17. The Site

 The story continues.  We have recruited villagers, are growing crops and have hired staff.  Now it's time to find land and start building

We spent many weeks looking for land to buy for the farm.  Then, members of the Ware clan who lived on their land at Pajiba, not far from the Nogoli junction and the Santos (formerly OSL) camp offered to sell Wonderland Agristock Limited a parcel of 5.5 hectares.  After extended discussion and the presentation of sale agreements the leaders of the clan requested that we change to a lease arrangement.  Land ownership is complex and ownership claims can go back eight generations.

Figure 1.  Map of the area near the Nogoli township showing the OSL camp and the WAL piggery site

An agreement was reached, and funds exchanged.  Additional negotiation was required when some distant members of the clan claimed an ownership stake in the land, and this caused a pause before WAL could start work.  Some of the Pajiba folk lived on the property but they were prepared to vacate their dwellings.  We did need to change the boundary of the leased land to allow for a tiny cemetery on one boundary.  Implicit in any agreement was that WAL would hire members of the clan to work on the farm and for any permanent or casual work.  Noel Kuman was pivotal in all these negotiations. A community affairs officer from the Ware clan was appointed.  WAL hired approximately ten men as security guards for the front gate and later another five for general farm work and animal care. 

There were however some early rumblings of discontent.  One person in particular sought appointment as a community affairs officer but failed to turn up for any work.  He became upset when his demands for pay went unmet and threatened Isidor with a bush knife.  A brother intervened to prevent any injury.  This same fellow later attacked Tony, the driver and, with his machete, landed a cut to his arm before being stopped.  Consultation with the clan members led to every member of village signing an apprehended violence order against the man.  It was likely drugs were involved in his behaviours.  Undeterred he later he burnt the kau kau screen house and a substantial part of the black plastic on the property fence causing many thousands of kina in damage.  He was arrested at gunpoint and imprisoned, but the case never came to trial and after about two years he was released.  In the meantime, farm staff were threatened by his associates outside of the village. 

Once the lease agreement was signed WAL fenced the property and contracted with HGDC,a local Lanco involved in construction and civil engineering, to clear the land for the pig farm site, put in a farm road and erect the buildings.  WAL drew significant local support from the community, from Transwonderland (a local transport company), from HGDC both as goodwill and as part of the contract, OSL/Santos, Exxon Mobil and the Kumul Foundation.

Figure 2. Erecting the WAL sign

The local people joined in the fencing celebration with the erection of a sign signalling the Nogoli Piggery Operations.  The WAL branding was evident on the sign and on the company’s old landcruiser, a gift from OSL.  The logo became recognised as a force for good in the district but became a problem when WAL became linked with one side in tribal violence and WAL became a target.

The land was cleared and about forty trees were cut down.  They were used for timber for the screen house.  Gardens incorporating long ridges or raised beds complete with drainage channels were dug ready to multiply the high yielding kau kau cultivars that WAL intended to distribute to collaborating villagers via the model farm system.

Figure 3  Laying out the pig farm site.  Mount Ilu is in the background.

HGDC’s engineer was a Queensland builder/engineer with a long history in the tropics.  Neil Gascoigne was a mine of goodwill, innovation, practical knowledge, construction skill and survival insight.  That he barracked for Sydney in the AFL we could not hold against him.  In June 2022 HGDC cleared the building site and laid down the farm road and the surface for the farm compound.

Figure 4. HGDC engineer Neil Gascoigne inspecting the foundation of the farm road.

Figure 5. Noel Kuman and Neil Gascoigne at the NPO June 2022

Figure 6. Farm layout.

The farm area was fenced.  It had a lockable gate with security guards 24/7.  It was a good start but there was a great deal of work to do. From this point on it was step by step; clear, build, clear and plant in whatever order the weather, security, materials availability and resources permitted.

Figure 7.  The front gate.

End.