Ways of conserving native trees studied

Press, 10 September 1984, Page 12

Ways of conserving native trees studied

By

OLIVER RIDDELL

in Wellington

Unless measures are taken now to preserve the remnants of native forests in the landscape, it is feared that these remnants will be only insignificant features in some regions by the year 2050.

This conclusion at a seminar earlier this year, convened by the Nature Conservation Council, was reached by the various groups and organisations and Government departments involved and is now leading on to specific action. Those involved have (for the last three months) been looking at ways of promoting increased planting and care of native trees and plants on privately owned rural land.

Forestry encouragement grants and land development incentives have contributed to the loss of native vegetation on a lot of privately owned land, replacing native species by exotics or pastures. Physical damage

by stock, noxious animals and wind exposure contributed too.

Many people want to keep native vegetation on their land but are given little incentive to do so, particularly if the areas in question are too small to qualify for some form of legally recognised protection, according to the Nature Conservation Council.

Some parcels are being fenced off and protected under the open space covenants of the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust. However, this does not offset the continuing losses, and some people do not choose this form of protection. There is an increasing awareness of the importance of retaining indigenous remnants and, where appropriate, replanting with native species.. Most county councils favour preservation of native forest wherever possible, and district schemes have provision for this. Catchment authorities are con-

cerned with erosion and generally encourage retention of natural vegetation and, where necessary, plant-

ing. The Queen Elizabeth II National Trust has about 200 open-space covenants in E lace or being negotiated, andowners are helped with fencing costs, with the value of most of the areas being scenic rather than ecological..,'

Many of the areas offered for covenant have failed to meet the trust’s criteria. These have been recorded separately, and five land management areas have been set up by the trust to encourage good land use. The Ministry of Agriculture recognises that some land is best left as forest. It will advise on how to fence off native remnants, and which native species make good shelter belts. The Farm Forestry Association sees native species becoming increasingly valuable, and it is interested in conserving

native bush and in encouraging regeneration. Some stands could be managed productively for wood or other products. Some existing stands of native trees would benefit from being linked. The Beautiful New Zealand committee has been approached to help with this. It was set up to encourage planting of both native and exotic species along the main roads and is not yet empowered to work on private land. However, it is interested in working with other organisations. Both the Nurserymen’s Association and the nurseries administered by the Department of Lands and Survey promote the planting of native varieties and are happy to advise people on what to plant. The Institute of Landscape Architects is preparing a manual for school use on which species to plant in which locations, while the Royal Institute of Horticulture is also involved in education.

Some interest has been shown in forestry encouragement grants for indigenous plantings, according to the Nature Conservation Council.

However, there is a limit on how far these can be made because of the desire to ensure the plantings for

which grants are claimed are intended for production. There might be a tighter control of grants for exotic forestry. No policy exists at present whereby a development grant would not be made available if it involved clearing native bush. The . Government is being urged, under its indigenous forests policy, not to encourage any action to clear bush from private land. The Forestry Council’s policy guidelines for private indigenous forests emphasise three points about native bush on privately owned land: 9 The decision to clearfell should not be taken lightly; • The rights and wishes of the private owner should be respected; and @ Changes to existing landscape should be one of the factors considered before a decision is taken to log indigenous forest. While it would be desirable to have an inventory of native remnants as a starting point, the Nature Conservation Council says there is no point in waiting for an inventory to be completed. It says that the priority is to encourage landowners with indigenous forest to care for it, and where necessary, to do further planting.