DIVERSION OF TIMBER TRADE

Greymouth Evening Star, 6 February 1947, Page 2

DIVERSION OF TIMBER TRADE

Serious Loss To. Greymouth Workers

The serious decline in the shipments of timber from the port of Greymouth to the new low record established last year of 8,561,597 board feet does not mean that the production on the West Coast has declined to a like extent. Actually, the.total production on the West Coast last year, 55,456,000 board feet, was only slightly over 1,000,000 feet less than in 1945. The crux of the situation is that the amount of timber leaving the port is determined entirely by the amount of shipping space provided and this has steadily declined. . • . The result, from the point of view of the Harbour Board, members of the Waterside Workers’ Union, and the town generally is serious. With less shipping, the harbour revenue is declining and the wages paid for the loading of timber at Greymouth, of direct benefit-to the. watersiders and indirectly to all sections of the community, are now but a fraction of the total a few years ago. It is estimated that the decrease of approximately 6,000,000 feet in the amount of sawn timber shipped from Greymouth to the North Island last year, as compared with 1945, meant that between £4OOO and £5OOO less was paid out in wages to the watersiders. Going back to .1941, when timber shipments totalled nearly 38,000,000 board feet, it is estimated that about £20,000 more was expended on waterfront labour than was the case last year. Although the decrease in timber production must be allowed for, it is obvious, that the timber hauled by rail through the Otira tunnel has increased in direct ratio., to the decline in shipments. Out of the 55,465,000 board feet produced on the West Coast last year, approximately 6,000,000 feet was utilised for buildina and other purposes on the West Coast, leaving nearly 50.000,000 to be delivered to other markets. A relatively small proportion went to Australia (through the port of Lyttelton) and the balance was railed to other South Island towns. South Island Quotas The distribution in the .South! Island, which has greatly increased with the reduction in North Island shipments is not, however, haphazard. It is arranged methodically on a quota system, the actual quotas having been agreed upon by the

Timber Controller (Mr A. R. Entrican) and the West Coast .Sawmillers’ Association! • These quotas are fixed on estimates of the amount of timber required by each .centre, taking population and other factors into , consideration.,., -With the prevailing shortage of timber, however, no one district receives 100 per cent, of its requirements. The lack of shipping space for the transport of West Coast timber to the North Island has thus resulted in the South Island receiving larger supplies than would normally be the case and the carrying trade, as far as timber, is concerned, has gravitated away from the sea services to the railways. The destination of the timber milled on the West Coast is decided upon at higher levels than the millers themselves. All shipping to and from Greymouth is provided by the Shipping Controller and all space so provided is filled by the West Coast millers, under direct instructions from the Timber Controller, Thus, if twice the amount of shipping space had been provided last year the figures for the amount of timber shipped would not have shown the big reduction on the previous year. Wartime Changes Big changes in.the disposal of tne timber occurred during the war years, with the heavy drain o.n available shipping tonnages and, so far, there has been no indication of a reversal of the trend. For instance, there was formerly a direct timber shipping service between Greymouth and Auckland, with regular consignments, but there has been no such shipment since September, 1945. The Gabriella is now the only vessel carrying timber regularly between Greymouth and Wellington, whereas there were formerly a number of vessels making similar- trips at intervals. The reduction in the timber shipments has, of course, become even more marked with the loss of the direct trade with Australia, which has been the subject of prolonged discussions among the interested parties. Just before the war, between 8,000,000 and 9,000,000 board feet a year was loaded at Greymouth for Australian ports but during the war this trade dwindled to vanishing point, where it has remained.