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MANGAWHAI'S NO.1 NEWSPAPER
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Conservation groups support new Te Arai developmentAuckland Council hearings commissioners have approved the coastal development at Te Arai, near Mangawhai, and the hapu involved – Te Uri o Hau – will now formally offer to gift 172 hectares of coastal land to Auckland Council.
Te Uri o Hau Settlement Trust chair Rawson Wright said the approval of the development is hugely significant for the hapu, coming after years of opposition to any development. This is wonderful news. Te Uri o Hau purchased the 616 hectare Mangawhai North Forest in 2002 as part of the commercial redress package in our treaty settlement. After many years, we can now proceed with a development delivering an economic return to the hapu, which can be invested into services and jobs to support our 7000 members, while also protecting the environment. “Part of the overall development is an offer to gift 172 hectares of the forest to Auckland Council. This is one of a number of conservation measures which will safeguard the environment at Te Arai. It includes the entire beach front area and dunes, and the parts of the forest with the highest conservation values. The Council already owns 87 hectares of land at Te Arai Point adjoining the forest. If the gift is accepted, a significant public coastal reserve of around 250 hectares could be established. Mr Wright said the commissioners’ approval means 46 house sites can be developed in the forest alongside measures to enhance protection of the threatened shorebird species which nest and breed in the vicinity. “There has been sensitivity to any plans at Te Arai due to its proximity to nesting areas for threatened shorebird species. But there is now widespread acceptance that Te Arai’s redevelopment presents not a risk but the best chance of survival for the fairy tern, New Zealand’s most endangered bird. “Three major conservation groups – the Department of Conservation, Forest & Bird, and the Environmental Defence Society – all supported our application. Auckland Council’s own experts supported it. While the Te Arai Beach Preservation Society has opposed the plan change, it has provided constructive input into a comprehensive conservation plan for the Te Arai property at a recent Environment Court hearing on pending water permits for the golf course component of the development. The forest is a low grade, commercial pine forest currently being milled. The northern part of the forest was sold last year to Los Angeles financier Ric Kayne, who is building a world-class private golf course due for completion late next year. “Removing the forest is positive for the environment and the nesting shorebirds in the vicinity,” says Mr Wright. “Predators like stoats and cats are the shorebirds’ biggest threat. They will be trapped, which will significantly reduce the threat, and Mr Kayne will be a major funder of a new shorebird surveillance and predator control plan. “The forest’s redevelopment is hugely positive not just for Te Uri o Hau but for the region and its tourism. In the golf course alone, many millions of dollars are being invested supporting a significant number of local jobs. A tourism asset is being created which broadens Auckland’s offering to visitors. |
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