SELWYN PLANTATION BOARD.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 20170, 24 February 1931, Page 6

SELWYN PLANTATION BOARD.

MONTHLY MEETING HELD. . j The monthly meeting of the Selwyn Plantation Board was held yesterday | morning, Mr Godfrey Hall, presiding in the absence of the chairman/ Mr W. Stewart. The following were pre- j sent: Messrs R. Nairn, R. M. Morten, 1 H. A. Miller, C. H. Adams, A. Ander- j son, A. E. Langdale-JHunt, C, Wolfe, W. P. Spencer, J. P. Scott, R. G. ( , ; Robinson (superintendent), and C. W. hHervey /secretary). « The superintendent's report said I 1 that fair headway had been made' with | the various works carried out. dltring month. The feather conditions | experienced lately had caused a qecided | improvement ijn the season's outlook from a forestry, point'Of- view> although. 1 many thousands of trees had failed to survive®the prolonged,-dryness. Since] the rain, however, all the young plantations had freshened np and the trees would probably make a strong autumn, development. Yearlings and 'trans* planted stock in the nursery were now quite satisfactory, although they vote being severely checked in mid-growth, and would probably be less robust than in normal seasons; The pricking off of ■ some 10,000 Cripressus macrpcarpa. in 1 trays was completed whilst' hoeing ana t j weeding jpf. seed beds and" lined/ out stock wars carried out .when: conditions became favourable for the -work. - - "Excellent headway is being made,, the report continued, /'in the- milling; of Murchison's and Hart's plantations where some 90,000 sup.,, feet of pine, and about 20 cords of slabs have been: milled. .During the past three months',' 'the following timber has been s sawn' 1 pnd disposed 0f306,600 sup; feet-of pine, 3460 sup. feet of oregon,' 1460 sup. feet of gum, and, 44 cords or sl&bwoodi ' "The tractor and several employees are now engaged in uprooting boundary gorse fences in the Dunsandel-Hororata district and extending firelines where practicable. Although"" several out-, breaks, of grastf" and fencfe .fires occurred ne'ar plantations, fortunately they were, suppressed before actually reaching the, plantation. The fire hazard, although less acute than last month,, is by no means past and patrol* work is still carried on in the more dangerous zones. Water-race cleaning," gorse; cutting and grubbing and geneyal maintenance' work wan also undertaken." / On the recommendation of the super* intendent, Reserve 1755"at Burnnam was leased for a further term of oneyear to Mr P. Chamberlain for a rent of £6. , • i . ' a Mr W. P. .Spencer reported briefly on the conference with the' Waimain County Council regarding the fire outbreaks in the, Burwood district. Mr Hall was appointed to represent the Board at the. further conference to be held, in April. The Board's solicitors, wrpte m reply ; to an enquiry whether- the Board Jhiw the power to use surplus funds other than from the sab of reserves for the purchase of land.. lhe ; solicitors set out the effect of previous Acts, affecting the Board's rights, which indicated that such power had never been granted by statutory authority; The chairman moved that the solicitors, be instructed to seek an empowering, Act to give the Board power ,to use its funds derived from any source the purchase of land. The'motion was carried and it was decided.to write to' all the district members of Parliament asking their help in having the Act ■? put through. i' " ' The superintendent reported that the sum of £l2 5s had been paid to the. volunteer workers who had given help ti in extinguishing a recent fire- m a. plantation near Burnham. The money had been ,paid at the rate of 10s a .Head with >lss to one man who had carried fire-fighters in his motor-truck;-"It was cheap at the price," remarked the chairman. . The Public Works Department applied for trees for planting at Lake Coleridge. "It is very complimentary that they should come to us,- said the,chairman, "There is the. Foresaw Department, and, after all, the Public Works Department is a Government concern, but still it, is very complimentary." It was decided to reeervethe trees jf they Were available. The accounts showed- a debit of £196 10s 4d. The chairman of the Finance •' Committee ' explained , that, there had been a g6od many salaries to be paid, while the receipts for timher, and firewood bad been smaller than: usual. Payments of £204 lis 2d were ratified,- '■ . z , * j . It was'decided that the Board should < make its annual- tour <n. inspection I throughout, the district About the "seci qnd week in April, the suggested dat^j'

being April 9th' and'JOth., \The swill be finally decjaed upon at the next meeting. , The secretary suggested that-appli-cation/ should oe made under tneUn». ' employment Board's' No." a Scheme for -free-labour* Then the Board oould pay; camping expenses ana eniploy. the * men •in clearing and-cutting out trees m the Boat's plantations. Members, said, that it would not be neceßsary""to pay the camping expenses as there were plenty of local men available in the • It *was decided, to 'leave the matter, in the hands of the secretary' ftod superintendent. \