STATE FOREST SERVICE

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 250, 18 July 1931, Page 12

STATE FOREST SERVICE

Amalgamation Proposals CORRESPONDENTS’ VIEWS To the Editor. Sir, —I have recently been greatly perturbed and disappointed at hearing from different sources that the Government proposes to amalgamate the State Forest Service with the Lands Department. That such action has been seriously considered appears evident from the fact that dif-

ferent bodies interested in forestry have deemed it necessary to make strong protests against it. That such action .s' still under consideration appears evident from the fact that no denial of the proposal has been given in replies to the protests made. To-day I have read m your issue of July 4 the very admirable letter of Mr. L. Macintosh Ellis, showing how . such an amalgamation would result in efliciency, with its consequent waste and the serious deterioration or an important State activity. Up till comparatively recently the importance of forestry as a national activity was so generally realised that the different political parties included it in their "platforms,” and- in Parliament members, emulated one another iu showing their interest in it.

•That the financial position and unemployment in this Dominion are matters of the gravest national concern no one would be foolish enough to deny; but I would like to point out that it was when times,were even worse in 1918 that the British Government, having learnt as a lesson of the war the unwisdom of her past neglect, decided to establish forestry as an independent branch (under a board of commissioners to free it from political interference and to ensure continuity of policy) of the Public Service. It was also ductng the war that each of the Australia States established independent departments of forestry. For what she has accomplished during the last twelve years iu forestry New Zealand has received the highest praise from overseas. If the Dominion now takes the retrograde step of amalgamating her State Forest Service with the Lands Department there will be censure from not only British countries, blit from every foreign State where civilisation has reached a high stage. At all Imperial Conferences and at the Imperial Economic Conferences forestry and Empire timber supplies have been discussed as subjects of great importance. Will our representative at the next conference say that forestry is really not a matter of serious importance, and consequently, as a measure of economy, the Dominion State Forest Service has been amalgamated with the Lands Department? ■

The State Forest Service at present controls nearly 8,000,000 acres of indi-z genous forest reserves. In 307,000 acres of plantations it has the largest manmade forests in the British Empire. The money value of these forests is nearly £40,000,000. In these forests is the Dominion’s present supply of timber. On their competent management the Dominion relies for her future timber supplies, the regularisation of the flow of her rivers, the sustaining of the equability of her climate, and the providing of recreational resorts for her people. This forest estate will in about 30 years’ time, and under competent management, return an income to the State of about £1,200,000 a year and give work to a. very large number of employees. This result most certainly will not be obtained except the forests are managed by men who have the sanffi training as is required in those countries where successful forestry is practised. It seems to be thought by some that our indigenous forests can be used and at the same time be perpetuated without the application of trained management, but this is entirely erroneous. Others, again, think that, having planted 307,000 acres with valuable foreign timber trees, all there is to do is to wait until they reach-milling size and cut them down. This is also dangerously erroneous.

The raising of trees’and establishing them in plantations is* comparatively, ah easy matter; but the proper sylvicultural management of the plantations in order to secure the largest quantity of valuable timber at the lowest possible cost is a matter that requires a staff with high technical knowledge and experience, combined with business ability. I think it has been fully established that the successful management of this Dominion’s very large and valuable forest estate and the provision of the Dominion’s future. timber supplies require the full attention of an independent department unhampered by any restrictions, except Government policy and the availability of finance, and in these matters an informed and experienced statesman will not take short views.

In the past I had several years’ service in various capacities in. the Lands Department, and I unhesitatingly assert that officers of that department have no training in forestry, nor are they required to know anything of the subject—yond a little elementary knowledge . of timber used for bridge?, etc. It would, therefore, be just as reasonable to amalgamate the State Forest Service with the Post and Telegraph Department as with the Lands Department. If amalgamation were advisable—and I am strongly of the opinion that it is not—then, with Mr. Macintosh Ellis, I agree that the most appropriate department for such amalgamation is the Department of Agriculture, for. as he states, one of that department’s main interests is the raising of crops which involves a knowledge of many of the sciences required in modern forestry. It is a curious fact that our High Commissioner, Sir Thomas Wilford—l suppose as a compliment to ,this Dominion—has recently been elected to the council of the Empire Forestry Association. If amalgamation eventuates it will be interesting to hear what Sir Thomas says when it is discussed at the council meeting, as it will be.—l am. etc., E. PHILLIPS TURNER.

