Pine landowners in the tikina of Bua have unanimously agreed for Fiji Pine Limited not to touch overplanted pine on their land.

Bua District Representative Wale Robanalagi says all the landowning units want Fiji Pine to only harvest pine that is within their lease.

He stresses, overplanted pine belongs to the landowners.

This is the outcome of a meeting between the landowners, Fiji Pine Group, TLTB and the Ministry of Forestry at Bua Village today.

Fiji Pine Group is offering an increased stumpage of 30 percent to landowners to harvest overplanted pine.

Last week, the company filed an injunction to suspend all harvesting on the overplanted areas.

As a result, eight saw millers were issued the suspension notice from the Ministry of Forestry – three were harvesting for the landowners in the district of Bua.

The landowners are also calling on Fiji Pine to uplift the suspension so harvesting can commence.

Fiji Pine Limited Chief Executive, Vimlesh Kumar, says they expected this outcome.

“This response was expected because not the entire mataqali was represented and there were only a few members who attended. Why I say that this feedback was expected because most of them have received advanced payments from these sawmillers.”

The landowners had initially wanted to harvest pine from the overplanted area so it can be used to rebuild homes damaged and destroyed by TC Yasa.