2,000,000 ACRES OF SCRUBLAND TO BE DEVELOPED

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 13, Issue 83, 6 May 1949, Page 5

2,000,000 ACRES OF SCRUBLAND TO BE DEVELOPED

It is estimated that there are two million acres of fern and scrubland in the Rotorua-Taupo-Bay of Plenty areas, suitable for development, of which area five hundred thousand acres is potential dairying land.

“It seems that the Crown Lands Development Department proposes to deal with 5,000 acres per annum, at which rate it would take 100 years to grass the dairying land, and about 400 years to complete the job,” said Mr J. Scott-Davidson, member of the Dominion Lands Committee and President of Federated Farmers (Auckland Province) told the Beacon, commenting on his recent visit as a member of the Dominion Lands Committee which had made a tour of the Rotorua, Taupo districts, viewing such blocks as Maraetai, Mangakino, and Reporoa. He visited this district yesterday and addressed a farmers meeting at Edgecumbe. “Mr W. W." Mulholland, Chairman of the Dominion Lands Committee, appeared to be very impressed b v what I had shown him,” remarked Mr J. Scott-Davidson, “and I personally think it is high time not only the farming community, but the general public, realised the potentialities of these Crown lands, and just how little the Government is facing up to its responsibilities, not only in the districts which the Dominion Lands Committee visited, but also the idle lands of Northland.”

“It is obvious that a radical change of policy is needed if we are going to get anything done on this unimproved country,” Mr Scott-Davidson went on to say. “I would suggest the following programme:— (1) Break up at least 50,000 acres for sowing next autumn. (2) Subdivision according to available water supply, and suitability for grazing by large mobs of cattle. (3) Returned men desiring to ballot for sections be invited to work on the development and married quarters be provided where ..required.

(4) Water service, boring, and reticulation to be put in hand simi-1-taneously with other activities. (5) Building of permanent homes to be given priority by the Housing Department. (6) As the fertiliser required may be in excess of the capacity of the New Zealand Works then arrangements should be made to import any deficiency. “If there is faith in the potential wealth of the land by the p'owers that be, then surely it only requires vision and courage to grapple with the problems which are bound to arise in a scheme of such National importance. It is, however, only by immediately tackling this problem that not only can the Returned Servicemen be settled and the hungry mouths of Britain be fed, but also the foundation be provided to a saner economy for the ultimate benefit of New Zealanders generally.”