UNAUTHORISED.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18239, 25 November 1924, Page 6

UNAUTHORISED.

TREES CUT DOWN. PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT BLAMED. Strong comment was made at, yesterday's moeting of the Plantation Board on the action of the PuWorks Department in cutting trees on two of the Board's reserves without notifying the Board ot the m tention to do so. One member referred to the Department's action as •'extremely discourteous. . The. Superintendent I.Mr mson) reported having inspected o T Board's lines of trees have recently been bv employees ot the Puohc J\ ■ partment; without the Board s having been obtained or any notificaHon received that the removal of such timber was necessary to_ afford secuntj to the adjacent electric power • •'lt is needless, perhaps, to empire the extreme danger associated v ith 1 discriminate cutting of this Kind. U - dared the report- On one resenc about 20 trees, comprising spruce. larcU and oak about 25 years old, had been felled, and on the other reserve another 25 pines had received the same, treatment. The tr«-cs were tolled without anv n.t,tempt- to clear up the debris, and, as might be expected, the danger from fire was greatly emphasised by the presence of drying branchwood flinging on tho main roadways. From the commercial aspect, the value of the timber. destroyed could not be highly assessed. although marginal timber-cut-ting certainly weakened the interior of plantations, "especially in localities notorious for strong nor -westers. For protective purposes, it would be neeessarv■ to burn off the dry branchwood. He stronglv recommended that the Public "Works Department be requested either to undertake the work under expert sune.rvision, or defray the cost of r,uch work if carri?d out by the Board. An expenditure of £lO would probably .meet the.position, Mr S. A. Staples (the chairman): They should have notified ug first! Mr.G. Witty,.M.P., moved: "That the Board objects to the Department's cutting trees without notification to the Board, and that the Board would hold the Department responsible for - any damage done as a result." Mr Witty said it was-a. great discourtesy on the part oi the Department to ignore the Board. Mr Staples remarked that if notice had been given in time to the Boara, it could have provided for tho matter beforehand.

Mr Witty: They fell the trees, and they don't care how they do it. As a public body, they should have given us notice. The trees were.there before the wires were there. It's a ridiculous thing that these people can go into our plantation and cub trees if they want to. Mr G. Scott seconded the motion, which was carried. Mr J. Storry: Are rou going to make a claim for cleahing-up and bo on? The. chairman: Oh, yes; and also we will claim for the value of the trees cut down. Mr R. M. IX Morten: I suppose the Superintendent didn't know what was happening. I ■ The Superintendent: Not the slightest. And this is not the first occasion the thing has happened. They hare cut down trees without notification in setveral places. They have even let down ■wires and let Public Works Department horses graze on one plantation. In that ease I gave the man two hours to get off the place; otherwise I threatened to send the policeman along to him.