Appreciating volunteers - restoration efforts

CVNZ volunteers getting stuck in at Wainuiomata

It is national volunteer week and Greater Wellington Regional Council is celebrating by giving a shout out to all those people putting time into Wainuiomata River Restoration at Baring Head.

This year's theme for volunteer week is Whiria te tangata - weaving the people together. In 2019 Greater Wellington, with the help of a large number of volunteers, aim to plant 5000 native trees and plants on this site.

Eastern Harbour park ranger Jo Greenman says the hard work of Conservation Volunteers NZ (CVNZ) is essential for the Million Metres stream project along the Wainuiomata River to achieve its goals.

"Without volunteers helping out, the scale of work needed to restore this site would not be possible," Jo says. 

This project is a partnership between Million Metres, Friends of Baring Head Trust and Greater Wellington.

The Wainuiomata River contains many species of native fish that have a "declining" conservation status including the long finned eel, inanga (whitebait), lamprey, giant and red fin bully and giant kokopu.

"There are also many birds the area including the nationally threatened grey duck, the uncommon black shag and banded dotterel. The threatened spotted skink are also found in the area.

"This year our goal is to plant 550 metres of the riverbank which will reduce slumping, provide shade to improve fish habitat, increase plant diversity and repair inanga spawning sites," Jo explains.

Greater Wellington parks portfolio leader Councillor Prue Lamason says the volunteers who help out at Baring Head also do essential work in trapping.

"The fact that we have volunteers here to help out has made a huge difference in making this area predator free. This extensive trapping allows species such as the threatened spotted skinks to thrive.

"Volunteer week is great opportunity for us to thank all of our hard working volunteers as well as everyone who has participated in crowd-funding the Baring Head project. These contributions have enabled CVNZ to get involved which is essential for us to get plants in the ground," Cr Lamason says.