SOFTWOODS AND HARDWOODS

Chronicle (Levin), 5 June 1947, Page 7

SOFTWOODS AND HARDWOODS

— - AUSTRALIA LOOKS FOR N.Z. SUPRLIES' WELLINGTON, June 4. The' Australian Government and timber users in the Commonwealth are looking more and more to New Zealand for a supply of softwoods though, due to the extreme demand in New Zealand, only limited quantities aye available. The general feeling in Australia is that if New Zealand is to eont-iilue.to expect reasonable supplies of Australian hatd woods for essential needs, New Zealand in turn must be prepared to make available to Australia an equivalent quan tity of softwoods. This is the impression gained by Mr A. J. Seed, secretary of the New Zea land Sawmillers' Federation, who "has just returned from Australia with Mr N. E. H. Baigent, preSident of the Fed eration. He represented the Federation at the Eastern States (Australia) tim. ber industry stabilisation conference This is an annual fixtuie attended b) representatives of the sawmilling indus try,- officers of the respective Statc forestry authorities, and members oi the staff of the Commission of Scien tific and Industrial Besearch. Attention was being focussed on New Zealand as a source of softwoods, said Mr. Seed, because of the difficulty oi supply in all States and the extraordinarily high cost of Douglas fir and hemloek from the Paciffe coast -of Canada and United States, and of Baltic timbers from Sweden and Norway. High quantities of timber from thesi sources were imported into Australiii in prewar years. "Australian users are quite preparec to accept and are in fact clamouring for increased quantities of pinus radi ata (commbn pine) which is now becom ing available in the Dominion in vastlj increased quantities," said Mr. Seed "The only limitation that the Sawmillers' Federation at present foreseef. on any expansion of production in pinui radiata, is the question of manpower, maehinery and equipment. These prob lems have not yet been lessened in anj degree from the wartime situation From eight to ten new miiling undei takings, all on a fairly large scale, ari projected in the afforested areas but the question of when they may be abk to get into production is governed en tirely by the faetor of obtaining new equipment from overseas, either from United Kingdom or United States." As the result of several visits tc various forests under the jurisdictioi.' of the New South Wales Forestry Com mission, and of several visits mad^ in Victoria last year, the New Zeafanc. delegates to the conference have re turned fully convinced that, unclei proper forestry management and sus tained yield cutting, the existing hard wood forests of Australia are capabit of meeting the whole of the needs for hardwoods both in the Commonwealth and New Zealand at present.