N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 1

Inthis

issue•

NCT confident

looking to

2015

•

A 40-year

business

milestone

•

C. henryi – a

preferred

species?

•

Ground

Hornbills

– another

endangered

species

•

L i n k i n g i n d e p e n d e n t t i m b e r g r o w e r s t o m a r k e t s

N ˚ 8 6 • A P R I L 2 0 1 5

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N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 3

from the General Manager

Patrick Kime

it is pleasing to report that 2015 has begun with several positive marketing developments for nCt.

the paper company on the west coast of india that nCt has now traded with for some 18 months, and that has in fact become the largest volume buyer of mixed Eucalyptus out of south africa, has committed to continued high volume business through to mid-2016;

although two of nCt’s main Japanese customers ceased to purchase in 2014, there has been notable success in increasing sales to two important, more recent customers in this country;

For the first time in over a year, Chinese pulp and paper companies have made spot purchase deals for shipments of both mixed Eucalyptus and Acacia from south africa;

a paper company from taiwan has ordered a mixed Eucalyptus shipment, with a possible interest in further shipments later in the year. this is the first business with taiwan for well over a decade.

these developments could be signs of a fundamental shift in favour of sellers in the international market for hardwood wood chips, or they could turn out to be a short-term flurry.

either way, at the very least, they give nCt confidence in being in a position to fulfil the key role it plays in marketing its members’ hardwood pulpwood volumes in at least the year ahead.

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“ iIt is more than 40 years ago that the leadership of NCT and TWK decided to do some “kusawake” – parting the grass to go where no one in the timber industry in South Africa had gone before – finding a market for their members’ timber in the land of the rising sun.” Harald Niebuhr, Chairman, NCT Forestry.

Yeshio Haga

nCt Forestry, sumitomo Corporation and nippon paper industries marked a milestone 40-year business association with a visit from Yoshio Haga, chairman and representative director of the nippon paper group to south africa in February.

it was in 1973 when the foundations were laid to export wood chips to Japan. the then CtC co-operative (formed by nCt and twk (transvaal wattle growers), sanyo-kokusaku pulp Company (now nippon paper) and sumitomo shoji kaisha Limited (now sumitomo Corporation) signed the first contract to export wattle wood chips. business continues 40 years on.

the visit included a field excursion to baynesfield estate, outside pietermaritzburg with discussion stops at a wattle depot and compartment (above), showing a silviculture harvesting, bark stripping and stacking site (below) and baynes House (page 5).

N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 5

A formal dinner to mark the occasion was co-hosted by NCT and TWK. Joint gifts were exchanged between the respective organisations – from left: Ludwick Meyer (Chairman, TWK), Harald Niebuhr, Yoshio Haga and Satoshi Ishikawa

The delegation also met staff at NCT’s Richards Bay mills

Back row: Satoshi Ishikawa (Assistant Manager, Wood Resources Business Department, Sumitomo Corporation), Akira Sebe (GM, Forestry Department, Raw Materials & Purchasing Division, Nippon Paper), Danny Knoesen (GM NCT Chipping operations), John Smith (Mill manager, BayFibre) and Takahiro Sato (GM, Pietermaritzburg, Forestry Department, Raw Materials & Purchasing Division, Nippon Paper)Seated: Kenichiro Hashimoto (Senior Manager, Executives’ Secretariat, Personnel & General Affairs Division, Nippon Paper), Patrick Kime (GM, NCT), Yoshio Haga (Chairman, Nippon Paper)

Baynes House

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N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 7

NCT has created a fully-integrated virtual system reflecting the complete supply chain which is visible to all participants governed by mill demands and NCT’s supply-chain capacities.

a scheduling and slot-booking system was implemented 18 months ago to manage deliveries to nCt’s wood chip mills and other major customers.

the objective of the scheduling and slot- booking system (nCt ss) is to eliminate the uneven flow of timber into mills and to provide growers and transporters with a rateable movement of tonnes through the month. it also provides real time information regarding in transit and delivered loads.

the nCt ss is web-based and has good penetration and uptake in the user’s population: a user can interface with the system at any time and from anywhere.

what makes the nCt ss unique? it was developed to address a specific operational requirement and shortcoming - the software was developed and led by an operational needs analysis and not vice versa. the interface for all users remains simple and user-friendly with a specific purpose.

BEFORE schedulingbefore implementation, nCt’s supply chain

was plagued with low deliveries in the first week of the month and excessive queuing and long terminal times towards the end of the month. this erratic supply pattern led to inefficiencies draining resources from the value chain. this non-rateable supply pattern would culminate in over- or under-stock situations at mills and complaints or financial claims from growers and trucking companies for excessive long terminal times.

prior solutions – like the Jpt (Joint planning tool) - were only partially successful because it was a stand-alone application and not fully integrated with the nCt order allocation system and process.

this created a negative perception and sentiment of the overall nCt supply chain which, in many cases, led to unfavourable road transport tariff structures for growers and even to some protesting by truck drivers at the mills.

