Forests council listens to landowners’ views

Press, 1 October 1979, Page 14

Forests council listens to landowners’ views

Grazing leases should be protected and all freehold land should be excluded from any proposal to extend the Nelson Lakes National Park, says the Native Forests Action Council.

The council’s national president, Miss G. Davis, has said in Nelson that Native Forests Action Council representatives had visited residents of valleys adjoining the proposed national park to determine their views on the proposal.

Miss Davis said that if the Lands and Survey Department gave some simple and reasonable assurances, it would remove the main causes of concern among

the residents. After field investigations and discussions with the

residents, the council decided to recommend to the department that assurances

be given on three specific matters.

“We believe the gold mining operation on the Pell stream, which provides employment and income locally and has little effect on the environment., should be allowed to continue until the gold is worked out,” said Miss Davis.

“We will also recommend that the grazing leases on the Glenroy and Matakitaki river flats should be maintained if the two valleys are incorporated into the national park.”

The third matter requiring assurances was the question of freehold land. The council believed the proposed park extension should include the Spenser Range, the Lewis Pass area, and the unmodified forest of the Glenroy, Matakitaki and Alfred Valleys, which were all publicly-owned land.