The sand dunes along the Papamoa coast are getting a makeover as volunteers plant new plants to restore the dunes.
Coast Care Bay of Plenty is running dune planting programmes, using local knowledge to restore the form and function of the dunes in the region.
Volunteers Sandy Oldfield and Mark planting at Motiti Reserve. (Photo: Tracy Hardy)
Coast Care's Chris Ward says they have been running planting programmes around the area since the middle of May.
He says it's hard to predict what will happen at each session.
'We have two good volunteers here at the moment but more good turn up. It's a nice day and you just never know what will happen.”
Chris says volunteers are really keen and passionate about what they are doing.
'We're planting native plants. The exotic plant material have been sprayed and removed and now we're putting back the original plant life to restore the dunes.
'We have been going since the middle of May. We started at Motiti Reserve and we are going to Taylor Road, planting in front of all the properties and reserve areas.”
6 comments
You
Posted on 31-07-2011 21:44 | By Capt_Kaveman
cant restore something that is eroding away,sand that is blown by the wind into the sea normaly pushes bk up the shoreline anyhow, but when someone developes a house 30m away from the sand dunes the excess is trucked away, there is still visable scars from the storm of somewhere around "1974/75" when the sea wants to take it it will and no planting will stop that
Well Done
Posted on 01-08-2011 09:06 | By Hebegeebies
Great effort more support for this sort of thing is required. If we don't try we will be worse off.Caring for our environment is critical.
Congratulations to volunteers
Posted on 01-08-2011 09:50 | By Inconvenient Truth
Good on you for doing this work which will make a difference. I'm sick of all the knockers on these forums and this positive work deserves positive recognition. Why is it that when community minded people do community minded things there's always the knockers to contend with.
motorbikes
Posted on 01-08-2011 11:22 | By papamoan
This is very good work being done, now we need to keep the various motorbikes, quad bikes, dune buggies out of the upper dunes!
take up the challenge!
Posted on 01-08-2011 11:40 | By claypole
re Capt. Kaveman comments, if you spare a little bit of time learning about coastal processes and how dunes are formed, you will appreciate your comments are a little ignorant! Granted, the district plan allowed subdivisions too close in the fore/mid dune areas but you cant turn back the clock , only learn from past mistakes. The heavy reliance on volunteers by council through the community programme 'COASTCARE" is restoring predominately human damage to the buffer zone (fore dune). Maybe if people were to attend a planting day (contact Bay of Plenty Regional Council), they would learn about said processes and why the planting with specific native salt tolerant, sand binding plants needs to happen before Papamoa becomes another Waihi Beach with an ugly boulder sea defence with nowhere to walk at high tide. So Capt Kaveman and all sceptics, see you at the next voluntary planting day!
Progress report please TCC
Posted on 01-08-2011 21:05 | By Investigator
A lot of the damage has in fact been done by residents grabbing beach reserve land and treating it as their own.What progress has TCC made in claiming back these encroachments or have they given up the fight -if so why ?
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