Council’s Forest of Tane Purchase a ‘Win’ for Wellington’s Bird and Bush Heritage

The Wellington City Council has acted decisively in taking the opportunity to buy the Forest of Tane for its ecological, recreational and water management benefits to the Wellington region.

Buying the forest is a great opportunity to preserve native bush, maintain the green belt on the high western hills of Tawa, and continue sustaining an amazing range of bird life (including therare kakariki, bellbirds, NZ falcon, kereru, kingfishers, tui, and morepork) through being a bird corridor linking the Kapiti Coast and its offshore bird sanctuaries to Wellington.

‘More than half of the Forest of Tane is in native bush, and although the remainder is in pine, it has a well-established native understory. Where pine trees have fallen, the natives are simply growing over them,’ Friends of Tawa Bush Reserves President Wayne Pincott describes.

Pincott says the group is delighted with the outcome as even back in 1840 the Wellington City founders recognised the importance of green space to a community’s well-being.

‘They set aside steep hillside areas, of lower value for housing, to form the Town Belt, a core part of central Wellington’s character. Our councillors are honouring that heritage by applying the same principle to the outer suburbs,’ Pincott explains.

The land will immediately provide a family-friendly walking track, and connects to the Te Araroa trail and Colonial Knob, Redwood Bush and Spicer Forest. The Friends of Tawa Bush Reserves volunteers believe it has sufficient appeal to draw in visitors from other parts of Wellington.

Keeping the stream running through the forest free from the impacts of development is another benefit of the council’s decision because of Tawa’s problems with flooding.

‘We’re a group of local volunteers drawn from and supported by the community, and working in partnership with the Council. Over the last twenty years we’ve provided the labour to get possum problems under control, allowing the bush to flourish, flower and fruit in abundance, which in turn has seen the native bird population thrive. We’ve developed fantastic bush walking tracks making the bush accessible and have grown and planted thousands of native trees.’

‘Now we have an enlarged responsibility to work with the Council to care for and improve this new asset. We’ll be stepping up our efforts, and calling on the local community to follow through on its show of support and help us develop this forest into a place Wellingtonians are proud of.’

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