James van Zyl, NCT’s Commercial Services Manager

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AFTER scheduling

the nCt scheduling system has created a new level of discipline and visibility in all spheres of the supply chain with the following benefits:

For NCT* enhanced credibility and reliability as a supplier• Improvedroadtariffs• Identificationofnon-performinggrowersinthe

allocation system• Actsasapenalty/rewardsystem

For growers• Competitiveroadtariffs• Visibledispatchplanfortheweekormonth• Similar to wattle bark and cane scheduling

system

For mills & markets• Lessdoublehandling• Lessidletimesatmill• Costsavings

For transporters• Balancesworkloadoverthecompletemonth• Nomoreexcessivequeuing–reducedterminal

times• ImprovedsentimenttowardsNCTanditsmills• Reducestop/startsituationsatthemill

For rail• Reducedspillovereffectfromexcessroadonto

rail leading to demurrage charges

Other benefits• Reducedcomplaintsontrafficcongestionfrom

richards bay municipality, durban port, rti.• Reduced opportunity for timber theft; forced

appropriate planning horizon• General haulier scheduling improves resource

optimisation which leads to improved competitiveness and sustainability.

• Supplychainefficiencygainsatalllevelsbyall• Costsavingsforallparticipants

Looking to the FUTURE

nCt’s vision is a virtual kZn province-wide distribution plan between all hauliers, growers, grower companies and buyers. this can lead to the identification of various timber logistic rationalisation exercises (eg. backhauls) and the optimisation of transport fleets deployed between two or more companies considering all origins to all destinations.

the original resistance to change has now been overshadowed by the benefits to all in the supply chain.

a special word of thanks to growers, transporters, mills and customers for sharing nCt’s vision to achieve this newly-found discipline which benefits everyone in the supply chain.

nCt continues to strive for future improvements and excellence in all aspects of the supply chain.

N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 9

Logistics provides timber growers with the opportunity to unlock the value of their timber by moving it to a point of sale.

to be successful with the marketing of timber, a thorough understanding of the complete timber supply chain is required to ensure the most cost effective and efficient logistics are deployed.

nCt was established in 1949 and has since been responsible for the movement of over 55 million tonnes of timber products on behalf of its members.

the Commercial department is responsible for maximising the income to nCt growers by providing various supply chain management services. specific logistics services available to members include long-haul road transport brokerage, loading operations, rail transport, depot operations and general advice such as benchmark costing and vehicle selection.

at nCt, logistics functions within the Commercial department and is managed by bruce goatley who has 23 years’ road and rail experience. the logistics service is responsible for calculating and negotiating annual increases with road haulers and transnet Freight rail (tFr) to ensure healthy competition.

the benchmarking of supply chain costs is an invaluable service to the co-operative, whether making use of the services directly or indirectly or as a sounding board for its own operations and costing exercises.

the logistics department handles approximately 52% of all volumes sold and the services are enjoyed by some 150 members by way of the road brokerage services and the 60 or so members who make use of the nCt rail account every month. in order to balance and ensure the best modal choices available to

Compiled by Mfundo Zungu, Bruce Goatley & James van Zyl

unlocking the value of timber

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members, constant tariff analysis from various geographical zones provides the best supply chain options. rail transport (tFr) remains a challenge due to low service levels and wagon availability but nCt still

moves circa 300 000 tonnes of timber annually from 52 different loading points on the midlands branch line cluster and the coal line in northern kwaZulu-natal.

merisha bepat (nCt’s logistics facilitator) liaises closely with member services department regarding planning, scheduling and the execution of the rail timber movement and weekly requests. monthly rail levy adjustments are calculated on diesel, foreign exchange, steel and electricity with the rail tariffs adjusted accordingly. rail wagon positions are analysed and tFr performance monitored daily to ensure wagons reach their final destination and that mills are aware of volumes under load.

nCt’s loading operation is managed by gawie van dyk. He is responsible for four mobile loading units and co-ordinates all loading operations with integrated brokered service providers to best match member and market requirements. this requires constant analysis of timber allocations, timber availability, depot accessibility particularly in relation to climatic conditions and supply chain capacity. gawie liaises with internal and external customers to plan,

schedule and direct the movement of timber to maximise supply as allocated while considering possible market constraints. when visiting loading sites, the incorrect estimation of available volumes and depot accessibility are the biggest restrictions encountered.

the purchasing depots of glenside and ahrens also fall under the logistics department and are supervised by avinesh Hottie. the depots each have four staff members and timber is supplied by small-scale timber growers with a limit of 100 tonnes per member per month. the purchasing depots form part of nCt’s bee initiative and contribute positively to nCt’s bee rating. sales from the depots are managed in relation

to market requirements: timber can be stockpiled in an over-supply situation or released when needed. the purchasing depots play a vital link to rural suppliers who do not have direct access to markets via conventional supply chains.

