There are many ways the New Zealand Farm Forestry Association (NZFFA) could respond to Ewan McGregor’s opinion piece about the threat of pines to our rural landscape.

One way would be to point out that we have been experiencing rural depopulation for decades as markets, costs and farming practices have changed. When farming is unprofitable, land is sold and people leave. Forestry is often the next best option.

Secondly, we have all seen photographs of devastated hill sides after storm events. Every year, millions of tonnes of farmland flow into the sea. Trees help control erosion, and pines are usually the most economical to use. Of course deeper rooting species such as redwoods, poplars, and cypress would offer more protection, but it’s harder to justify the costs of planting and managing trees with long rotations. If there was an easy way to fund a mixture of conservation forests with high production values, everyone would do it.

Thirdly, this Government has already largely halted the wide scale conversion of farms to pines by promising to restrict the amount of class 1 to 6 land that can be registered in the Emissions Trading Scheme. Projected new planting for the 2025 season is currently estimated to be less than 10,000 hectares.

Finally, as Ewan notes, one of the best ways for farmers to secure the future of their farming operation is to incorporate mosaic planting of the less productive parts of their farm in a mixture of high value timber species. This will protect waterways and erodible faces, make stock management easier, and provide another income stream for the farm. The Emissions Trading Scheme can help finance that establishment work.

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