Add this to good prices being paid per cubic metre for poles (more than veneer and sawlogs) and the opportunity is there for some farmers to supplement more traditional sources of farm income by selling poles.

What North Coast Tree Species Are Taken For Poles?
Tree species found on the North Coast and taken for poles include Ironbark, Grey Box, Steel Box, Grey Gum, White Mahogany, Tallowwood, Spotted Gum, Forest Red Gum, Red Bloodwood, Red Mahogany, White Stringybark and Coastal Blackbutt. Spotted Gum is the most common species utilised and lends itself particularly well to pressure preservation treatment.

How Can Landholders Go About Selling Poles?
Beef producers with native forest on their properties may have saleable poles currently available. Generally speaking trees will need to be 20-25 years of age to make poles although there are prospects for some returns as early as 15 years. Poles are harvested selectively and trees that are left may make future poles or be grown on for sawlogs.

If considering selling poles landholders should firstly contact a pole company to arrange an inspection. Poles have to meet very stringent specifications and need to be cut to a tree species list for market requirements. Consequently inspection is necessary while trees are standing as premature cutting down by inexperienced cutters could mean the wrong tree species being cut, or trees being cut to the wrong pole sizes with the same end result of timber being unmarketable and wasted.

Pole companies can advise on these matters as well as contractual arrangements for the harvesting of poles. Generally pole companies utilise their own accredited contractors who specialise in pole extraction. Contractual arrangements with farmers to cut, snig, debark and haul their own poles are generally severely restricted by workers compensation complications.

Another major consideration for farmers and indeed the pole company will be the number of poles being offered for sale. Distance from market and type of tree species may be influencing factors but generally speaking small volumes may not attract pole companies to the property. It is hard to generalise but as a rule of thumb something like 200 poles, which can equate to around 40-50 hectares of forest yielding 4-5 poles hectare, may be necessary. There is approximately 30 poles to a truckload. It is stressed this decision is up to the pole company.

Another possibility is for a group of farmers to get together and combine their individual small resources to be offered as one large resource.

FOOTNOTE -
What Are Poles and Piles Used For?
Large quantities of timber are used in the form of poles for the provision of electricity and telephone services. Poles are also used as the main structural support for many dwellings on hillside sites.

Timber piles are widely used for supporting wharves as well as providing the foundation for buildings erected on sites where the bearing quality of the ground is unreliable.

Bruce Cole-Clark
Resource Officer Agroforestry
Department Land and Water Conservation
GRAFTON.

Updated November, 2000