CLEARING WASTE LAND

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 153, 24 March 1939, Page 10

CLEARING WASTE LAND

Demonstration On West

Coast

USE OF MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT Influence On Development In Future Land-clearing, drainage and cultivation by Diesel-powered machinery and implements specially designed for such purpose will be demonstrated near Westpoit on Tuesday in the presence of representatives of the Government. The demonstration will be opened by the Minister of Labour, Mr. Webb, who referred in an interview last evening to the important influence it was likely to have on the land development policy of the future. The Minister of Public Works, Mr. Semple, will also be present. The machines to be used in the demonstration include treedozers, angledozers, bulldozei s, ditching and draining implements, rooters, tractors and discers.

The demonstration, sliid Mr. Webb, would take place on a specially selected area of 20 acres which, in its present condition, would provide a series of operations from clearing virgin bush, and the removal of tree stumps and timber which had previously been felled, to clearing blackberry anc. rushes, draining wet and swamp areas, mole draining, vertical draining, rooting out hidden timber and roots, discing and levelling. The machinery assembled for the demonstration was considered by the owners ol the plant to be the largest collection of equipment of its kind ever brought together for this purpose in the Southern Hemisphere. Trial work had already been done, and the amazing rapidity with which rough country had been brought into use was almost unbelievable. Hopes of Government. “The Government is hopeful,” said Mr. Webb, “that the demonstration will show that the soundest and most practical land policy that can be pursued will be in utilizing this high-powered machinery to the fullest extent in clearing the thousands of acres of swamps and ghost forests adjacent to our railways and highways. This demonstration is of such importance that I will -be delighted if farmers unions and members of Parliament, specially those representing country districts, can find it convenient to journey to Westport to see this work being performed. “The success or otherwise of this demonstration will very largely determine the Government’s attitude concerning the utilization of similar plant in other districts where such work is needed. One of the pleasing features about the plant is that, apart from the big powerful caterpillar machinery, most of the rest of the gear can be made in New Zealand. Many of the men employed at what might be considered as national but not immediately productive work could be transferred to work of this kind, though the amount of labour in proportion to the magnitude of work performed would be small because of the machines doing the work previously done by men. “It has been estimated,” said Mr. Webb, “that it usually takes three generations of farmers to bring to a high point of production much of the heavytimbered and waterlogged country. If machinery can be made to do this work it will be a godsend to the farmers and country as a whole, and it behoves the Government to assist in every way possible the utilization of the genius of man as expressed in these great machines.”

The demonstration will be repeated daily from March 28 to April 1.