Farm Forestry New Zealand

Action Group weekend - reminder to register for dinner
 

FFR Steepland harvesting programme
 

National consistency for plantation forests- National Environmental Standard (NES)
 

2014 Forest Growing Research Conference - More Income, Less Risk
 

Bioenergy Association conference - Using commercially ready technologies to bring biofuels and co-products to the market
 

Independent Forestry Safety Review - FINAL REPORT
 

NZFFA website - blogs now in action
 

President
Ian Jackson ijacko@xtra.co.nz
-Ashburton
-South Canterbury
-North Otago
-Sthn High Country (north)

Vice President
Dean Satchell dsatch@gmail.com
-Far North
-Mid North

Newsletter editor
Dean Satchell
dsatch@gmail.com

National Office
Association Manager Glenn Tims
admin@nzffa.org.nz
Phone: 04 4720432
 

Executive

Angus Gordon angusg@xtra.co.nz

-Taupo & Districts
-Middle Districts
-Taranaki
-Hawkes Bay

Neil Cullen cullen@farmside.co.nz
-Mid Otago
-South Otago
-Southland
-Men of Trees
-Sthn High Country (south)

Hamish Levack hlevack@xtra.co.nz
-Gisborne East Coast
-Wairarapa
-Wellington

Patrick Milne patrick@cypress.co.nz
-West Coast
-Central Canterbury
-North Canterbury
-Marlborough
-Nelson

Peter Berg
thebergs@ihug.co.nz
-Lower North
-Waitomo
-Waikato
-Bay of Plenty
 

Notices:

Awards: Nominations are required asap for the NZFFA awards so that judging can be carried out and all in good time prior to Conference in Whangarei in April 2015.

Special Council meeting, 5 November: Please contact Glenn Tims at head office with comments and feedback on the papers and agenda linked to here:
Items for discussion
NZFFA management structures, a case for change?
The agenda for this meeting is available to download here>>

Events: Branch secretaries, please notify head office of any branch or action group events.
 

For more information on these events they are posted on the website >>
 

• Puhoi forestry field day: Auckland Council are holding this at Simon Bayer Road, Puhoi, 1pm 17 October.
   
• Mid North field day: Logging radiata pine and tour of Tawapou native nursery, 606 Main Road matapouri, 18th October 10.30 AM
   
• Middle Districts branch field day: Raetihi, October Field Day at Raetihi, Tues 21st 10.30am. Vaughan Kearns’ Ruapehu Sawmills, Ameku Road, Raetihi.
   
• Otago-Southland Forest Products Industry Meeting: Thursday 23 October 2014, Rosebank Lodge, Balclutha, 5.30pm
   
• 2014 Forest Growing Research Conference - More Income, Less Risk: 29 October 2014 - 31 October 2014, Rydges Hotel, 272 Fenton Street, Rotorua.
   
• Gisborne East Coast field day, Black walnuts: Sunday 2nd November. For details contact Nick Seymour pnseymour@xtra.co.nz
   
• NZFFA Action Group Weekend - Taking our wood to market: Tauranga 8th/9th November, 2014. Growing, sawing & selling alternative timber species.
   
• South Otago field day: Rob and Brigetta Hewett, Manuka Gorge, Lawrence, on Friday 21st November starting at 2pm.
   
• Southland branch Celebrates 50 years, Sunday 23 November 2014.
   
• Industry Forum on Future Opportunities in Harvesting and Logistics Research: Forest Industry Stakeholders are invited to an open forum workshop to discuss future opportunities in harvesting and logistics research, to determine industry priorities for future research and develop a broad programme outline.
   
• Swiss Needle Cast workshop: 2-3 December 2014. This workshop will discuss what we know about Swiss needle cast and how we can still grow more and better Douglas-fir in New Zealand despite it.

Tauranga 8th/9th November, 2014

Please confirm numbers for Sat 8th Nov. dinner by 31st October;
to Gabrielle Walton 075444632 / 0276644987 gabrielle.walton@xtra.co.nz

Weekend Details : http://www.nzffa.org.nz/events/nzffa-action-group-weekend-/
 

FFR Steepland harvesting programme
 

Website Publication Update: The Steep Land Harvesting programme has recently uploaded documents available for NZFFA members to view as a member of this programme. NZFFA members can access the FFR website via the Members area.
Recent documents include:

• Scorpion Log Grapple Carriage - Index Engineering Ltd
• Harvesting Cost and Productivity Benchmarking: 2013 Update
• Innovative Yarding Systems - A Review of Literature
• Outhaul Distance Measurement
• Alpine Grapple Carriage - From Prototype to Production

These reports can be found in the Harvesting Programme Technical Reports & Harvesting Programme Tech Note Reports areas of the FFR website. Start in the members area of the NZFFA website, you'll be able to login to the FFR website from there.
 

National consistency for plantation forests- National Environmental Standard (NES)
 

MPI is currently developing RMA controls for Plantation Forestry and identifying areas where greater national consistency may be achieved. MPI proposes four November workshops in locations that have a large and active membership, and where possible are close enough for members from neighbouring branches to travel if they would like to attend.

1.       South Otago;
2.       Hawkes Bay or Middle Districts;
3.       Northland / Upper North Island; and
4.       Canterbury.

Details to come later.

Comment from Peter Weir, Chair Joint NZFOA & FFA Environment Committee:

From a farm forestry perspective the proposed national rules may prove a tad controversial. There will probably be a legal requirement for 5m plant & replant setbacks from all streams with permanent flow and 10m setbacks from all streams wider than 3m (bank to bank). Also a 10m plant & replant setback from property boundaries (unless in common ownership). This points towards a strategy of a fringe crop of UMF manuka for honey, or amenity rather than production species, but the NES does require riparians planted in plantation species along streams to be quite wide to minimise edge effects on wood quality. 
 

