POWER BOARD POLES.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXV, Issue 4746, 3 September 1924, Page 1

POWER BOARD POLES.

THE PLANTING OF TREES. ACTION OF COMMITTEE. At yesterday’s meeting of the Thames Valley Electric Power, Board the following report was submitted by a special sub-committee appointed to go into the question of the planting of trees by farmers, and also the preservation of poles : “This matter has been fully discussed. and acting on the recommendation of Mr H. A. Goudie, Conservator of State Forests, we recommend that a circular be sent to all farmers in the Board’s territory, giving them the species that can.be grown in their locality, as suggested by the Forestry Department, in order to ensure a, supply of locally-grown power poles, which could be purchased by the board to the advantage of the grower and the board. TREATMENT OF POLES. We recommend that a portion of the shipment of poles by the Louis Theriault now being discharged be given two brush applications of preservative, This is for experimental purposes, in order to ascertain the actual cost o' treatment by the process, “It was also decided to obtain from the Forestry Department the cost per acre for planting of trees, and also the maintenance of same per annum, and, further, the possibility of any suitable areais being available for this purpose in the Board’s territory.” The chairman said that it would depend entirely upon the cost and the extra life of the poles after treatment. So far the board had no indication as to what the cost of treating the poles with preservatives would be. Mr Thomas urged that instead of all the poles from the one shipment being treated a number of poles from several shipments should be treated, and that the poles so treated should be scattered about the district, Mr McCormick considered that if the sap was cut from the poles at the- . grouna level the poles would last longer. It was the sap, he said, which rotted the poles, and that usually commenced at the ground level. Mr Flatt said that although it would be necessary .to wait a number of yeans before the result of the treatment of poles was known, he thought the board was working on the right lines. Mr Arthur asked if, similar experiments had been made in America. Mr Gauvavn replied that experiments'had been made in America, but the soft timbers of America allowed of a greater penetration of the preservatice than 'did the Australian hardwoods.