Mount Maunganui College students are adopting a piece of their local beach to ensure protection work of the Omanu sand dunes continues.

Fourteen Year 12 students have worked on a 1000sqm block at the east edge of the Omanu surf club car park since May this year.

Mount Maunganui College Year 12 students Shannon Morrison and Gina Brown on the sand dunes at Omanu where they have been planting native plants.

They have hand weeded and planted natives to help prevent coastal erosion.

The students completed 240 hours of community service as part of the school's Gateway Programme, with a plaque set to be erected next to the sand dunes in recognition of their effort.

Shannon Morrison, 16, says she learnt a lot about how native plants spinafex, pingao and wiwi can help trap sand and build the dunes to preserve the natural coastline.

'We learnt a lot about how to stop erosion, about the plants and what they do,” says Shannon.

'We have made a difference to our beach and we were able to work together as a team.

'I definitely prefer the planting to the weeding.”

The project was organised by Murray Clayton and Magaret Butler at Volunteer WBOP and Geoff Walker and Jenny Baird at the College's Gateway Programme.

'The idea started back in February, we wanted something relevant for the students to work on and we hit on the idea of Coast Care,” says coordinator Murray

'It is perfect because it is relevant to Mount College.

'The students have done a suburb job. It has been such a successful and valuable project.”

Students spent two hours every Wednesday out on the dunes, encountering only one day of rain in the five months they worked on the project.

Murray says the project would not have worked without the efforts of Pim de Monchy and Chris Ward from Coast Care, and Stephanie Brackstone the TCC coastal park ranger who were there every Wednesday with the plants, spades and fertiliser ready to plant.

This is the first time the project has run and Chris says the students made a huge effort, and he is keen to work with Mount Maunganui College again next year.

'First we prepared the site and pulled out all of the exotic plants – that took a long time,” says Chris, 'then we planted the whole site”.

'There was only one area that was physically too difficult near the end of the dunes – that needed a machine to remove the weeds and contour the area.

'I am very keen to continue working on the project with the students, on the dunes.”

Due to the project's success the college will again be offering it as an option of their Year 12 Gateway Programme in 2012.

The students received certificates of completion in a presentation on Wednesday, September 28.