Regional issues:
 

Canterbury and Otago
If the Forestry NES becomes operative as proposed, nothing much changes in Canterbury except for a requirement to use Scion’s Wilding Risk Calculator. If the score exceeds ~12 then a consent will be required to plant new land, or alternatively a change to radiata from a more spread-prone species (eg D-fir) on replant. This probably points to P.attenuata for replant in areas where radiata has been snow damaged if the farm forester is adverse to seeking resource consents to address the wilding issue (which will almost certainly involve conditions to clear the downwind neighbours land of any wildings that spread).
The Forestry NES won’t over-ride any ECAN rule on planting limitations in “water sensitive catchments” where existing runoff is already allocated (for downstream abstraction for irrigation). In fact the forestry NES won’t trump the NPS on fresh water (the attached useful draft from MfE explains the relationship of the NPS-FW and an NES.
Canterbury (and Otago/Southland) have very little LUC class 6e & 7e land under plantations that is mapped as being truly susceptibe to erosion, Mt Fyfe at Kaikoura & Mt Grey at Oxford excepted, hence few Orange or Red zones earthworks or harvest rules, thus most activities remain Permitted.

Middle Districts
Things are quite different in your part the North Island.  The Horizons One Plan is now very Permissive for forest owners (thanks to the efforts at mediation of a group of larger forestry companies). The NES would reintroduce consenting for Harvesting on Red Zones and for Earthworks on Orange & Red Zones (of which there are plenty) when it's currently not required by Horizons.
Everyone should adjust to the current Horizons requirement of having to prepare an erosion & sediment control plan before harvest, to be available to the Council on request in order to operate as a Permitted activity

Far North
National rules around shading sealed or public roads between 10 am & 2pm on the shortest day of the year  to avoid ice may raise eyebrows in Northland (which raises questions about the average shelterbelt on north side of the road, but shelterbelts are not captured by the NES). Maybe you want to lobby for a North of the Bombay Hills exception?

Nationally
Culvert rules get a bit tighter most places (NES requires design to pass 1 in 20 or 1 in 50 year flood with no “heading up”, sets minimum diameters – end of the Farm tough 200mm from CRT or RD1)
If a farm forester is (un)fortunate enough to have land zoned in the District Plan as an outstanding landscape then in the NES as proposed, a consent will be required to plant that land as a plantation
 

The purpose of this summary is to help engage NZFFA members.
 

Independent Forestry Safety Review FINAL REPORT
 

An agenda for change in the forestry sector

OFFICIAL LAUNCH
31 October 2014 - Distinction Hotel, 390 Fenton St, Rotorua, 11.00am – 12.30pm
Come and hear:

• The panel present their findings
• The industry’s endorsement
• Presentations on best practice in the sector

For the past nine months the Independent Forestry Safety Review Panel has engaged in a thorough process of consultation and analysis of the factors impacting health and safety in the forestry sector. The Report contains a package of practical recommendations that represent the additional steps necessary to bring about long-term, system-wide and integrated changes.
 

THE VISION
A safe, sustainable and professional forestry sector by 2017, achieved in partnership by government, industry and workers. More>>
 

We look forward to seeing you there,
please RSVP by 28 October to glen.mackie@nzfoa.org.nz
 

2014 Forest Growing Research Conference - More Income, Less Risk

29 October 2014 - 31 October 2014
Rydges Hotel, 272 Fenton Street, Rotorua

All forest growers have two things in common: a wish to increase their forest income and to reduce the risks to their forests.
 

Find out what our forest scientists are doing to achieve these ends, using funds raised by the new forest growers’ levy.  Learn about their research programmes, the results to date and the expected benefits for you as a forest grower:

• Better financial returns from new and existing forests
• Improving the health and resilience of forests to pests and diseases
• Maintaining our ‘licence to operate’
• Species for diversity and risk management    
• This is a ‘must attend’ for everyone who wants to improve the profitability of their forests.

More >>
 

Bioenergy Association conference - Using commercially ready technologies to bring biofuels and co-products to the market
 

17 October, Rotorua. There are still some vacancies for this conference. 40% discount on the remaining seats. Of special interest to those interested in transport biofuels. Three international speakers will provide a perspective for potential investors. More>>
 

NZFFA blogs now in action 

The NZFFA website now has Members Blogs. If you want to blog about anything forestry or farm forestry then we'll set you up with your very own blog. If you don't know what blogs are, then go take a look anyway. Blogs are essentially opinion pieces that invite others to comment. This is the place where our more outspoken members can have their say and other members can reply. This results in open conversations and improved knowledge. Just to get the ball rolling I've produced my own blog recently called Global emissions and biofuels. It starts like this:
 

Global emissions of carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels and cement production grew 2.3 percent to a record high of 36 billion tonnes CO2 in 2013. CSIRO's Dr Pep Canadell, Executive-Director of the Global Carbon Project (GCP) and co-author of a 2014 report said the carbon dioxide level was "unprecedented in human history". Global CO₂ emissions from fossil fuel carbon dioxide emissions are projected to increase a further 2.5 per cent this year.
Meanwhile Indonesia’s deforestation rate has become the world’s highest... So how does deforestation relate with fossil fuel consumption and how does this all fit in with growing trees? More>>
 

Please note: All NZFFA members can comment on other members blogs. The opportunity is for open and frank discussion.... so if you don't like my opinions then tell me!
 

Dean Satchell
 

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