THE FUTURE IN THE DISTANCE

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 186, 12 January 1912, Page 7

THE FUTURE IN THE DISTANCE

DUNE AREAS AND DANGER.

(By Wm. T. Jennings.)

Where there is so much to read in the way of Parliamentary papers, there is great danger of useful publications being overlooked; and in case of our "Report on the Sand Dunes of New Zealand" may I crave a little of your space. During my recent tour in the north-western portion of the Taumarunui electorate I was struck with the extraordinarily rapid spread of sand in one portion of the Mokau-Mohakatino district. Though I have travelled the Mokau road scores of times the past ten years, I never noticed the sand creeping (like a paralysis) over good grass country until I rode by on October 31 last. It may have been occasioned by the wind-drift being in that localityfo'r a long period. Whatever the cause may be, it was there, as Sam Weller says in Pickwick, " a selfevident fact." On my return from Okau to Mokau on November 28, nearly a month later, the sand had come right •ver the hills, and in two places had formed mounds of a decent size, on the Mokau roadside I drew attention to the danger at my Mokau meeting, iino\ :! ad-' vised that immediate attention by the owner should be directed against'the invasion, as I had seen what had happened at Marokopa in a short space of time. The drifting sand in portions* of Marokopa and Kawhia has played havoc; and in some places you would think that the houses were built on sand. Residents informed me that, the drift has taken place within a few years. I advised application being made to the Minister for a supply, of marram' grass and tree lupin, al the Department was dealing with this serious matter. ; Now, the "Report on the Dune-Areas of New Zealand; their Geology, Botany and Reclamation," by L. Cockayne, Ph.D., F.L.S., is a very valuable and.interesting document, and we}l, worth perusing. It is with the object of getting more publicity for it that I ask a little space of your paper. The report occupies seventysix pages, and is illustrated, the photos showing clearly what has been done in the way of planting, and the result of same. One photo, is particularly striking, as it shows a' crop ! of oats growing on naturally fixed dune ridge in Western Wellington; another photo, shows grazing land turning by drifting sand into a river-bed. In his:introductory remarks, Dr. Cockayne, inter alia, says:— "It is tne coastal dimes, however, which' are of prime moment, as, in the ' first place, they form a natural defence to the land against the encroachment of the sea, and, in the second place, their movement inland is a national concern, since : through their advance much valuable land has been' ruined in the past, while yearly further • destruction takes place, jfche evil at the same time becoming more difficult to suppress. Such depredation, confined as it is to a limited and little-visited area, and appearing to. ' be the affair merely of the few whom it affects, is apt to be overlooked, while I the comparative slowness of its action I j tends to make its extreme importance for mischief underestimated. Nor is it ' generally known how large an area in I New Zealand is occupied by these more I or less moving sands and virtually a desert, but which, judging from the' experiences of Europe, might be rendered not only harmless, but a source of wealth to the nation, ' Roughly speaking, thero are in.the North Island 290,000 acres and la the So.uth Island, 24,000 acres. Figures: such as those bring home at once the importance of the dune question. This has indeed to some extent been recognised by the passing of the Sand' Drift Act of .1907, but which has not as yet been put into,force. Also, a bonus is given to suchles'sees bf Crown dune-areas as plant 'them'|'with certain specified plants, but this arrangement as '"'now existing is not likely to lead to ahy [useful results." .. ' Dr; CockayW cScnauVtiVely goes into the whole question, and the objects of dune culture, what has been achieved in 'Europe, and showing how urgent the question had become;in Great Britain; where a Royal Commission.recently dealt with the matter and issued a voluminous report. An invaluable contribution in the reportis from the pen of R. Speight, M.Sc, F.G.S., lecturer on geology, Canterbury 'College,;,, jTliis writer shows the origin of duueVahd', material of dunes, ■ and the movement of sand by the wind (gives' instances where the sand drift is carried inland in Central Otago for over (twenty miles)V 'The report deals very fully with a description of suitable plants for dune reclamation;" marram grass and tree lupin being favored j the methods of planting and cost of marram grass planting, which runs from £1 10s per acrein ,T,aranaki to £8 per ficre in New Brighton, Canterbury.. The report concludes with the statement: "Dune reclamation the world over has been considered rather the work of the State than of the individual," and Dr. Cockayne further savs:

"It seems to me the Government should proceed with great caution. 'Too little is know regarding the capabilities of our dune-areas for improvement to predicate an easy, success, while still less is known as to the cost of such an undertaking. Could;this barren land be turned into foresti even were the cost greater than that of afforestation' the work;, would cry aloud for its accomplishment. But even a profound knowledge of.ordinary'afforestation methods, and'their expense, is of no moment with regard to planning work on the dunes. Before afforestation Can be begun, experiments as to its feasibility should be carefully carried out, and, along with such, other experiments showing various methods of dune reclamation and their cost. Experiments such as these are of equal im-portance-with arly that can be designed on the experiment farms, and they have the merit of being eminently practical. If they should show the best'*nd cheapest methods of stopping sand-drift and checking wandering dunes they would pay handsomely.' \ And if they should 'sH6\V, 'further,;' that the" present Crown lands; wastes Of sand as they are, can be turned into forest, which' willnot only be pecuniarily remunerative but will break the sea wind for miles along the shore, then would'the cost be returned a hundredfold."

The fact that every year of delay increases tlie evil is a reason why the matter should be tackled at once.