The logistics department boasts a collective 40 years’ service:

(l-r) Merisha Bepat (11), Avinash Hottie (3),Gawie van Dyk (14) and (seated) Bruce Goatley (11)

N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 11

the family of global wood chip carriers is becoming smaller and younger reports wood resource Quarterly (January 2015). international trade of wood chips has steadily increased over the past decade. according to the 2015 international pulpwood review (march 2015), the forecast for 2015 is 25 million bone-dry tonnes.

this has occurred because pulp and wood panel production capacity has increased in regions with a lack of sufficient supply of domestic wood fibre at competitive costs and between neighbouring countries when opportunities exist for pulp mills to cross country borders in search of marginal wood fibre volumes.

However, as much as 70% of the global wood chip trade is international with the major consuming countries being in asia. this trade, value at over 4.5 billion dollars, is handled by vessels that are specifically built for carrying wood chips. there are currently 145 of these speciality ships circling the globe with a majority of them either sailing towards or en route from ports in Japan or China.

the oldest wood chip vessels are from the 1980s but it is expected that within a few years,

the world’s entire wood chip fleet will be less than 20 years old, according to the wood chip ship-brokering from arc Chartering. Looking ahead towards 2017, the wood chip vessel fleet will not only be younger, but will also contain fewer ships and the average ship will be bigger than in 2014.

ten to fifteen smaller, older ships are likely to be scrapped in the next few years while some 5-10 new larger vessels may be built during 2015-2017. with a declining number of wood chip vessels travelling the seas, there are currently fewer spot shipments and a high utilisation of the existing fleet.

Historically, wood chip carriers have been built in Japan for Japanese trading houses and forest companies. However in recent years, Chinese ship yards have also built large vessels for Chinese customers. Japanese companies currently own approximately 75% of the world’s wood chip vessels, which Chinese companies own about 14% of the fleet and other countries (south korea, turkey, thailand and indonesia) account for the remaining 11%. the share of non-Japanese owned wood chip carriers is likely to increase in the coming years.

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prior to working at dwC, derek spent time at engineering company, LHL engineering and also sappi saiccor.

both Lenny and derek have been at nCt durban wood Chips from the beginning, when the plant initially started up.

Wood Chip Mill Muster

this may surprise many people, but nCt’s wood chip mills are not the simple black boxes some consider them to be, taking in timber at the entrance, and churning out wood chips onto ships at the exit.

well, to be honest, that’s pretty much exactly what they do. of course it’s the how and importantly the who that make it work so seamlessly.

it’s a good time for our readers to meet some of who.

nCt durban wood Chips (dwC) mill manager is Lenny naidoo. Lenny is responsible for all operational and financial matters at the mill. Lenny has a financial background, and is no stranger to large construction and manufacturing facilities, having previous worked at tidal engineering and murray & roberts. durban’s plant engineer is derek rall. derek keeps the facility running with his staff, making sure the plant and equipment is in top shape to allow for the steady flow of timber. Derek Rall and Lenny Naidoo

Danny Knoesen, General Manager, NCT Wood Chipping Operations

N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 13

Up in richards bay, ryno martyn is shinCel’s operations manager and John smith is bayFibre’s operation’s manager. ryno and John manage each of the mill operations from receiving of the timber all the way through to the loading of vessels. ryno has a forestry background, having spent time in tanzania and also with mondi Forests. ryno has been with shinCel for eight years. John has a technical background, having worked with the electrical companies weg motors and schneider electrical. John joined bayFibre six years ago.

Financial matters at the mills in richards bay are managed by gawie swart, who has been financial manager for shinCel and bayFibre for eight years. gawie has a financial background, and previously worked for mondi in richards bay.

Charles atkins is the plant engineer at richards bay, looking after maintenance and the plants at shinCel and bayFibre. Charles started at shinCel almost 15 years ago, and spent many years in the engineering and maintenance departments at sappi stanger before then.

over the years, with nCt not owning 100% of each of these operations, and with different management structures in place, this band of merry men have not had much chance to get together and swap trade secrets, knowledge and expertise. the north was the north, and south was far away. However, that is no longer

the case, and the mill management group gets together regularly with the mills starting to reap the benefits of this.

equipment and spares lists are now scrutinised and analysed by the engineers – we have seen a log loader travel from durban to richards bay to be refurbished, and a bed knife grinding machine go the other way. technical and operational staff are spending time in each other’s mills. Vesselloading equipment and techniques are being shared and compared. there is also a degree of procurement and financial accounting alignment and comparisons.

the mills also intend to consolidate the occupational health, safety and environmental responsibilities and duties by appointing a single health and safety officer between all mills. Human-resource functions, training and payroll are other areas that are in the process of being consolidated, along with FsC systems management and auditing.

between them, the mills employ some 250 people, including our own staff and our contractors, on a full-time basis. and are all busier than they have been in many years, with a multitude of activities intended to make each mill as effective and efficient as possible.

and you thought all they did was chip stuff....

