New tree confirmed for summit of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill

A tree will once again stand on the tihi (summit) of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill following a decision by the Tūpuna Maunga o Tāmaki Makaurau Authority at their Hui today.

Planting will take place in winter 2016 during Matariki (Māori New Year) celebrations where the previous iconic tree stood.

Initially, a small grove of three young tōtara and six young pohutukawa along with a shelter-band of native shrubs will be planted to ensure the optimum chance of survival in the exposed conditions on the tihi. Over the course of several years, and overseen by arborists, a process of selection will see the stronger trees emerge. The aim is that after a decade there is a single pohutukawa or tōtara.

Paul Majurey, Chair of the Tūpuna Maunga o Tāmaki Makaurau Authority, says the return of native fauna to the tihi of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill marks another significant milestone for this iconic Tūpuna Maunga (ancestral mountain).

“This unanimous decision could not have been made without the support of Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau, the 13 iwi/hapū who achieved the landmark Tāmaki Collective Treaty settlement that resulted in the return of ownership of the Tūpuna Maunga to Mana Whenua.”

“It is also important to acknowledge the leadership of Koromatua / Mayor Len Brown who has long been a champion for the return of a tree to the summit of this maunga, along with other council and local board leadership. The establishment of the co-governance arrangement between Mana Whenua and Auckland Council has already resulted in much better care of these treasured places.”

“It is particularly meaningful to reach a decision on the replanting of the Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill tihi following the recent one year anniversary of the Maunga Authority, which in itself is a significant milestone in the enhancement and restoration of our Tūpuna Maunga.”

Christine Fletcher, Deputy Chair of the Maunga Authority, was Mayor when the previous tree was attacked in 1999 and then removed in 2000 for safety reasons. She says that replanting on the tihi of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill has been a long time coming and is an historic event to be celebrated by all Aucklanders.

“I vividly recall how devastating it was to see our beloved icon, the one tree of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill, come down following discontent around the Treaty settlement process for the Tūpuna Maunga,” she says.

“Now, 15 years on, the settlement has passed and we are beginning a new chapter in the history of Tāmaki Makaurau’s ancestral mountains. How wonderfully symbolic that we are now preparing for a new tree that will grow with future generations of Aucklanders.”

All of the young specimens that will be planted in the new grove have been grown from parent trees at Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill. Some of the pohutukawa specimens have been sourced from seedlings that were found growing on the former Monterey pine tree that stood on the tihi. The pohutukawa seedlings were saved when the pine tree was removed and were cultivated in nurseries.

The Monterey pine was reputed to have been the sole survivor of a grove of trees planted by Sir John Logan Campbell in the 1870s. The pine was first damaged in 1994 and then again 1999. The tree was subsequently deemed unsafe and was completely removed in 2000.

Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill is one of the 14 Tūpuna Maunga (ancestral mountains) returned to Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau under the Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau Collective Redress Act 2014, marking an important milestone for these taonga tuku iho (treasures handed down the generations) and improved protection and enhancement of their spiritual, cultural, historical and geological values.

The Tūpuna Maunga are administered by the Tūpuna Maunga o Tāmaki Makaurau Authority, comprised of equal representatives from Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau and Auckland Council, together with one (non-voting) Crown representative.

ENDS

© Scoop Media