Late Director of the New Zealand State

Forest Service. Hamilton, July 8. Sir, —Surely all who have any care for the forests of New Zealand, or any knowledge of forest history in other countries, will join with you in emphatic protest against the proposal to abolish the Forest Service as 'a separate entity by merging it in the Lands Department. We like to think, and not without reason, that New Zealand in many respects is a shining example; we have thought that this held true in regard to forestry also; and yet here we are proposing to revert to a system of forest control which has over and over again been tried out, and been found wanting. It is barely three years since the Empire Forestry. Conference met in New Zealand. It came here by Government invitation, it was welcomed by nil parties on arrival, and the opinion was freely expressed that its counsel and advice would be of great value to the country. No doubt they would; for at the conference nil parts of the Empire were reliresented by men of eminence in their profession, with long years of experience behind them. And yet it is now proposed to flout the considered opinion of that conference. For this very question of the amalgamation of a Forest Service with auother department was then deliberated. Delegate after delegate, from India, from Africa, from the Old Country, roundly denounced such arrangement, and in its final resolution on the basic question of forest policy the conference stated : "Experience has proved that while complete co-operation between the forestry and other branches of the public services is highly desirable, it is shortsighted economy to amalgamate forestry and agriculture in one administrative service.” , . . ■ The reasons for this viewpoint are fairly obvious, and it will suffice to name only two of the more important. In the first place, forestry is by no means a mere part-time job, that can be carried out by just anyone; it is highly specialised, and as Lord Clinton expressed it, "however good the policy outlined may be, it cannot be successfully carried out unless the members of the forestry service are fully trained and completely efficient.’’ In the second place, continuity of objective and execution are the very essence of forestry work, and it Is of paramount importance to lay down and adhere to a definite and permanent general policy. If the forest service

is subordinated as a branch to any other department it becomes impossible either to obtain this essential continuity or t > secure the requisite trained staff to attempt it. The reason for this is • When hard times come, a department whose prime interest is not forestry wl. naturally first apply the pruning knife to Its forestry section; forest policy becomes deranged, and the best intellects, are deterred from entering a profession in which the future is so dubious. Certainly if forestry is to be merged with anything else, agriculture is tlie most logical. Both deal with the growing and management of crops, and both require knowledge of the same, basic sciences. Forestry, however, ■ involves more than the planting and harvesting of a tree crop; it requires acquaintance witn commerce and manufactures and the application of sound business principles. For its absorption by the Lands Department it is hard to find any good word. The functions of the two are almost diametrically oppositg, the Lands seeking .0 dispose of country for settlement, the 1 orests striving to conserve it for timber supplies, water control, and. scenic and recreative use • the one as it fulfils i • functions will diminish in importance, the other becomes more necessary every year. At the present juncture there are many and grave problems facing the Forest Service, alike in the treatment. or the remaining areas timbered with indigenous species and in the handling 01 the vast plantations of exotics. lheir solution demands the utmost efforts ot the best procurable brains; it cannot be even hoped for if the Forest Service is to become a mere section of another department whose primary interests lie tar apart. The proposal is an utterly retrograde one, and should most emphatically be rejected.—l am, etc., OWEN JONES. Putaruru, July 12.

