| 39 T T Sue Russell Two crews concentrating on work in Hawke’s Bay Dan Mouatt and his wife Lisa.“It’s given me and my family a good life and the ability to help the next generation get on in it.” FORESTRY Hawke’s Bay Forestry Awards: Bay Forest Harvesting FORESTRY Maintenance Ltd Proudly supporting Bay Forest Harvesting 0274 424 158 HavelockNorth It’s been a busy couple of years for Hawke’s Bay forest contractor Bay Forest Harvesting. The company is owned and operated by Dan Mouatt and his wife Lisa, with Dan having been associated with the business many years, initially as a crew manager which enabled him to purchase shares in the company before buying it in 2008. “We took a big backward step for quite a while as the forestry sector went through reform and we entered again in 2018 as a contractor for Forest Management New Zealand.” In 2020 Bay Forest Harvesting also purchased an existing logging crew that was contracting to Pan Pac which, at the time, was a five-man manual crew. That purchase was contingent on the agreement that they would become fully mechanised within 12 months. The core of activity is extracting trees and removing them to skid sights where they are cut into specific length for transport. Both crews concentrate their work in Hawkes Bay. The business is run from Bridge Pa near Napier and was at the heart of the region slammed by Cyclone Gabrielle. Dan says actually seeing the devastation caused by debris flowing out by swollen rivers spreading across thousands of acres of land, “really makes the impact of the damage strike home”. “You saw the images on the media, but to actually look out at it with your own eyes is something entirely different.” He’s also of the opinion that in the Napier region a lot of the debris carried out was, in fact, poplars and willows growing near the edges of rivers, and was not all forestry slash as such. “I’ve talked to fellow contractors and people in the industry who all agree something needs to be done about the slash and debris that is bringing so much destruction with these weather events . “I think we need to stop blaming and find solutions, that’s going to bring about the best outcomes to avoid disasters of this nature happening at this scale again.” On a much more positive note, Dan and Lisa’s company was entered in the Hawke’s Bay Forestry Awards and received the ‘Crew of the Year’ award at last year’s awards held in December in Napier. “I don’t normally engage with the awards things but I’m tremendously proud of the crews we have, the support and effort given by the crew members and also my wife Lisa and it was nice to be recognised for everyone’s effort. The team was commended for its safety and environmental record, working in extremely hazardous and difficult terrain. Dan would also like to see engagement within the sector about marketing forestry and logging as really worthwhile, rewarding careers. “Unfortunately we don’t get a lot of positive press and sector wide there are staff shortages we’re all contending with. It’s highly skilful work that has intense training attached to ensure people can work safely. Within our industry we rely very much on word of mouth to find team members.” Seizing opportunities to stay abreast of the very latest logging equipment and technologies, Dan went to the US and Canada recently to purchase a cable logging machine, the first of its type in New Zealand, called a TigerCat 180. “It’s a brilliant piece of machinery, combining the speed and stability of conventional yarders with the mobility and simpler controls of excavator based yarders. “It’s great to have this leading-edge technology with us here.” Since its arrival, Dan and the team have been trialling the equipment, getting the team used to all its features and capabilities. Dan has been logging for 33 years now: “I believe in this industry. “It’s given me and my family a good life and the ability to help the next generation get on in it.” “I’m tremendously proud of the crews we have, the support and effort given by the crew members and also my wife Lisa and it was nice to be recognised for everyone’s effort.
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