Plans to establish a ‘demonstration forest’ at the Whakatāne District Council’s Onepū Forest have been revised, and the 30-hectare block will now be replanted in pinus radiata.
The block was vested in the former Whakatāne County Council by the New Zealand Government in 1929 and can only be used for forestry purposes. Since the last tree crop was harvested in 2014, the Council has investigated ways of having the land utilised for purposes more in keeping with the surrounding farming, horticultural and lifestyle block activities, without success.
A concept plan was accepted by the Council last year to plant the forest in a variety of pine and indigenous tree species, to be managed in conjunction with Scion and local high schools, with a view to developing recreation facilities such as walking and mountain biking trails and picnic areas, as the forest developed.
Speaking to a report received by the Council earlier this month, Mayor Tony Bonne said that a stalemate position with regard to the forest needed to be resolved. “We can’t give the land back to the Government; we can’t sell it or use it for more appropriate activities than forestry; and we have not been able to obtain the funding needed to create a multi-use demonstration forest and community recreation resource,” he said. “If we don’t replant the forest quickly, we will be liable for deforestation costs under the Government’s Emissions Trading Scheme, and given that these will exceed the cost of replanting, I think it’s time to move on.”
The report indicated that the cost of preparing the land, spraying and planting seedlings was just over $58,000, while Emissions Trading Scheme deforestation costs were estimated at $96,000. Current market estimates indicate that after a 25-year crop rotation, the potential yield after logging costs could be in excess of $1.35 million.
Council elected members approved a recommendation that a contractor be engaged to oversee the replanting of the block in radiata pine during the current planting season and also directed that discussions be initiated with the Government with a view to divesting the land.
It’s hoped that school forestry programmes will still be involved in the future maintenance of the block, and that recreational opportunities will be available once the trees reach an appropriate size.