PRESIDENTS COLUMN

Today I am staying away from the controversies and the excitement of the wider industry and instead discuss the somewhat less exciting and (hopefully) less controversial world of NZIF’s finances.  I thought I would use this week’s President’s Column to talk about the direction that the council is taking with NZIF’s finances.  Traditionally we would discuss this at the AGM but we are unsure of the turnout we can expect and if 2020 doesn’t make us reassess what we think we know then nothing will. 

The strong balance sheet that the current council has to work with over is the result of the foresight and prudence of proceeding councils.  Our annual report for 2020 shows NZIF had approximately $490,000 in equity.

The approach of recent councils has been to use NZIF’s income, principally from membership subscriptions and conference income to fund the operations of the institute.  Our reserves are used for two purposes.  Firstly, to maintain our infrastructure in periods where our income is lower than normal and secondly to deliver projects or products that deliver benefits to members that are additional to the day to day functions of the Institute.  In the last year we have invested these funds in rewriting the NZIF Handbook, revising our Code of Ethics and improving and adding functionality to our website.  This approach allows us to return a portion of this equity to our members in the form of improved membership benefits. 

NZIF’s financial direction is captured in the annual budget, in an election year this is set by the outgoing council.  In the initial planning stages of the 2021 budget the council continued this approach and budgeted for a $44,000 spend to continue existing projects: the Handbook and website development.  An NZIF conference traditionally earns a $30k profit and cancelling the 2020 conference has created a hole in our income that we have elected to fill using reserves.  In the 2021 Budget year we are using reserves to fund both the operations of the NZIF and our ongoing project programme.

The outgoing and incoming councils have approved a budget forecasting an $81,964.85 loss.  This result will leave us with approx. $410,000 of equity, which is around the equity position we had in the 2014-15 financial year.  Both councils believe that $410,000 is an equity position we are comfortable with and there is value in maintaining the momentum of the projects we are funding, website development and the Handbook. 

There are some subtleties in the budget that get overlooked when the headline is an $82,000 loss.  We have budgeted on the completion of the Handbook project this year, if is completed this year our project spend for next year will very likely reduce.  If we do not complete it this year, we will be spreading the expenditure over successive years reducing our loss this year.  NZIF staff and the employers of our members have been working on enabling employers of members to pay their employees fees.  The amount of subscription income that is outstanding is lower than ever; meaning that we should receive a greater amount of subscription income this year. 

Reducing our equity position by a similar amount in the 2021-22 year would create a situation that we are uncomfortable with.  We still expect uncertainty in 2021 but I think in the budgeting process we better understand the uncertainty that we did in 2020.  It is unlikely we will continue to use reserves for both of their purposes. 

I would very much like your feedback on this issue then please do so directly of via NZIF Admin.  I also encourage you to come along to the AGM and the CPD sessions that we are offering on the 26^th September in Wellington.

Written by Kent Chalmers

MEMBERS VOICE

Please can we have fewer reports and more action.

How many times over the past several decades have NZ governments commissioned reports like the Wood Fibre Futures released last week Read more

Within a few days or weeks you listen to the radio and hear about steel box “instant” houses being imported from China Read more

Am I going to end my forestry interest in NZ (still hopefully a decade or three away) despairing of the country ever doing anything to use wood as part of the action to mitigate climate change?  How dispiriting.

We have heard Ministers in the current government extolling using wood to prefabricate desperately needed houses, telling us the technology is there, blah blah blah, but where are the houses?  I spent part of my youth in the Hutt Valley.  Hundreds of houses, built out of wood by the State to deal with the post war expansion in the population.  If the country can’t rely on market forces to deal with climate change and housing shortages, why can’t we go back to that earlier model and just get on with the job?  If we could do it then, why can’t we do it now?  We don’t need more and more reports and less and less action.

Yours in frustration

Andrew McEwen

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FULL SET OF NZ JOURNAL OF FORESTRY

I have a full set of NZ Journal of Forestry from 1964 to 2020 to give away to anyone who is willing pay the postage or collect in person from Ilam, Christchurch.  Please phone for further details.

