We did no wrong

Re: Pacific Islands Monthly Vol 65 No 10 October 1995.

Sir, I refer to the above edition of the Pacific Islands Monthly and the article contained therein titled “The Last Rainforest”. I read this article with some interest and the general text of which, I wholeheartedly agree with. However, the reference to oil palm and the picture shown on Page 54 exhibits a considerable lack of research and little relevance to the article. The commentary under the picture is far from factual and grossly misleading.

For your information, oil palm has been established in West New Britain Province of Papua New Guinea since 1967 and has proved over the last 28 years to be both reliable and stable. In West New Britain oil palm has provided a stable income for over 3000 families that were resettled from areas of Papua New Guinea where suitable available agricultural land was in short

supply. In 1995 over SUSIO6 million will be paid out to the 3000 growers in Hoskins project who supply fruit to New Britain Palm Oil Development Ltd. This repre sents an average cash income of over 5000 kina per grower. Perhaps you should com pare this disposable income-earning abili ty with other developing nations in the Pacific Islands! I think you will then be able to asses how “barren” this crop is! All oil palm growers have, in addition, land put aside for vegetable gardens and sundry livestock production. Growers who buy oil palm “blocks” pay up to 10,000 kina for a six Ha area of land. This shows how the local people value the land. Oil palm blocks are highly sought after, not the reaction you would expect from a “barren” occupation as your article states!

Haella Plantation is on PNG State land and has been intensively logged since the 19605. It is only recently that this has been put under an agricultural lease and acquired by New Britain Palm Oil Development. As a sustainable resource, oil palm, in an area such as the North coast of West New Britain is a most suitable and

,valued crop.

You do us and yourselves a huge dis service by linking genuine long term PNG business residents in the same context as the Malaysian loggers, who are the real culprits and denude our reputation as well as the rain forests. NBPOD is the largest PNG private-sector employer with over 6000 direct employees as well as support ing over 3000 out growers and their fami lies. We will be here long after the loggers have gone, proving that we are sustainable and appropriate for this environment. It is in our interests as long-term business ven tures to maintain the fertility of the land and the stability of our environment. We have developed many practices in West New Britain that are reliant on biological control of pests and diseases and the wide spread use of organic waste materials.

These practices have been recognised as highly innovative and friendly to the envi ronment.

Nick Thompson

Managing Director, New Britain Palm Oil, Development Limited.