John Smith, Charles Atkins, Gawie Swart and Ryno Martyn

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Josephine Ojurbookkeeper, head office

Sakhile SincubaForester, melmoth estate

Rhonelle BrinkFinancial accountant, head office

Tamara Reddybookkeeper, head office

APPOINTMENTSNCT FORESTRY

NCT TREE FARMING

Thomas VolontiyaForester, Longridge estate

N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 15

East Africa meets South AfricaCraig Norris, NCT’s Forest Technology Services Manager

A group of foresters, researchers and government officials from the Tanzanian forestry sector visited South Africa on a study tour in February.

the tour was sponsored by the Forestry development trust, an independent institution set-up to manage a programme to develop the sector in tanzania.

the visit to nCt included a tour of the durban wood chip facility and a visit to baynesfield estate.

the total forest area in tanzania is 35 million hectares and includes natural forests, plantations and woodlands. with such extensive forests, the sector has a very important role to play in tanzania’s economy. the contribution of this sector to gross domestic product has increased considerably in the past 10 years from 2.6% to about 3.4% but there is still a lot of growth potential. the forests also provide about 90% of the energy resource for the country, valuable construction material and employment opportunities.

the plantation industry is relatively small with an estimated 250 000ha of planted timber. this area is made up of about 85 000ha of government-managed plantations, privately-owned plantations sit at approximately 40 000ha, out-grower schemes and wood lots occupy between 80 000ha and 140 000ha. the most important industrial plantation species are pines (P. patula, P. elliottii and P. caribaea), with smaller areas planted to wattle, cypress, eucalyptus (mainly E. grandis) and teak. the majority of the plantation forests

are located in the southern highlands which has tremendous forestry potential, receiving rainfall in the region of 2 000mm per annum.

the study tour started at durban wood Chips with a presentation on nCt. the delegates were extremely impressed with the success story of nCt and indicated that a co-operative in tanzania could assist their industry to provide services to the thousands of small forest owners in tanzania. a key challenge to the growth of forestry in this country is the limited knowledge of markets and marketing skills, a successful co-operative could also assist with this aspect.

while touring the chipping facility, the group discussed market options in tanzania. most of the plantation grown timber is processed for structural timber, particle board, poles or energy production. it was interesting to note that their wattle industry is based on tannin extract and bio-energy, with no pulpwood production. a big challenge for their saw-timber industry is that most mills are old with obsolete technology resulting in a very low lumber recovery rate (between 26% and 45%). there is also a concern about over-felling of mature timber and a potential future shortage of large diameter logs.

the group spent the afternoon at baynefield estate visiting wattle and eucalypt plantations. they were very impressed with the standard of weed control and indicated that this is an important lesson to take home. the highlight of the afternoon session was a walk through a hybrid clone trial. the gU hybrids were of particular

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interest to the group due to their good form (pole production) and vigorous growth. one of the delegates made the point that in tanzania they have high potential forestry sites but that poor genetics and sub-standard silviculture were preventing them for achieving the growth rates that they observed in the trial.

a key challenge for the tanzanian forestry sector is the high level of deforestation. this is as a result of wildfires, land clearing, charcoal making,

obsolete technology and over-exploitation of timber.

many of these challenges can be overcome by developing an efficient plantation forestry industry that can take pressure off natural forests. at the end of the tour the delegation expressed appreciation to nCt for the visit and indicated that they had gathered valuable information that will assist them in improving the management of their forest resources.

Highland forest in Tanzania

The delegation with a backdrop of a hybrid clone trial at Baynesfield

Forests provide 90% of the energy resource in Tanzania

N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 17

since 2009, the gall wasp (Leptocybe invasa) has caused severe damage to various Eucalypt species in the sub-tropical and warm temperate areas of south africa.

extensive research done by Fabi (Forestry and biotechnology institute) resulted in the discovery and development of a bio-control agent for this pest. Seletrichodes neseri is a small (0.65mm -1.08mm) parasitic wasp that feeds on the larvae of the gall wasp. studies conducted over a two year period showed that S. neseri is a suitable control agent due to its short life cycle, long adult life span and high level of host specificity.

the first releases of S. neseri were made in July 2012 in Zululand and subsequent releases have occurred throughout the affected forestry areas (figure 1). this includes over 500 sites across the country, with an average of 50 wasps (about 25 females) per release. the wasps have been released in all the main areas affected by L. invasa, with the most recent releases in southern kwaZulu-natal and eastern Cape (Hogsback and kokstad) areas.

data from post-release monitoring shows that S. neseri has established at most sites where it has been released and is spreading well, in some cases over 600km. post-release monitoring in the Vryheid-PietRetiefareawilloccurwithinthenexttwo months. this involves using yellow sticky traps placed at release and non-release sites and monitoring the traps over a four week period for thepresence/absenceofS. neseri.

at some sites parasitism levels of up to 9% were

Biological control of the gall wasp

obtained just five months after the original release. expectations are that, in time, parasitism rates will increase to over 70%.

recent reports from Zululand indicate that the level of damage being caused by the gall wasp is reducing at some sites, hopefully, this is as a result of the biological control agent.

