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Official Guide to the Government Court: N.Z. Centennial Exhibition
Scientific & Industrial Research Department
Scientific & Industrial Research Department
The Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, with its Advisory Council, was established in 1926 to prosecute and co-ordinate research relating to primary and secondary industries, to advise the Government on all scientific matters, and to take charge of the following Government scientific services: Dominion Laboratory, Meteorological Office, Geological Survey and Observatories.
Farming, as the staple industry of New Zealand, is naturally deriving most benefit from organised research. The Plant Research Bureau, with its five divisions (Grasslands, Agronomy, Plant Diseases, Entomology and Botany) provides a complete scientific service to deal with all plant problems. The improvement of pastures and field crops by selection and breeding, and the control of fungus, bacterial and insect pests, which tend to lower vitality and yield, are the main objectives of the Bureau's work.
A comprehensive fruit research organisation caters to the needs of the fruitgrower and horticulturalist, whether they are concerned with the improvement of stocks, the proper use of manures, the control of disease, or cold storage problems.
A systematic study of the soils of New Zealand is being undertaken by the Soil Survey Division. Surveys have already been completed in Hawke's Bay, and parts of North Auckland, the Waikato, Canterbury, Westland and Marlborough. In Hawke's-Bay the surveys are being related to the wider problem of land utilisation. Special surveys are undertaken from time to time to determine the suitability of soils for specific crops, e.g., tung, citrus, phormium, and to demarcate areas suffering from mineral deficiencies.
The Dairy Research Institute at Palmerston North works on problems relating to the production of milk and its manufacture into butter and cheese, the transport and storage of dairy produce, and the utilisation of dairy by-products. The Government and the Dairy Board contribute approximately equal shares towards the support of the Institute. This method of finance as between the Government and the industries concerned characterises most of the Department's industrial research organisations.
All sections of the wheat industry—wheatgrowers, millers and bakers—are serviced by the Wheat Research Institute at Christchurch, which has just completed its tenth year of work. The problems of the tobacco-grower are being studied at the recently-established Tobacco Research Station at Motueka. In addition to the leather and shoe and the wool-manufacturing industries, for which research associations have been established, many other secondary industries are receiving help from the Department's activities.
page 65A radio research organisation has been established to study local problems, and to collaborate with similar bodies overseas. The work of the Meteorological Office, which is well known, has assumed increasing importance owing to the rapid development of aviation. The Geological Survey provides essential information on the nature and extent of the Dominion's mineral resources, and is applying the latest geophysical methods in studying geological structures and searching for mineral bodies.
Scientific service for various Government Departments (e.g., Health, Customs, Police, Housing) is the main function of the Dominion Laboratory, but it is also engaged in research relating to fuel, building materials, paints, kauri gum, phormium and the cold storage of fruit. The studying and recording of earthquakes and magnetic phenomena, meteorology, and the maintenance of the Dominion's time service summarises the function of the Department's observatories in Wellington, Christchurch and Apia.
Throughout its activities, the Department maintains the closest co-operation with other scientific bodies in New Zealand and abroad, and with the representatives of industries. This collaboration avoids overlapping, and secures the most effective use of research workers and facilities.