Welcome to the Eastland Wood Council Forestry Awards 2012

Forestry is an industry for the future, one that has shown promise for many years and now is starting to deliver on that promise.  The ‘Wall of Wood’ has arrived. 

From the time the first trees were planted at Ruatoria in 1969 to today, there has been some amazing changes.  More than 150,000 hectares of trees are now in the ground, with more forecast, mostly pinus because that does so well in our climate, but several other species as well.

Some of the significant developments over that time has been the demise of the Forest Service, which carried out nearly all the early planting, the use of trees as an answer to the severe erosion problems we experience on the coast, the arrival of Juken Nissho in the early ‘90s - first buying the Wharerata and Patunamu Forest cutting rights, and then building a major mill at Matawhero, to the sale of cutting rights to first Rayonier and then Huaguang. 

We are going to see significant growth in log production in the next decade.  We are currently harvesting in excess of one million tonnes per year.  Forest harvest by 2013 is forecast to exceed 2.0 million tonnes, with the potential to increase to 3.4 million tonnes by 2020, according to the latest MAF wood availability forecasts.  These numbers will be greatly influenced by the health of the international markets.

The demands at all levels of the industry including horticulture, silviculture, harvesting, forest management, research, marketing and wood processing will require a skilled work force which will add to the region’s economic opportunities.  More importantly this work force will need to be trained, motivated, committed and highly skilled.

Forestry is no longer somewhere to send dole queues or poorly trained people.  The sophisticated technology and systems used every day by those working in the industry, whether that be out in the field doing the silviculture or harvesting work, in a mill or in the office planning the harvest, marketing, shipping, training or safety matters is far in excess of what many people imagine it to be.   

The wood industry provides over 17% of GDP to Gisborne which makes it crucial to the future economic development of the region and an important source of employment and career opportunity for a wide range of people.

Eastland Wood Council Vocational Scholarship - Wood Processing & Forestry

More Vocational Scholarship information and nomination form - click here

Last year the Eastland Wood Council introduced a new initiative which offered two scholarships, one which focuses on wood processing and one for general forestry. Each scholarship is worth $1500 and will be presented to the recipient in full at the Eastland Wood Council Forestry Awards in May 2012.

Applicants must be either a student enrolled in full time relevant Tertiary study or an employee within the industry who aspires to improve their skills, knowledge and value to the employer with extra study.

Background to our forestry awards...

Due to the success of the inaugural Eastland Wood Council Forestry Awards in 2010, this initiative has made great progress with enhancing the image of forestry in the region. It continues to focus on the challenge to make it an attractive option for young people as we know there is enormous potential for forestry to boost the economy of this region. The key activity to focus on, is now the staging of the next forestry awards night in 2012, which will continue to promote the industry and support its value to the region and the value to all those that are within its workforce and supporters.

 

  • The EWC Forestry Awards gives us opportunity to recognize and celebrate outstanding individuals within our Eastland workforce
  • It will identify the best candidates from the Eastland region for nomination in each category of the FITEC National Training Awards in September 2012
  • It will get local & national media coverage and promotion of our workers and industry
  • And finally it continues to provide the Gisborne industry an occasion to celebrate together. 

We understand now the importance to successfully hold the awards, driving to make this event sustainable each year and ensuring that the profile of the industry is continually lifted locally and nationally with the calibre of the awards night worthy of major recognition.

FITEC

FITEC helps more than 10,000 people each year gain the knowledge and skills that they need for productive and rewarding careers. They offer nationally recognised qualifications for the forestry, wood manufacturing, furniture, biosecurity and credit management industries. Most of this training happens on the job as FITEC trainees (including modern apprentices) are usually employed within the industry and learn while they are earning wages or a salary.

FITEC programmes cater for industry employees from entry level right through to advanced technical trades and management. School leavers, graduates and even those making a career change can find a FITEC programme to suit them alongside their experienced industry colleagues. In addition to facilitating training and assessment, FITEC’s Regional Training Advisors also help to create company and individual training plans and mentor and support both employer and employee during their training.