Farms, Rather Than Forests, At Eyrewell

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30405, 2 April 1964, Page 14

Farms, Rather Than Forests, At Eyrewell

The Eyrewell State Forest should not be replanted; the land should be turned over to farming, in the opinion of the West Eyreton branch of the National Party whose members held their annual meeting last evening.

Their resolution said: That in view of the proven unsuitability of the land to grow mature timber and its suitability for sheep farming the area be not replanted and as it is cleared the Government develop it for farming.

The subject was first proposed as a remit to the party’s national conference. However, Mr G. Dingle, the Rangiora electorate organiser, said he was worried about the opposition it would face at the conference from uninformed persons. He suggested it be sent as a resolution to the Canterbury division of the party with an instruction that it be sent on as soon as possible to the Minister of Forests (Mr Gerard). No Protection The motion was moved by Mr J. E. Mannering who said a lot of public money had been well spent on looking

after the trees but the best efforts of men could not protect them from the wind. They were planted in a thin layer of soil on top of running shingle and could not get a hold in the ground. Mr Mannering said there were other areas nearer the foothills in which the growth rate of trees would be two or three times faster than at Eyrewell. In these areas the fire hazard would be less. The areas near the foothills were useless for farming, he said. This was once true of Eyrewell but it was not true now.

' Improved farming techniques had made farming Eyrewell possible.

Comparison

Mr Mannering pointed out that the return from fat lambs over 30 years was greater than the return from trees “even if they did stand up.” “Some areas in the forest were not damaged, but these were young trees that had no chance of reaching maturity,” said Mr Mannering.

The chairman of the Eyre

County Council, Mr T. E. Morrell, said he was involved in the establishment of the Eyrewell forest.

At that stage much of the land was unoccupied and some was nominally owned by the

Dixon Estate, but not used,

60 Properties

However, Mr Horrell agreed that farming techniques did make farming possible, and said if irrigation farming was introduced in the area 60 farms could be sub-divided out of the forest. There was a lot of water available. Mr Horrell said he was wor- ; tied about methods of getting the proposals to the Government. Someone at the top had to do something quickly. He suggested an investigation by lan independent man.