Photos: Dr Z Mendel

Release sites for s. neseri (courtesy: ICFR)

Phot

o: D

r J R

oux

Gall wasp damage

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4-month-oldC. henryi stand near

Gingindlovu

8-month-old C. henryi near Fawnleas

C. henryi - World’s View trial site

1-month-oldC. henryi seedling at

kwaSokhulu

N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 19

Corymbria henryi is the scientific name of the large–leaved spotted gum (previously known as Eucalyptus henryi natively found in eastern australia). this species attains a height of about 35m and grows on coastal plains and adjacent foothills. it prefers soils that are sandy loams and clays derived from granite or shale. its provenance has an altitude range of 30m to 120m above sea level and experiences an annual rainfall of 950mm to 1000mm with a temperature range of 18˚C to 31˚C.

the species has steadily become very attractive for application within the south african forestry landscape. it is known to be moderately drought tolerant and deals well with salt laden coastal winds. it also tolerates high soil acidity levels but is sensitivetowaterloggedsoil.Vigorouscoppicingactivity and a moderate to deep, spreading root system are further contributing factors towards making this an ideal species to plant in suitably appropriate and typically sub-tropical areas.

C.henryi is taxonomically in a separate genus to Eucalyptus and is unable to hybridise with Eucalyptus species. the local growth niche of this species has been identified as being the sub-tropical regions of south africa. in Zululand it has performed well in marginal, drought prone sites.

its pulping characteristics are of a similarly high quality to those of E.smithii making it a very promising option. if C.henryi continues to show excellent pulping characteristics in larger scale testing, it could become a preferred pulping species to be grown on low-altitude, sub-tropical sites. it has the added advantage of being able to perform on drought prone sites and arguably its current most attractive trait is that of it being an unsuitable host for the Eucalyptus gall wasp (Leptocybe invasa).

within nCt, C.henryi certainly shows good early potential for preferred species status (price premium?). However, much work needs to be done before this can happen. this would include more local pulp tests using larger sample sizes and bigger areas would need to be planted so that pure batches of each species can be sent to Japan

for further testing. to this end nCt tree Farming has begun to

plant out dedicated compartments on suitable sites. if results are positive, it will serve to expand growing areas for high pulp yielding Eucalyptus species, thus providing larger batches of quality wood chips and possibly a higher premium for the nCt grower – an outcome which would certainly be worth all the hard work.

while the species is being gradually bulked up on a commercial level, nCt has embarked on a simultaneous, albeit it limited, roll out of C. henryii to small-scale growers in the community-owned areas of Zululand. Eucalyptus species previously planted in these areas are being decimated by the gall wasp scourge leaving small-scale growers with little hope.

due to its high demand and limited seedling availability, the small-scale grower project started slowly but is steadily gaining momentum. two trial sites have been established at kwasokhulu and manguzi, with early results proving that C.henryi can indeed grow successfully in Zululand. planted in blistering heat, the manguzi trial illustrated that C.henryi has a high likelihood of being able to survive under adverse conditions, given that the 40% of the trial which survived, comprised mainly C. henryi.

to date in Zululand, nCt small-scale growers have around 43.05ha under C.henryi and larger commercial growers have some 102.9ha. small beginnings but it is at least a start. a significantly increased planting programme will be conducted during the 2015 planting season (may–august).

due to circumstances, the initial small-scale grower plantings were done in early to late summer (which is not an ideal planting season for Zululand). significantly however, there was very little mortality experienced which signifies the strength and adaptability of the species. the recent prolonged dry conditions in the area have also not affected the existing plantings significantly.

small-scale grower reaction to C. henryi has been overwhelmingly positive and nCt looks forward to intensified roll out efforts in 2015.

