Forest Talk

With the increased interest in transitioning heat boilers from using fossil fuels to wood fuel the Bioenergy Association has been receiving a significant increase in enquiries. To help answer questions about technology, fuel availability, consenting and the like, the Association has expanded the Wood Energy Knowledge Centre which is hosted on the UsewoodfuelNZ portal www.usewoodfuel.org.nz. This website is a portal to information on the use of solid biofuels to produce ..... more

The mainstream media is at last becoming aware of forestry as a sustainable energy resource, says Jim Childerstone of Jim's Forest Services. But it’s taken the likes of New Zealand's mega business, Fonterra, to make media headlines, he adds, with its most recent announcement in August being the establishment of an 11,000KW (11 megawatt) wood chip boiler for its Stirling cheese plant in South Otago.

A variety of biomass wood processing plant chippers, shredders and..... more

Two European pension funds, APG Asset Management (APG) on behalf of its Dutch pension fund client ABP, and UK’s Pension Protection Fund (PPF), have agreed to purchase Sinotrans New Zealand Limited’s (Sinotrans NZ) shareholding in Wenita Forest Products Limited (Wenita).

Wenita is the largest producer of timber in Otago across almost 30,000 hectares of sustainably managed forests. With a history spanning three decades, Wenita is widely recognised as one of the prem..... more

In its latest funding round, Otago Community Trust awarded a $19,611 grant to the Tokomairiro Training Pathways course to assist with the cost of running the Forestry Pathways Programme out of Tokomairiro Training Centre.

Tokomairiro Training Programme Manager, Lynda Allan, says the programme specialises in breaking down barriers to learning for young people, who are often at risk of dropping out of school.

“The Forestry Pathways Programme places emphasis on..... more

National Road Carriers and NZ Trucking have left Transporting New Zealand (formerly Road Transport Forum) after reaching an impasse with the Road Transport Association of New Zealand (RTANZ) regarding industry association structure. 

“Our nation and our industry face significant challenges that require us to be future-focused. The road transport industry plays a significant role in the national economy which has been highlighted by the pandemic and the supply..... more

Prior to lockdown, Kaituna Sawmill opened its doors to the Minister for Climate Change, James Shaw, and 50 guests as part of a Cawthron Marlborough Environment Awards field day.

The sawmill’s 46% reduction in its greenhouse gas emissions over the past 10 years and its reduction of its carbon footprint by 934 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents per annum were just two of the sustainability achievements which led to it being named as the winner in the forestry cate..... more