Care of kiwi habitat

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32629, 10 June 1971, Page 1

Care of kiwi habitat

(N.Z. Press Association) WELLINGTON, June 9. The Forest Service had from the outset concerned itself with the preservation of the kiwi habitats, said the Deputy Director - General of Forests (Mr M. J. Conway) today.

The service had invited the Nature Conservation Council and the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society to inspect the areas being considered for beech use, so that their views could be taken into account before the areas to be reserved were decided.

Mr Conway was commenting on the decision of the ! society to urge the Govern-

ment not to cut down thousands of acres of South Island beech forest, which shelters many kiwis. Mr Conway said that in the West Coast scheme 43,000 acres had already been set aside as amenity forest, 30,000 acres as biological reserves, and more than Im acres as protection forest. “Moreover,” he said, “within the acres of beech forest to be converted to pines there will still be some indigenous forest.

“I am sure that adequate, indeed generous, provision is being made for the preservation of kiwi habitats, and the Wildlife Division of the Department Of Internal Affairs is being consulted to ensure this.” The Nature Conservation Council does not share the Forest and Bird Society’s con-

cem for the West Coast beech forests.

Two representatives of the society accompanied the conservation council and officials of the Forest Service on an inspection tour of forests last April. After the tour, the council met at Westport, and its chairman (Dr R. A. Falla) said the council was satisfied that an industry proposed for the area by the Forest Service was practical, and could be managed to protect the resource and ensure longterm use.

The council still had to consider the use of beech in Southland and South Westland, and it would need to consider all areas as a whole when making its report to the Government. Dr Falla then said he expected the council would

have its final report ready by June. Dr Falla’s statement cleared the way for the Forest Service to make an economic appraisal of the huge area of beech which stretches from the Mokihinui River in the north to the Taramakau River in the south, and extends as far inland as Maruia.

The department plans to study such things as labour requirements, transport, production of chip, pulp and paper before calling for world-wide proposals on the development of the resource. In an interview in Westport at the time, Mr Conway said the siting of the milling plant would be mostly up to the successful company. It would be at least two years before a final decision could be made on whether to go ahead.