Compiled by Rob Thompson, Elvis Nyathela & Craig Norris

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N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 21

In timber marketing circles, the question often arises as to the reasons behind Vietnam’s repeated year-on year meteoric climb in hardwood chip volumes into Chinese and Japanese markets. It seems incredible that annual hardwood export tonnages, in extent of six million bone dry metric tonnes (BDMT), can be achieved repeatedly, and this from a country which forest enterprise comprises thousands of individual small-scale timber growers, all operating independently.

spurred on largely by this intrigue, my family holiday in december 2014 comprised a trip across the length of Vietnam,fromnorthtosouth.

with free enterprise only having been fully legalised and recognized as an economic driver within the last two decades, the Vietnamese haveembraced the concept with gusto. the resultant energy and productive spirit is reminiscent of an ant colony comprising literally millions of individuals (98 million to be precise) filling every working hour with some form of productive labour.

i visited various operations producing bamboo chop sticks, hardwood veneer sheets (for plywood), rubber, tapioca wine, as well as encountering hectare after hectare of Eucalyptus and Acacia mangium situated in the most improbable of sites. in all cases, overhead costs were visibly low, with production and employment levels high. most likely the sign of a newly emerging economy, the very noticeable lack of safety precaution and ethic is concerning for someone coming from an uber-safety conscious environment.

However products roll off the

Rob ThompsonAssistant General Manager

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A veneer mill

production line without stopping until deep into the night. employees demonstrate a calm, peaceful contentment with their lot and one seldom sees idle hands.

seeing 2.4 m hardwood logs delivered to mill, in substantial quantities, on a 125 cc scooter, was certainly an eye opener and i thought of our own ever-escalating transport costs in south africa. i started to accept this transport mode as the norm seeing the trussed water buffalo delivered by similar means. the regular sightings of fridges transported together with the driver and his installation man all on the same scooter began to impress on me that things are done a lot differently in that wonderful country! anyone want to buy a bakkie? EveryavailablebitofspaceisusedinVietnamfor

some or other productive use. the space around a house that you and i would consider ideal for a garden, is used over there for all manner of applications including the drying of coffee beans, drying sheets of veneer and for the stacking of logs for fuel, furniture and building. any space remaining is often applied to duck and fish farming in small to medium size ponds, whilst housing for

a water buffalo or two (used for ploughing land) is not out of the question.

with 98 million people crammed into an area (around the size of the western Cape), means that people are going to be living on top of each other and placing a high demand on natural resources.

two days into the trip, i suddenly realised that i had not seen or heard a bird, in or around the cities and suburbs. the food items on display at the various markets soon explained where the birdsong had gone.

that said, we focused in on the protected natural areas and discovered amazing jungles and forests with an array of impressive plant, primate and birdlife. the park rangers lament the decline of wildlife and trees predominantly via the shared border with China, but i was impressed at their high tech and unselfish efforts to save the pangolin and various endangered forest languar (primate) and turtle species from extinction. i went away feeling that rampant poaching and resource over-utilisation is a factor that expanding humankind will never escape, despite our best efforts, but, we can, as individuals, choose to want to make a difference, no matter how small. those

N E W S & V I E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 5 23

There is always someone at work

Informal chop stick factory

Veneer delivery vehicle

park rangers bore testimony to this heroic choice.Thescenery found inVietnam isbreathtaking.

with Ha Long bay being one of the seven natural wonders of the world, a visit just has to be placed on your bucket list. the unity, tenacity and friendly demeanour of the people, after having experienced French colonisation and its attendant atrocities, wars with China and thailand and a recent invasion by america (the effects of which are still being felt today), is a lesson in humility to all of us and one worth experiencing.

there are certainly lessons to be learnt there on human, social, political and environmental fronts that can be applied to our own situation in south Africa.TheVietnamesehavea recipe for successthat they have developed over the years and continue to develop. the next 20 years will most certainly reveal a polished eastern Jewel.

we in south africa are exceptionally well-off comparatively. our opportunities exceed Vietnam’s (growth potential, space, capacitydevelopment potential).

do we have the courage to discard our historical issues and embrace the collective future good? Can we find the energy to create our own african Jewel?

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as electricity load shedding becomes a way of life in south africa, it is no wonder nCt tree Farming management at enon opted for solar power.

the labour housing at enon was recently upgraded which also called for an overhaul of the power supply. the existing eskom power line to the village had been out of commission for more than 20 years due to vandalism and age with the older traditional style houses now used by labourers had never been electrified.

the complete process for the power utility to rehabilitate the line and install a new transformer could take up to three years. this would also entail additional costs for new lines, wiring and poles from the transformer to each house, the wiring of each house and the installation of pre-paid meters. the time delay and costs involved called for an alternative approach.

solar power was the logical solution. depending on what is required, the cost

and practicality of solar installations can be exorbitant.

at enon, a solar test unit was used on trial in a renovated building. the unit worked off 24v and was reasonably priced and easily installed. this unit provided lights, ability torunaTVandchargecellphoneswiththeresult that a similar system was installed in the new housing unit with some modifications. solar geysers were also installed.

the advantages of this 24v solar system are:1 +20 year life span.2 relatively maintenance free (battery

maintenance required)3 relatively inexpensive.4 easy to install5 Led lights are very efficient6 easily modified or added to.7Manyaccessoriesavailable(TV,radio,fan,

cell phone chargers, insect repeller)8 renewable energy, no pollutants.9 an answer to load shedding.

if you are interested in visiting enon to view the solar system or would like more details, contact Lance bartlett on 082 806 6961.

