Friday 27 July 2018

Mayor welcomes hundreds of volunteers to plant 50,000 seedlings for Matariki this weekend

Hundreds of volunteers including members of the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF), Scouts, schools and community groups joined Mayor Phil Goff and representatives from Te Uru Rākau Forestry New Zealand this morning to kickstart a weekend of tree planting at Manukau’s Puhinui Reserve.

Working together, Auckland Council and Te Uru Rākau this weekend will plant more than 50,000 native trees and shrubs, including 12,000 kahikateas as a living memorial to NZDF personnel past, present and future. More than 800 volunteers will take part over the two days.

The event caps off a month of planting events across Auckland for Matariki, organised as part of the Mayor’s Million Trees programme. In only a few weeks thousands of Aucklanders have helped plant over 77,000 native, trees and shrubs.

Mayor Phil Goff says, “Matariki is a special time for New Zealand and for Auckland, and it’s great to partner with the Government’s Matariki Tu Rākau programme to give Aucklanders the opportunity to celebrate it in a tangible way.

“A big part of Matariki is remembering those who came before us and it’s great to be able to plant a 12,000-strong kahikatea forest to acknowledge the men and women who have served their country in the New Zealand Defence Force.

“The Million Trees programme is about creating a green legacy for Auckland, and since the programme launched in June last year, over 700,000 trees have been planted across our region, with well over a million set to go in the ground by the end of this council term.”

Te Uru Rākau Forestry New Zealand head Julie Collins says it’s exciting to be partnering with Auckland Council’s one million trees programme, and with communities around New Zealand.

“This event and other Matariki Tu Rākau planting projects this week in Christchurch, Nelson and Taranaki see us well on the way towards the goal of up to 350,000 trees planted by communities to create living salutes to our brave defence personnel.”

The programme encourages public participation in locally-organised planting projects led by councils, marae, RSAs or other community organisations.

ENDS

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