Cheers

Dennys Guild

(03) 357 4204

INSTITUTE UPDATE

Council Member

Peter Houston has been a member of the New Zealand Institute of Forestry since 1986. He graduated from Canterbury University with a Bachelor of Forestry Science with First Class Honours in 1990, and completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Business majoring in Information Systems in 1997. Peter has spent over 30 years in a variety of forest operational and management roles in Northland, Auckland and the Central North Island, and has completed a range of New Zealand certificates in Vegetation Fire, Forest Health and Occupational Health and Safety.

First employed by the NZ Forest Service in 1985, Peter has worked for the Ministry of Forestry, NZ Forest Products Ltd, Carter Holt Harvey Ltd, and is now employed by Hancock Forest Management (NZ) Limited (since 2006) as the Forestry Operations Manager based at Whangarei.

Peter was the NZIF Registrar during the early to mid 2000’s and has been a Registered Member of the New Zealand Institute of Forestry since 2010. Peter is seeking to provide the perspective of a Professional Forester in a Forest Investment business environment

Council responsibilities are: Local Sections, NZIF Valuation Working Party

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Latest NZ Journal of Forestry is On-line

Find the latest NZ Journal of Forestry here 

FORESTRY EVENTS

NZIF Annual CPD workshops in conjunction with AGM 

We will be running 3 x CPD workshops on Saturday 26^th September along with our AGM at the Miramar Golf Links conference rooms, Wellington.  Starting at 10am.

CPD Sessions are:

• Forests(Regulation of Log Traders and Forest Advisors) Amendment Act: Kay Shapland and Vikki Carter of MPI will take us through the implications of the Act on the NZIF and Forest Sector going forward.  They expect many questions will be asked by the members. They will outline the timelines they will be working to in order to develop the procedures and getting the Act to be functional
• Update on the ETS: Steven Cox and Simon Petrie of MPI will update us on the implications of the recent legislative changes to the ETS and what they mean.  They will also cover off some of the broader work MPI are doing to implement the changes including consulting with the NZIF on what professional training we would like to have available.
• Revised Code of Ethics:  Andrew McEwen and Peter Casey will outline the reasons for the revision of the Code of Ethics along with the implications of the changes. There will be a motion at the AGM following the CPD sessions to accept the changes to the Code of Ethics.

Tickets are available from our website and are limited due to Covid.  We will have the option to Zoom the CPD and AGM and tickets for this can also be purchased from the website.

$100 Attendance tickets will include;

• Tea and coffee on arrival
• Multiple speakers with the option to ask questions at the 3 CPD workshops and AGM
• lunch
• Afternoon tea

A cash bar will be open after the conclusion of speakers.

Register and purchase attendance tickets here

$80 Zoom tickets will include;

• Attence to all 3 CPD workshops and AGM
• Option to ask questions

Register and purchase Zoom tickets here

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NZIF Event - Meet the Politicians Backbencher Gastropub, Wellington

6^th October 2020

5.30pm Drinks & meal (pay your own way event)

6pm – 6.30pm Politicians from each party will have the opportunity to talk about their party’s Forestry Policy.

Invited Parties: Labour, Act, TOP, National, New Zealand First, Greens

7ish – 8pm Q&A from the attendees.

After the Q&A there will be opportunity to have informal discussion and a beer/meal.

2 hours of CPD

Register here for this free event Tickets

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Climate Change Commission virtual workshop on bioeconomy

Read more

PROPERTY FOR SALE

Waerenga Forest, Waikato

MEDIUM-SCALE, FIRST ROTATION FOREST

Waerenga Forest is a medium-scale, first rotation forest located near the Maramarua Forest in the North Waikato. With a Net Stocked Area of approximately 353.1 hectares of Pinus radiata established between 1996 and 2001, a detailed Harvest Plan and current inventory, Waerenga Forest provides an excellent and straight-forward opportunity for purchasers to secure forthcoming harvest volume.

Freehold land 401.6ha, Net Stocked Area approx. 353.1ha
Inventory, Mapping and Harvest Plan available in dataroom
Post '89 land with in-forest metal resource
Established 4WD track network
Pinus radiata established 1996 - 2001
130,000+ Carbon Credits available
Simple single-stage sale process
DEADLINE OFFERS:
Friday 25 September 2020 at 4pm (unless sold prior) 

Contact: Jeremy Keating, Jeremy.keating@cbre.co.nz, +64 21461210 or

           :  Wyatt Johnston, wyatt.johnston@cbre.co.nz, +64 27 8151 303