New mangrove removal at Whangamata to begin

Two hectares of mangroves are to be cleared from Whangamata Harbour starting from next week, after Waikato Regional Council reviewed the effects of previous removals and gave approval for the work to begin.

A one hectare site will be cleared in the Moana Anu Anu Estuary and another hectare near Patiki Point.

“It has taken some time to get this happening again after the pause to monitor the effects of previous mangrove removals in Whangamata," says Thames-Coromandel District Council Chief Executive Rob Williams.

"This latest progress is a result of the collaborative approach to mangrove management agreed to recently between the regional council and our council," he says.

“We're looking forward to continuing this current collaboration with the regional council and the other parties involved in mangrove management in Whangamata and elsewhere in the Coromandel," Mr Williams says.

Waikato Regional Council Chief Executive Vaughan Payne says: "We’ve been very keen to get on with managing mangroves again at Whangamata following our pause on work last year due to problems meeting consent conditions allowing clearance.

“Now we feel we can safely start work again at the two sites and will continue to review whether wider scale clearance can resume under the terms of the current consent," Mr Payne says.

Planning is underway for work at the two one hectare sites to be carried out between 15 and 31 August to fit in with tidal conditions and restrictions around works during the bird-breeding season.

Mangrove material will be mulched and used as compost on adjacent reserves. This will mean temporary closure of those reserves while work take place. Signage will be in place alerting the public to those closures.

Alongside the mangrove removal, the regional council will be building on local community pest control initiatives in the Moana Anu Anu Estuary by extending the current trap line for rats and mustelids so as to better protect threatened wetland birds which breed locally, such as bittern, banded rail and fernbird.

New approach

The resumption of mangrove removal follows the announcement last month that the two councils had signed a new Statement of Intent (SOI) about mangrove management throughout the Coromandel.

The SOI commits the two councils to an approach of shared responsibility for mangrove management and to working with the local community, iwi treaty partners and key stakeholders at Whangamata and other sites in the district that may be suitable for mangrove removal, as well as on where mangroves should remain untouched.

ENDS

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