The Green Party in New Zealand says it will offer a NZ$1 million prize for the first company to build a 10-storey structural timber building in New Zealand. Source: Fairfax NZ News, Stuff.co.nz
Political parties are scrambling for the forestry industry vote.
Green leader Russel Norman told forestry industry leaders at the Forestwood conference in Wellington that if his party was part of the next government, it would offer the reward to encourage architects and designer to use wood.
“We know that this has been done in Melbourne, we know the Canadians have currently offered a prize to encourage the development of structural timber industry there.”
But the only party to offer a full forestry policy was Labour, which confirmed it would make wood the preferred material for low-rise government buildings.
Labour leader David Cunliffe presented a raft of policies including deferred loans for replanting, tax credits for research, funding for forestry roads and tax deferrals on new machinery.
It would also introduce compulsory manslaughter “aimed at fly by night firms” who jeopardised worker safety.
Norman said the Greens would be hands-on, addressing the high exchange rate, the collapse of the carbon price, new products like wood-based fuel and plastics, and a lack of investment.
“We absolutely have to change direction,” he said of the country’s increasing wood harvest, nicknamed the wall of wood.
“If we keep doing what we’re doing, we’re going to keep exporting more and more logs and that’s not going to work.”
But both Labour and the Greens said they were not in favour of restricting or putting a levy on log exports to favour on-shore processing.
Associate Primary Industries Minister Jo Goodhew said the Government would also release a forestry policy in a couple of months. In the meantime, she said the Government had already put significant effort and money into a number of industry-good areas.
This included a heavy emphasis on research, improving harvesting techniques, reviewing resource management issues and removing trade and regulatory barriers.
There was also “good progress” being made on a new timber structure standard, which would make it easier for multi-storey buildings involving new wood technologies to gain consent.
“It’s time for the sector to move up the value chain and seize the many opportunities that are on offer. Our Government is committed to providing the right environment for that to happen.”