At Enon, three 80W panels are mounted on a pole and wired directly into the control boxes in the house. The

pole holding the panels is mounted on a swivel to allow the pole to drop should maintenance be required on the

panels. This setup runs three control panels, each with an extension box holding an additional battery powering 15 LED lights, a day/night switch, three cellphone chargers

and a 24v TV.

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“The conservation of an area, is not only self-fulfilling but a necessity from an environmental point of view. We need to preserve our water resources and biodiversity to ensure that future generations have adequate, good quality water” (peter odell, nCt tree Farming estate manager at baynesfield.)

over time, the Umlaas river has become infested with a variety of invasive noxious weeds - wattle, bramble and mauritian thorn resulting in a clogged and choked river system. a sunday walk along the Umlaas mountain bike track promoted a clean-up program.

the Umlaas is the main river at baynesfield, a habitat to a range of fauna, flora, aquatic species and birds. Farmers also rely heavily on the river system for irrigation of commercial crop.

the removal of wattle from the banks of the river is done using a tractor with a length of chain. the wattle is pulled away from the river into a clearing where it is debranched and placed into a pile to be burnt. ring barking is not recommended.

“ring-barking puts the plant into stress mode and encourages prolific seeding. the ring barked weeds also fall into the rivers and become obstructive,” says peter.

the softer weeds like bramble and mauritian thorn are slashed and mulched into a thin layer using a tractor drawn gyro mower. Follow-up slashing, using a gyro mower is done once the weeds start to flush. this regimen encourages the re-establishment of grass along the river course which will assist in the filtration of water runoff and stabilise the river bank.

no chemicals are used as they may have a fatal effect on the aqua-culture. thought must also be given to the crop farmers irrigating lower down the river.

NCT’s conservation areas

Before bramble removed

After bramble removed

Wattle on the left side of the river that has been removed and the area cleaned up; wattle on the right side of the river still has

to be removed.

Clearing has taken place at the source of one of the tributaries.

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Giant Mountain Ash trees in the Black Spur Range, Victoria, Australia. (Photo Bob Beale)

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tasmania’s giant ash (E regnans) trees may be the world’s tallest flowering trees. they are not quite the tallest trees of any kind: that record belongs to the Coast redwoods (right) of the western Usa.

it turns out that they have been cut down in their prime, and they may have reached even more prodigious heights in the past. if conditions improve, might they one day beat out the redwoods?

mountain ash (left) also grows in south-east AustraliaandVictoria,butTasmaniaiswheretheyhave reached their peak. the island boasts over 140 trees taller than 85m.

the tops of the trees are where the action is. white flowers like pom-poms dot the upper part

A tall story

Just how tall do Tasmania’s Mountain Ash trees grow? In December 2013, researchers measured the largest tree on the island state. This towering titan boasts a height of 98.8m, 3m taller than the London tower that

houses Big Ben.

Coast redwood (Photograph by Michael Nichols)

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of the crown, which can stretch 75m deep. the trees also play host to dozens of species of plants and animals, such as wedge-tailed eagles and Leadbeater’s possums.

the wood decays so easily that hollows often form in their trunks and branches, and pools of water collect. these high-rise ponds provide homes to reptiles, insects and frogs, and water for mammals and birds.

on the face of it, the mountain ash should be able to beat the redwoods, which top out at 115m. they grow five times faster than the redwoods as they sprint toward the skies.

but they don’t live anywhere near as long as the redwoods. traditionally, a mountain ash’s lifespan has been thought to be between 350 and 450 years. a recent study suggested it could be more than 500 years. even so, they are youngsters compared to the redwoods, which reach nearly 3000 years old.

Historical records do indicate that mountain ash have reached greater heights than today’s giants in the past. in 1881, surveyor george Cornthwaite measured a felled tree in Victoria at 114.3metres. that is about 1m shorter than the world’s tallest living tree, a coast redwood measuring 115.5m. if you believe the old record books, and measurement systems, several other trees have reached such extreme heights.

the trees have a simple reason for growing tall, says koch. they are competing for light, which they use to convert water and carbon dioxide into sugar to sustain themselves. but it is water deprivation that limits their reach for the skies.

pulling water up through the tree’s trunk is a fight against gravity. so in the tallest trees, it is difficult for the upper reaches to get enough water.

to get the most energy from sunlight, a tree needs to grow big leaves. but water stress limits the growth of leaves. the growth of leaves is driven by water pressure in their cells. but as the trees get taller, the relative water shortage decreases this pressure, so the leaves grow more slowly.

what’s more, the tallest trees can suffer from “xylem cavitation”, in which gas bubbles form in the cells carrying water up the trunk. these tiny gas embolisms can prevent water from moving up the tiny conduit cells, much like a pulmonary embolism can stop blood flow to the lungs in humans. to avoid this, the tree regulates how much water is lost through its leaves by closing down the tiny pores all over their surfaces. but these pores are also the pathways for carbon

dioxide to come in, so by closing them, the trees limit how much sugar they can make.

all these factors mean that trees start growing more slowly once they get tall. eventually, there is just no point growing taller: the extra energy the tree might harvest from sunlight is less than the energy needed to bring up more water.

