Third Conference – 1918, Australia and New Zealand
After a lapse of five years, the next conference took place in the southern hemisphere under the chairmanship of Lord Clinton, a Devonshire landowner who had become Chairman of the Forestry Commission of Great Britain. There was a full representation from all parts of the Commonwealth, and from the New Zealand Forest League and the Australian Forest League.
The programme of meetings and tours began at Perth in Western Australia and proceeded eastwards over a span of two months, from 21st August to 22nd October. In turn the delegates visited Adelaide and the young plantations of subtropical pines in South Australia, and then the eucalyptus forests of the eastern states, meeting at Melbourne in Victoria, Hobart in Tasmania and Sydney in New South Wales. They then went north to Queensland with its native conifer forests of the Hoop pine, held a session at Brisbane, and proceeded inland to the mountain forests around Canberra, the Australian Commonwealth capital.
After crossing to New Zealand, and meeting at Wellington, the party went on to Auckland. Their tours took in both the magnificent indigenous forests of Kauri pine and the expanding afforestation schemes that were making use of North American conifers, such as Monterey pine and Douglas fir. Most of the resolutions followed established lines, but there was an interesting newcomer that stressed the value of exotic trees as sources of future timber supplies. From what they had seen, the delegates were convinced that the native timber resources, both in Australia and New Zealand, would prove inadequate for future demands. It was essential to plant on a major scale, quicker growing conifers that would be simpler to raise and control. The experience of the ensuing thirty years has amply justified this remarkable forecast.
The conferences were now beginning to make substantial contributions to the literature of forest science. Statements of progress were presented on behalf of the separate countries, and 77 authors contributed. Between them, 96 papers on various technical aspects of forestry and timber use.
Excerpt from:
Commonwealth Forestry Conferences: 1920 to 1962
H.L. Edlin
The Commonwealth Forestry Review
Vol 46, No 3 (129) (September, 1967), pp 192-200 (10 pages) Published by the Commonwealth Forestry Association
