The Council has over 120 plantations scattered through out the district.  These plantations vary in size from over 200 hectares down to less than 1 hectare. 

Except for the Riverbank View Joint Venture, the Council has full ownership of all its plantations.  Most of the Council’s plantations are located south of the Ashburton River and west of SH 1.  

District Council Plantations Map

Harvesting

Radiata pine log sales are expected to average 17,500 tonnes/year for the next 20 years.  Through this period occasional log sales of other species (mainly Douglas fir) will occur. Methods of log sale used in past have included delivered log sales to various sawmills and other log buyers long with stumpage sales of standing timber and combinations of both methods.

Forest Investment

During the 1990’s one of the objectives for forestry in the Strategic Plan was to increase the size of the resource by 25 hectares/year.  To this end the Council purchased a property near Mt Somers in 1996 which is now established in Radiata pine, Douglas fir and Macrocarpa.  With the decline in log prices over the last few years and the increases in land costs the Council is no longer actively seeking land purchase opportunities.

The age class structure means that over the next 20 years the Council’s tending programme will be relatively small. 

Advisory Work

Ashburton Council provides forest management services on a contract basis to the Mackenzie District Council.  Mackenzie District has a less substantial resource than Ashburton, approximately 1000 hectares.  The Council provides similar management services on a smaller scale to Selwyn and Timaru District Council’s.

The Council also provides forestry services to local farmers.