Sir —In your issue of Monday last I note that Captain Ellis, our .former Director of Forestry, strongly objects to the amalgamation of the Forestry Department with the Lands Department, and suggests that it would be better that they amalgamate with the Agricultural Department. From my own experience with these departments, I must say that I agree with his contentions, and while economy must be exercised during the, present hard times, the position should be carefully examined before such, a drastic change is made. Let me point out that the Lands and Agriculture are mainly administrative departments, while the Forestry Department is a purely commercial one. Their work is to sell our present timber to the best advantage, and plant further supplies in the most efficient way, and at the least possible cost. Hie Forestry Department have always kept this end in view, and to their credit.. be it said, they have succeeded in lowering the costs of establishing the State forests year by year, until to-day their work from the figures produced will compare more than favourably with similar work carried on by private enterprise. If there is to be an amalgamation of the 1 orestry Department with another, by all means let it be with the Agricultural Department, as there are more points of common interest there than with the Lanas Department. . t „ However, let me point out that there is a field of usefulness for the forest service in 1 addition, or. rather, by sion, of their present operations that nas not been gone into as thoroughly as it should have been. I refer to the utilisation of the unemployed in extending and carrying on the forest work. Let us look' into the position as we have it in New Zealand to-day. For years past we borrowed millions of money to bring our utilities —railways, telephones, public buildings, hydro-electric systems, and roads —up to date, and we forced the pace to such ah extent that we are ahead ot the population requirements, probably for ■years to come, and as a consequence the thing to do is to wait a while for the population to grow. Even when the Reform Administration was in charge there was a difficulty in finding useful and essential work on which to place the unemployed men. That difficulty has been accentuated tenfold, and now one of the greatest of our problems is to find suitable reproductive frork for the 45,000 men who will out of a job until industry can reabsorb them into its ranks again. Let me jot down the advantages gained by extending our forests:— Forestry pays by slowlv but surely building up the wealth of the nation. It may not pay big interest rates, but it will assuredly pay in the end. We have the climate that suits tree-growing and the propagation of ■ trees. We have the waste lands in plentv. both suitable and cheap. Forest planting is non-competitive work; it does not mean the displacement of one man in order to put another man on. We have the labour of a large body of men to utilise at present largely unused for any useful purpose. We have nearly td.OOy,000 in a fund from taxation which in the interests of all those who have contributed should be utilised to the best advantage. Another great advantage is that the work can be tapered off to a minimum at any time; Unemployment of the magnitude that we have now. will take some time to disappear, and if prudence is exercised there should be little loss when the necessity for giving employment ceases. Finally, vve have a well-trained forest service able to undertake the work and they have a good deal of experience in handling the unemployed. On the other side of the picture the one great obstacle is the idea that the unemployment fund should not be used for Government undertakings, and that if this is done then the rate of pay should be Government rates. Both these arguments are artificial and sentimental, and surely we have had enough of that sort of thing for a while. Let common sense prevail, and let us try and conserve a portion of this huge sum. rather than let it all be frittered away on unessential works. An amalgamation of departments means the dismissal of a number of employees, it it is to be of any economic value, but it, seems to me a much better plan to retain the employees and make better use of them. —I am, etc., O. HAWKEN. Wellington. July 9.

LARGE AREA PLANTED Last Year’s Activities An area of 7,761,166 acres, or 11.69 per cent, of the total area of the Dominion. was reserved for State afforestation at March 31, 1931, according to the annual report of the State Forest Service presented to Parliament. Regional areas reserved were shown ns follows; Auckland, 515,031 acres; Wellington, 1,034.457; Nelson, 2,235.565 ; Westland, 1,686.328; Southland, 1,231,457; Rotorua. 725,803; Canterbury, 332,525. “Afforestation operations for the year resulted in the establishment of a gross area of 53,752 acres of new plantations, or 248 acres less than the projected programme of 54,000 acres. In round figures, the total area of exotic plantations is now 307,000.” the report stated. “The thinning and clearing of the older-age plantation classes, which was undertaken on an extended scale for the first time last year, were continued, and at Conical Hills, Otago, the major portion of the plantation has now been thinned. Cleaning and underscrubbing were also carried out in the o'der plantations of Rotorua and Canterbury reg ions respectively, and it is h >ped that it may be possible to extend this silvical tural treatment, so essential to the health and maximum growth of the plantations, to cover all the older-age classes not yet dealt with. Wild animals inimical to plant and forest, growth are still very numerous, and their reduction to a safe margin is a matter of grave concern; otherwise regeneration, especially in the southern-beech forests, will soon be nonexistent. Forest pests, under nil heads, destroyed by the service totalled 64.032. and the service has official cognisance of a further 12,267 deer destroyed by private agencies, making a grand total of 76.299. It was pointed out that the area of State plantations iu the North Island was approximately 228,000 acres, as against 79,000 in the South Island. The total area of exotic plantations established bv private enterprise and local bodies was about 221.000 acres, an increase of 41.000 acres for the year. Of this total private companies had established 200.000 acres. Discussing the timber trade, the report said:—“For the year ended March 31, 1930, the production of timber showed an increase of 41 per cent, over the output for the two previous years, but the in-

dications are that there will be a decline in the figures for the year just ended, and although final figures cannot be given, as returns are incomplete, it is expected that the reduction will be approximately 30 per cent. There is a total of 420 mills iu the Dominion, including some 46 operating iu exotic plantations; but at the present time the demand for timber has decreased to such an extent that only 78 mills are working full time. 178 are working only part time, and 164 are closed. “The falling-off in demand in both domestic and export trade is world-wide, and the current sales of standing timber arc. of course, affected in direct ratio. During the depressed state of the timber market the practice of the service hns been, and is, to withhold from sale all timber except what is absolutely necessary to meet the requirements of existing operators, and to offer no timber for disposal unless it has been definitely applied for.”