Ways forward for forestry

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Opinion

Sheldon Drummond spoke to U3A this week and last month about “Slash and Forestry — A Way Forward”. What an inspirational man with a long practical and academic career in the forestry industry both in NZ and overseas.

I am concerned that the Ministerial Inquiry into Land Use in Tairāwhiti and Wairoa does not seem to have sought to consult and get suggestions from Sheldon to the extent, if any, it should have.

Sheldon acknowledged the devastation that has occurred from slash in Tairāwhiti and elsewhere, but he also spoke of solutions, which some forestry companies are already implementing.

The four main suggestions I understood him to put forward were:

1. Planting a variety of trees, especially those that coppice (send up new shoots from the stumps). A monoculture of radiata pines is not good. After being harvested, 50 percent of their root holding strength rots out within 24 months. (This was also mentioned in “Paddy Gower Has Issues” on TV 3 recently). Sheldon suggested varieties such as redwoods, eucalyptus and Acacia melanoxylon.

2. Encouragement of permanent, wide riparian strips by waterways (150m suggested). These can be planted in manuka and flaxes as nurse crops for natives. We were told a significant amount of the manuka on the Coast needs replacing to produce good flowers for bees, so this makes economic sense. The Government needs to change ETS rules to encourage wider riparian strips.

3. No radiata plantings on very steep eroding slopes.

4. Carbon manufacturing — utilising breakthrough technology, the continuous manufacture of biochar/charcoal/ activated carbon is, according to Sheldon, highly economic and creates skilled rural jobs. He said the plant was exothermic and would manufacture electricity from the surplus heat.

Forestry makes the headlines in The Gisborne Herald almost daily. We have read of the “demise of two forestry contractor businesses” and “Shredder ready to tackle slash”. With regard to the latter, Sheldon expressed concern about what we would do with massive quantities of wood chips, as they do not break down quickly.

I would like to know that in looking to our future regarding land use, forestry and any associated initiatives, Sheldon will be consulted.

N. Miller