PORTS AND SHIPPING

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23767, 21 September 1940, Page 10

PORTS AND SHIPPING

The idea of concentrating export cargoes at main ports to save time and increase efficiency has been endorsed by the Wellington Chamber of Commerce, responding to a suggestion from the Auckland Chamber. It is an old question which much has been said, but little done. As the president said in Wellington, there is bound to be a storm of protest from the smaller ports. There always has been at similar suggestions in the past, for reasons that can be understood, if not endorsed. But the time may come when such considerations will not be tenable for reasons beyond the control of anybody in New Zealand. The war is taking toll of shipping, as was inevitable from the first. It has not been at an alarming rate, but the losses have been sufficient to make careful use of tonnage necessary. Any substantial inroad into the specialised shipping needed to lift New Zealand's perishable export commodities might easily make it essential to use what remained in the most efficient and economical manner possible. The losses in this field have been fortunately light so far, thanks no doubt to the convoy system and, without question, to the ceaseless vigilance of the Royal Navy. Nevertheless the needs of the war and possible losses may demand that more speedy loading which only concentration at a few ports allows. It would be as well to get used to the idea, and even better to make plans so that if the demand for action does come it can be undertaken without hesitation or delay.