However, studies have shown that the top leaves on some of the tallest trees aren’t as water-deprived as they would be if the trees were at their limit. that suggests that the trees could grow taller.

apart from these internal limits, fire and fungus can also cut the life of the mountain ash short.

when flames hit a tree, the heat boils the living tissue of the trunk; this overheating is fatal. whereas redwoods can regenerate by sprouting, mountain ash cannot.

Fortunately, the same heat dries up woody capsules high up in the crown, causing them to crack open and release seeds. these seeds fall onto the forest floor and start feasting on the nutrients in the ash bed. the regeneration can be staggeringly swift.

Fungus is also a big problem. redwoods defend themselves by producing toxic chemicals in their hardwood. but the mountain ash don’t bother. so over time, as storms injure the trees, fungi get into their trunks and cause decay.

For the last few hundred years, the trees have faced the biggest threat of all: humans. in the early 1800s, the first european settlers started felling swathes of the forests to feed sawmills, and later to make wood-chip to be exported.

mountain ash trees have been particularly tempting to loggers because they produce so much wood. they gain most of their height in the first 90 years of their lives. after that, rather like humans, they stop growing upwards and start growing sideways. they keep adding biomass right until their deaths. it is estimated that the tallest mountain ash, if it were cut down and dried in an oven, it would clock in at 215 tonnes.

all that has now changed: in June 2013, the world Heritage Committee extended the boundary of the tasmanian wilderness world Heritage site by over 170 000ha, after successful negotiations between loggers, environmentalists and politicians. many mountain ash now enjoy the highest level of protection in the world, allowing them to live out their lives in full.

now that the trees are protected, they should be able to reach the heady heights of pre-settlement

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days. so might a mountain ash beat out the coast redwoods for the title of tallest tree in the world? it’s on the cards, but there is now a wild card in the deck: climate change. a warmer world could help them, or hinder them.

Extracts from a report presented byJane Palmer / BBC Earth

By comparison, South Africa’s tallest recorded eucalptus towered at 80m. The e. saligna was planted in 1906 in Limpopo Province.

Mighty Tasmanian giant

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Protect Ground Hornbills

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With only 400 groups of Southern Ground Hornbills reported left in South Africa, farmers are being urged to help reverse this population’s current slide towards becoming critically endangered.

according to the mabula ground Hornbill project, the hornbills favour open veld areas regularly grazed by livestock or wildlife, which keep the grass below 50cm, making foraging easier for the large birds. this coupled with expanding human settlements and plantations further reduce the amount of useful habitat.

the southern ground hornbill’s life expectancy can exceed 50 years but they have slow breeding rates. they only reach breeding age at about 10 years of age and then only breed if they manage to

secure the dominant alpha-female role within the group. ideal nesting trees are those that have large natural cavities. the most suitable are the baobab, leadwood, fig, ebony and marula. there are

also records of the birds nesting in cliff faces and earth banks especially in kwaZulu-natal. major threats to the birds include the off-label use of pesticides, malicious poisoning, bullet fragments being left in the offal of hunted animals, the use of non-target-

specific rodenticides, old livestock dip-tanks that still contain lethal toxins, being shot for breaking windows as a result of fighting their reflection and

electrocutions by uninsulated electricity transformer boxes.the birds are carnivorous and eat grasshoppers, worms, frogs, lizards, snakes and even tortoise. they are known to hunt hares, squirrels,

mongoose or small birds. ground hornbills do not drink water but rather get moisture from the food they eat.

the southern ground hornbill occurs throughout the african savannahs south of the equator in a continuous

swathe from the east coast of south africa through Zimbabwe, botswana, Zambia and tanzania.

The Melmoth/Mtonjaneni district populationis the largest sub-population south of the kruger national park. this population lives

in an extremely transformed habitat with a mixture of timber, sugar cane, citrus

and avocado with remnant grassland on cattle farms.

aaron mngomezulu (left), a tractor driver at nCt’s melmoth estate, has

contributed significantly to the project. passionate and committed to conservation, aaron has made great in roads into the community educating elders and learners alike on the importance of the birds’ existence.

Extracts from Farmers’Weekly & the Mabula Ground Hornbill project

Photograph: Courtesy Mabula Ground Hornbill project

Protect Ground Hornbills – an oth e r e n d a n g e r e d sp e c i es

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www.nctforest.com