2000 industrial plants, all drawing their water from it and putting their waste back again. At the mouth of the river was a city Using this water for its

municipal supply, he said. The water was so heavily chlorinated that when a glass of it was held at arm’s length it was still possible to smell the chlorine. This accounted largely for the American habit of using bottled drinks in preference to water. New Zealand’s problem was to keep erosion debris in place to stop it choking the nvers, said Mr Holloway. One thing that could usefully be adapted for New Zealand conditions was the measurement of water coming off the mountains, but it was extremely costly and would be more so under New Zealand conditions of stream flow.

There was one major lesson, said Mr Holloway, and that was to get action in any ;of these fields it was necessary to get back to what the Americans, referred to as the “gross route.” By this was meant gaining public approval of the work being done, stimulating • public interest and a public desire to get something done. The Americans placed considerable interest in public relations and and the educational side, as the technical and professional man could not get progress or results without the public’s co-operation. Their work in this field was something New Zealanders just could not conceive and one of the main tasks was to get the story across to the man in the street Deer Not a Problem

The problem of deer in America was completely different from that in New Zealand, said Mr Holloway, where he saw no alternative but to get as near to complete extermination as possible. In America there was usually ample summer food for them on the flatter mountain tops and in the winter their survival was determined by the amount of food available on the desert fringes. Hunters had ready access to the mountain tops and if the deer were increasing too rapidly it was just a matter of issuing more hunting licences. The hunting was something similar to duck shooting in New Zealand with the hunters taking up their stands in favoured positions.

New Zealand’s Guidance Sought While no techniques from the United States were directly applicable to New Zealand, the tour had given him the opportunity of making contacts with representatives of other lands, such as Greece, which had methods applicable here. Southern Argentina and Chile had problems similar to here but they were looking outside for guidance and eventually that probably meant New Zealand. The recent Royal Society Expedition, containing three New Zealanders, was the first direct contact in this field New Zealand had made with South America, said Mr Holloway, and it was possible two way exchange visits could develop in the interests of both countries • z .

The headquarters for this work in New Zealand was at the Ashley State Forest, while there was a field station in the Craigieburn range, said Mr Holloway. A branch station had recently been opened at Napier. All the staff attached to the Forest and Range Experimental Station had university degrees, said Mr Holloway, who has a double degree as a master of science. Some of the others had double degrees also but in addition to the educational requirements those taking the job on had to be capable mountaineers to do their work in some of the more rugged back country. Most of the staff were members of the New Zealand Alpine Club and in addition he was a member also of the London Alpine Club.