No funding extension for Waingake work

Concerns have been raised at Gisborne District Council over funding ongoing animal and pest control work in Waingake, where the organisation is returning harvest pine to native forest in an effort to secure the water supply. Picture by Liam Clayton

A funding extension for plant and animal control work in an area where Gisborne’s main water pipeline crosses fragile land has been ruled out by the Department of Conservation.

In July 2021, Gisborne District Council received $2 million under the Covid response package Jobs for Nature to create dozens of positions for indigenous forest restoration in Waingake.

The funding was aimed to progress the work the council had already undertaken in returning a large portion of its 1600-hectare forest to native vegetation — a strategic move to protect the city’s water supply.

A report presented to the council’s operations committee on September 14 said there had been no clear decision on whether the funding would continue beyond June 2024, despite requests being made for all projects in the region to continue.

This raised the risk that substantial plant and animal control gains resulting from the funding would be lost, the report said.

The Department of Conservation has since confirmed to Local Democracy Reporting that the funding will not continue, despite the potential for some projects around the country to get a boost beyond 2024.

Waingake restoration was not one such project, it confirmed.

“The funding has super-charged conservation efforts all around the country but it will come to an end, with most projects finishing by mid-2025,” DoC senior manager investment Staci Hare said.

Waingake Transformation Programme manager Amy England said the funding had allowed the council to make “excellent gains” in controlling weeds and pests.

The council said the funding agreement was always due to finish in 2024 but what was unclear was whether it would be extended.

“It was important that councillors were aware of this great work and that to maintain these gains we will need to look at alternative funding at a time when both council and central government funds are constrained,” Ms England said.

The positive impact Jobs for Nature funding has had on Tairāwhiti was highlighted by the Ministerial Inquiry into Land Use, which recommended its continuation.

The Government had responded that further analysis was required and no further update had been given since, the council said.

It was waiting to hear back on funding it was seeking for the next three-to-five years through its Our Road to Recovery – Tairāwhiti plan, which also identified the benefits of Jobs for Nature.

The need to fortify the city’s water supply was highlighted during Cyclone Gabrielle when nine of a total of 21 bridges carrying the pipeline through Waingake were damaged by woody debris and loose logs, plunging the city into a water crisis.

The land in question was purchased by the council in 1991 from Maraetaha Incorporated, and subsequently turned into plantation pine forest.

The council expects to finish harvesting by 2027.