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During the year I have visited all of the South Island branches except Nelson and West Coast. Coastal Otago Branch have the preliminary organisation of the 2003 National Conference well in hand. I have been liaising between them and the Management Committee. Central Otago Branch is active again and have established links with tree growing interests in the Cromwell Polytechnic. Aoraki Branch maintains a small group of enthusiastic tree croppers and continues to battle the regulations of an unsympathetic District Plan. Canterbury Branch retains its strength and an excellent field day programme. I attempted to meet the Marlborough Tree Growers during the weekend of the Pistachio field day, but found those with tree cropping interests generally pursue those through the Nelson Branch. I did meet with Judy Bool and passed on her concerns to Management Committee for managing the ever increasing demands for NZTCA publications, particularly those from overseas. There is still a small group of NZTCA members within West Coast Tree Growers. Michael Orchard also told me about the newly formed, and local government supported, West Coast Horticultural Association. There appears to be the potential for links with NZTCA. Although I would like to visit the Nelson Branch, and hope to do so next year, that Branch is well served by Management Committee with both Roy Hart and Hazel Nichols active in the Branch. A considerable amount of my time has, again this year, been spent on Aoraki Branch's involvement with promoting a more positive approach to tree growing in the Timaru District Plan. I have continued to participate in the regular meetings of a working party considering a plan variation promoted by Federated Farmers. The hearing of Aoraki Branch's own reference to the Environment Court is due later this year (2002), and preparations for that hearing are under way. The state of NZTCA action groups has become a concern. Some are in recess, few are reporting to Management Committee, and the members of some of the more active are following a natural progression into growers associations that are independent of NZTCA. I suggest that NZTCA will need to consider what level of involvement the Association should have in technical developments of the principal commercial tree crops that have been a function of action groups. This could be addressed in the Strategic Plan currently under review by Management Committee. Jim Jolly - 20 March 2002
http://www.treecrops.org.nz/bydate/nat2002/sivprep02.html |
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