Te Pourepo o Kaituna wetland creation project

Another successful round of field days were held at the Te Pourepo o Kaituna wetland this month (August 2023).

This year, our land management team hosted eight schools at the site, partnering with Maketū Ōngātoro Wetland Society (MOWS), Ngāti Whakaue and Tapuika, Bay Conservation Alliance and Department of Conservation to get 3,500 plants in the ground.

The field days included hand’s on mahi to get the planting done (with a best practice ‘how to’ from the land management officer on site), educational activities and kōrero around the value of wetlands and wetland restoration.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this a success, particularly the BOPRC staff from all over the organisation who volunteered their work time to support these field days – it’s always a good day when the sun is shining and the kids are smiling!

Staff from Quayside Holdings recently swapped the office for the outdoors, spending their Volunteer Day getting stuck into some hard mahi with Bay of Plenty Regional Council’s land management team in the Kaituna catchment.

After several wet weather cancellations throughout the year, the team were pleased to finally make the day happen and eagerly donned their gumboots.

The task at hand was pulling out carex secta (also known as pukio) from their temporary home in a floating wetland in a local farm drain, preparing them for transportation and replanting them in the Te Pourepo o Kaituna Wetland beside the lower Kaituna River.

Floating wetlands involve a buoyant structure that is heavily planted with emergent wetland plants floating on top of ponded or slow-moving waterways (i.e. drains) with excess nutrients. They have become a popular tool for treating nutrient rich waterways, inhibiting algal growth through shading and proving habitat for aquatic insects, fish and birdlife.

Navigating plant removal from the floating pontoon took a bit of time – and a keen volunteer to join Regional Council land management officer Michael Tyler in the water – but once it was sorted, the team was away laughing.

Michael says, “The Quayside volunteering day in the lower Kaituna Catchment was an exciting day out of the office for everyone. It’s a great opportunity to see some of the environmental work being carried out and the extra hands were greatly appreciated.”

Mel Manley, Quayside Corporate Services Manager, says the volunteering days are one of the ways their local team give back to the community and working with Regional Council to improve community outcomes is no-brainer.

“As well as a great business relationship with Regional Council that helps support Bay of Plenty ratepayers, it’s wonderful to have a great partnership that enables us to put boots on the ground and get our hands dirty as well.”

The floating pontoons will be re-planted by Regional Council Summer Assistants later this month, in preparation for the 2023 wetland planting season.

Field days at the Te Pourepo o Kaituna wetland are underway! Otamarakau School is one of the schools taking part in the annual event this month and judging by the smiles it was a good day out in the sun.

The students started the day with a walk around the wetland, hosted by Maketū Ōngātoro Wetland Society (MOWS), then they got stuck into planting and soil-focused educational activities. Ngāti Whakaue kaumātua Liam Tapsell gave the students a brief tour through history about the significance of the wetland area for local iwi, and how native plants were used in everyday life.

A special treat for everyone involved in the day was the appearance of a kōtuku / white heron – a rare species with an estimated population of 100 -120 birds in New Zealand. The number of kōtuku in the wetland is currently unknown, but bird monitoring is ongoing as part of the Te Pourepo o Kaituna project.

This was one of eight field days for local schools organised by BOPRC’s land management team in collaboration with Ngāti Whakaue and Tapuika, Bay Conservation Alliance, Department of Conservation and MOWs. When the field days are complete, there will be up to 3,000 native shrubs and trees planted in the wetland.

More than 600 native trees and shrubs were planted by Te Puke High School students in the kahikatea areas of Te Pourepo o Kaituna wetland last week (August 4, 2022), as part of an annual collaborative event between the school, Maketū Ōngātoro Wetland Society (MOWS), Bay Conservation Alliance and Bay of Plenty Regional Council.

The planting day is part of an education programme, which is in its third year, and is a win-win for everyone involved. It enables mahi on the wetland as part of this ongoing restoration project, while also providing an opportunity to help educate students about the environment in their own backyard and earn NCEA credits in the process.

More than 15 Year 12 students distributed the native species in teams of four around an allocated area, learning more about these species – such as kahikatea, manuka, titoki and harakeke – in the process. A quick walking morning tea break also provided an opportunity to see tuna and learn about these important taonga.

Michael Tyler, Land Management Officer for Bay of Plenty Regional Council, says the planting days always prove popular as the students can see their hard work in action.

“It seems to really speak to them – I think because they can plant it, see it and watch the trees and shrubs grow over time. They love learning about the wetlands and it’s always a bit of fun”.

Awhina Awhimate from MOWS echoes Michael’s sentiment, saying she loves working on this collaborative project and seeing the joy it brings to the students.

“The students really enjoy it. It’s great having them come back because they have a visual project that they can see into the future. They get a lot of pride out of seeing their work.”

There are several field days planned for August, which will see about 2100 native species planted, as well as three wetland and soil-focused educational activities held. Seven more schools with at least 350 students are expected to follow in Te Puke High School’s footsteps at these field days.