Central Otago Peat May Be A Valuable Building Material

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27277, 31 December 1949, Page 4

Central Otago Peat May Be A Valuable Building Material

Special Correspondent

WELLINGTON, Dec. ’ 30. The use of peat and other materials to be found at Hyde, Central Otago, for the manufacture of building materials, timber preservatives, stains and polishes is envisaged by Mr H. Hill, of Wellington, who has recently visited Central Otago. Mr Hill has spent three years experimenting with peat with its use in the building industry in view.

He is soon to establish a factory at Paraparaumu, near Wellington, on an area of peat land and expects to have timber preservatives, stains and polishes on the market in Wellington early in the New Year. Ultimately, wallboard and roofing materials in the form of either tiles or sheeting may be produced at his factory. Mr Hill said Hyde is the only place he has visited in New Zealand which has all the ingredients necessary for the production of building materials and if factories are established in other parts of New Zealand such as Waikato, where peat is plentiful, Hyde would be able to mine and send away ingredients other than peat which are valuable in the process he has developed. He believes a liquid which can be extracted from peat by a simple process would be a reliable preservative for pinus insignis in particular. The land from which peat is taken is useless for agricultural purposes. Building material which Hill has made with peat as a basis is, he claims, fireproof and will not readily crack. It can also be painted and will take rough casting.