Crown Forestry offers tree planting deal to farmers

OFFICIALS WITH THE MINISTRY OF Primary Industries’ Crown Forestry unit have started approaching landowners in key parts of the country to discuss becoming part of the government initiative to plant one billion trees over ten years.

They are looking to identify those with unproductive farmland suitable for converting to commercial forestry.

The government target is actually 500 million new trees, as the other 500 million consists of existing forests being replanted after harvesting. It will still require 500,000 hectares of additional land for new trees. And because there is insufficient Crown-owned land available, it will have to come from landowners, such as farmers and Maori.

Farmers and others with at least 200ha suited to growing trees are being asked by Crown Forestry to consider signing up to the plan, championed by Forestry Minister, Shane Jones.

They are being offered a lease or jointventure option, with Crown Forestry paying all establishment and management costs, paying rent to the land owner and allowing them to retain any carbon credits under the ETS scheme.

The land will need to undergo scrutiny to ensure that there is good access for planting and future harvesting and trees can also be grown on it successfully.

Crown Forestry General Manager, Warwick Foran, says it is hard to say just how much land fits the criteria, although studies show that there is a “fair bit of marginal sheep and beef country that is eminently suited to forestry”.

The 200ha minimum block size is based on Crown Forestry experience in managing leases, says Mr Foran. And when carbon returns are taken into account, forestry emerges as a good land use in comparison to traditional high-country farming, particularly as the value of carbon credits continue to rise.