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The Nelson Photo News

 

36

From This....

Ask most Nelsonians to name the province's biggest industry, and the answer would probably be "fruit". Big though the fruit industry is, the timber industry, with its 30,000 acres of state forest and 38,000 acres in private forest, is so much bigger. It is a vast business, possibly brought more forcibly home to Nelsonians of late by the shipment of 230,000 cu. ft. of logs to Japan by H. Baigent and Sons. The Golden Downs forest, commenced in 1927 on land originally used to rehabilitate 1914-18 war soldiers, is the second largest state forest in New Zealand - Kaingaroa having about 250,000 acres planted. This winter the state will plant 1500 acres in pinus radiata and it is hoped to step this up to 2000 in future years. At the moment, however, at this last figure, the State has only enough land for four years' planting. Nelson timber is recognised as being better formed than that at Kaingaroa, and the timber industry will not suffer if and when Nelson gets the pulp mill industry promised by the Prime Minister before the election. In the main, only the tops of logs not suitable for timber, would be pulped.

To give our readers some idea of the magnitude of the work being undertaken at Golden Downs, we spent a whole day seeing all aspects of forest work, and the pictures we have reproduced here are typical of life in most forest camps. Above is a scene that causes furrows in the brows of people concerned with erosion, trees burned off the land. Below is an aerial view of one section of the Golden Downs forest showing what can be done to check erosion and enrich the province.