TIMBER SUPPLIES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26274, 4 October 1946, Page 6

TIMBER SUPPLIES

EDUCATION NEEDED USE OF PINUS INSIGNUS (From Our Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, .Oct. 3. Greater use of pinus insignis timber was urged by Mr W. Sullivan (Oppn., Bay of Plenty) during consideration of 'the vote for the State Forest Service in the House of Representatives to-night. He said that New Zealand was committed to supply 12,000,000 feet of soft woods to Australia each year and he suggested that efforts should be made to arrange with Australia to take as much as possible m pinus insignis timber. Mr Sullivan said that while our production of indigenous timber had fallen from 271,000,000 feet in 1926 to 230,000,000 feet in 1946. our production of exotic timber had increased in the same period from 7,000,000 feet to 97,000,000 feet. People in New Zealand must become accustomed to using pinus insignis to a greater extent than hitherto. It was pleasing to see that the State Forest Service was trying to educate the people in that direction.' Mr H. T. Morton (Oppn., Waitemata) said he viewed with considerable misgiving the export of such large quantities of our soft woods to Australia. He knew that the reason was that we could not expect Australia to supply us with hard woods if we did not supply her with soft woods in retifrn, but he thought more use should be made of concrete for power poles. The Commissioner of State Forests, Mr Skinner, said that New Zealand had tried to make the best bargain possible with Australia. Only a small amount of building timber was being exported and if that could be reduced it would be. Australia, however, needed timber even more than New Zealand. He hoped that the day would come when all electric power poles would be of concrete instead of timber.

Mr W. J. Poison (Oppn., Stratford) said that it would be necessary to use greater quantities of pinus insignis and pinus radiata for building. His experience' was that these timbers were successful if taken from the butts of mature trees.