Government Attitude To Scenery Criticised

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29273, 3 August 1960, Page 15

Government Attitude To Scenery Criticised

The Government was not interested in the preservation of scenery, said-Mr W. Campbell, at a meeting of the New Zealand Scenery Preservation Society, last evening. Mr Campbell, a member of the Fiordland National Park Board and former Mayor of Gore, was speaking on the proposed aluminium industry at Lakes Manapouri and Te Anau. About 150 attended the meeting. Which was conducted by the Mayor of Christchurch (Mr G. Manning).

The Government recently agreed to give the Australian firm of Consolidated Zinc Pty., Ltd., the right to develop the lakes for power for an aluminium industry, said Mr Campbell. Mr Campbell said that to feed New Zealand’s “exploding population,” it was necessary to draw on primary industry, on which the country depended. This, in turn, would reduce the overseas reserves. One way to overcome this was to attract overseas industry. With that in mind, the Government had signed an agreement with Consolidated Zinc. The Government, said Mr Campbell, had told an overseas company it could come and use our resources as ft liked. The

agreement had exempted the company from import and export taxes, and the Minister.had given the company “almost a blank cheque to do as they like.” “Lack of Leadership” “This adds up to a complete lack of leadership in New Zealand. Never before has New Zealand needed leadership as it does now. It is .time the -people of New Zealand took stock of what we have, and investigated’ the ways we could use it, before we give ft away.’ “We should have control over our industry, and we should be able to say what we should preserve. . It is not good enough for a politician to say there will be no despoliation of scenery when, and 1 know that they know, there will be.” Whether or not the financial

gain would compensate for the loss of scenery had to be considerd, said Mr Campbell. The gross capital income of Consolidated Zinc in New Zealand had been estimated at £36m, It had been stated previously the the industry would mean an income for New Zealand of about £2om to £Bom yearly. He could not see this, and estimated that New Zealand would get between £3m and £4m. New Zealand should have some say before it became entangled in the world-wide cartel, sgid Mr Campbell. Mr Campbell disagreed with a statement that the high waterlevel would “enhance the lakes.” The beaches would not reform he said. In Lake Aida there were submerged trees about 800 years old. He showed several slides of inundated trees at Lake Monowai. Acres of dead tree-tops could be seen above the water. “That happened 35 years ago.” said Mr Campbell, "and the bases of these trees are as sound as the day they were submerged.

He used another slide to illustrate “how raised water levels cause landslides.” The effect was noticed many feet above the surface, he said. The proposed scheme would mean submerging about 30.000 acres of bush, said Mr Campbell. It had been suggested that “a few teams of bushmen” could clear this bush, but that was impossible” and. the bush would certainly be inundated. The meeting agreed to form the New Zealand Scenery Preservation Society, which had, until the meeting, an interim committee. Officers elected were:—

Messrs A. J. Scott, I. G. Clark, A. Lush, G. Fairhurst, F. Henderson, G. H. Wood, Dr. P. Cook, and Miss J. Berry. The president wil* be elected later. A resolution requesting that “full facts and figures of the project should be. published.” will be sent to the Government