C. - 13b

2

EEPOETS BY COMMISSIONERS OF CROWN LANDS ON THE PRESERVATION OF NATIVE FOREST.

AUCKLAND. Department of Lands and Survey, District Office, Auckland, 7th October, 1903. Be Preservation of Native Forests. Eeferring to Circular No. 507, a copy of which you forwarded to me with your Memorandum No. 50507, of the 20th ultimo, I have to report as follows : — The question of preserving and making reservations of native forests in this district for the purposes named has been repeatedly under consideration by my Land Board, and the opinions expressed have always been unanimous as to the desirability of such being done. Together with this memorandum you will receive schedules and lithographs showing the reserves made up to date for the purposes enumerated in your circular, and this will shortly bo supplemented by about a score of reservations in blocks of land now under survey. The surveyors have been specially instructed regarding this matter, and will report upon any requisite forestreservations or purely scenery reservation, not only in respect to the land they may have under survey, but also of that they may casually become acquainted with. Eeferring to the lithographs you will notice that there are scarcely any forest-reservations within forty to sixty miles north or south of Auckland, as almost every inch of that ground was disposed of thirty years ago, and is now held under fee-simple, or has been set apart for gum-digging purposes; and in the other parts of this land district ample reservations have been made, and in some cases many more forest-reservations have been made than will be found to be required. As regards scenic reservations, great difficulty has been found in this district to guard and maintain growth of vegetation on scenery reserves from, say, 5 to 15 chains in width along roads, railways, and rivers. Settlers adjoining these beauty-spots when clearing their sections and burning up the scrub and timber, often find it difficult to prevent fire from entering these reserves, and consequently they get spoiled. This is what has happened to a 15-chain reserve along the railway-line at Mamaka, and so with reserves in other parts of the district. The danger of extensive bush fires is very much greater in the Auckland District during the hot summer season than in any of the other land districts. In reference to forest or scenic reservations on Native lands, I have to state that I have not sufficient information to enable me to report thereon at present. I would submit that the best way of dealing with these would be through the various Maori Councils appointed under " The Maori Land Administration Act, 1900," whenever the survey of the various blocks of Native land is in hand or under examination. When these surveys are being made, or when the land, whether Native or Crown, is being dealt with for settlement purposes, is the best opportunity to take out and reserve the particular spots required for scenery, or for any other purpose as enumerated in your circular, and special instructions, as already stated, have been given to all of my surveyors to pay particular attention to this matter. G. Mueller, The Surveyor-General, Wellington. Commissioner of Crown Lands.

Forest and Timber Reserves.

Survey District. Block. Area. Date of Gazette. Class of Reserve. Whangaroa Takahue „ (Sections 1 and 2) II. VI. X. IX. IX., XIII. VII. A. 1,292 563 532 1,560 4,160 100 R. P. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1881, p. 959 Not Climatic. Timber. Whangape (Sections 23 and 24) Takahue Maungataniwha .. Takahue Maungataniwha... 1881, "p. 959 1894, p. 1730 Climatic. Timber. Kaeo Maungataniwha ... Omapere Mangamuka „ (Section 6) ... XVI. I XIII. I XII., XV., XVI. ) IX., XIII. 1 IV., VII., IX., X. XIII. XI., XII. I. III., IV. II. 2,600 8,243 3,097 0 0 0 0 0 0 Not, 1881, p. 960 1881, p. 959 Climatic. a 16024 0 0 1886, p. 55 it 54 2 0 Not Preservation of (Section 8) ... X., XL XI., XII., XIV. ) I. I V. XII., XIV., XV. XIII. 83 2,112 1 0 0 0 1881, "p. 959 scenery. Ditto. Climatic. Kaeo Whangape Hokianga Whangape Omapere 7,700 0 0 1886, p. 55 4,660 640 0 0 0 0 1881, p. 959 It It