POWER LIFT FOR BURIED FENCES

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22658, 8 June 1948, Page 8

POWER LIFT FOR BURIED FENCES

The possibility of providing mechanical plant for the recovery of fence-posts partly or wholly buried by silt in the flooded area of the Gisborne district was discussed by the Minister of Agriculture, Mr. E. L. Cullen, with representatives of the provincial council of Federated Farmers during his visit to Gisborne.

He agreed with district farmers that recovery of posts, wire and battens by manual labour was too slow to be effective, where a large area was silted, and that manual methods supplemented by timberjacks usually resulted in substantial losses of posts, particularly in the case of totara posts. Some form of direct vertical lift, he thought, would cut down breakages materially and also would speed up the work of recovery. Ho had in mind the use of a crawlertractor fitted with a derreck, which could move on the silted paddocks and could exert a strong vertical drag.

Mr. Cullen intimated that he would discuss with the Minister of Works, Mr. R. Semple, the possibility of making plant available for employment in this way. It was particularly desirable, he said, that every sound post and every yard of reasonably good wire should be recovered from the silted areas.