POWER LINE POLES.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVII, Issue 4974, 14 May 1926, Page 4

POWER LINE POLES.

BOARD’S AFFORESTATION AREA. SECTION AT WAITAKARURU. Speaking to a meeting of ratepayers at the Soldiers’ Club, Paeroa, on Saturday night last, the chairman of the Thames Valley Electric Powei B( ard (Mr F. H. Claxton), in answer to Mr W. H. Taylor, described the steps thken to ensure a supply of poles for carrying the power lines in the future. The chairman explained that live years ago the then chairman (Mr F. M, Strange) a,nd the manager (Mr R. Sprague) had visited Australia foi the purpose df investigating and airanging the supply of poles, for shipment to New Zealand to the order of the board. It was found at that time that poles were being shipped from Australia to Japa,n, .and the board ha.d to be content with tvhati it could purchase. As a result, isome of the earlier shipments contained poles other than ironbark. At the present time ironbark poles only were being purchased, a,nd these poles wtere being landed in New Zealand accompanied by the New South Wiilcs Foiestry Department’s certificate. The price of poles was increasing as the dema,nd became greater, and .the matter had been earnestly considered, by the board.

In connection with the investigations, the chairman said he wished to pay special tribute to the valuable assistance given freely by Mr H. A. Goudie, Conservator of State Forests, and his staff. The board had selected an area, at and the Forestry Department had made an inspection with board members and ha,d agreed that the land should be ideal for pole growing. The proposed, PaeroasPokeno railway would pass the corner of the area, and it was situated under four miles: from .the 13-e.a. There were 600 acres in the block, and it w'a;s proposed to plant it at the rate of about 3000 trees a year. In about 30 years the return to the board would be very nigh. The board ha,d been two years collecting datarelative to the project, and it was agreed that the area cojild not help being a profitable and wise venture. Continuing, Mr Claxton said that it wa.s nothing short of a scandal and disgrace to know that the Post and Telegraph Department had been putting -up poles in New Zealand for over -50 1 years and had made no attempt to plant an area for the [purpose of growing ite: own poles. The department, he understood, had recently let a contract with New 1 South Wales for the supply of 9800 poles, and a,s p result the price of poles', so far as the Power Board was concerned, had advanced considerably. BLAZING THE TRAIL.

Mr Claxton said that‘so fa,r as the board’s inquiries had been ma,de it had been shown that there was nothing in the way of data available asj to the durability of certain poles in New Zealand. The board W conducting certain experiments with poles on a part of Mr F. M. Stra,nge’s property at Mangaiti which he had generously set aside for the purpose. Various tests had been made, and each poll was tabulated, and the results’ would be carefully checked Piiid recorded. By s,uch means valuable inshould be available. Thirty, yeans: hence the land at Waitakaruru should be producing poles equal to or better than those that were being imported' at' present. IWhile. many in the room that night would not be spared to see the: ultimate results of the board’s undertaking, it was blazing the trail for the rising generation, which, he believed, would haye cause to thank the board of to-day for its wisdom and foresight. ... /