Roger Alexander: Puketapu Lake's history engaging

Roger Alexander, owner of Puketapu Lake. Photo / File

At the recent Rotary Puketapu Auction and Fair held on our property, many people asked about the history of the lake so I've decided to answer all of the questions at once. I hope you find it interesting and informative!

In the 1800s the lake covered an area of some 30 acres (12ha) and unfortunately flooded the main road through Puketapu to the Inland Patea and Puketitiri on a fairly regular basis during rain events.

Eventually it was decided that a deep drain should be dug to the nearby Tutaekuri River to empty the lake and thereby alleviate the problem.

Due to a lack of fall the lake was only lowered by 1m so a pumping station was installed to complete this ambitious undertaking.

With such a large catchment feeding the lake this plan proved to be a dismal failure, but now that the flooding problem had been partially solved, the whole project was abandoned.

The now shallow lake soon became clogged with "basket" willows, raupo, rushes and silt, and by the 1970s had become a "dead swamp" unable to function as a filter for nutrients and silt, and unable to sustain a bird population due to it being mostly dry.

By the time I bought the property in 1978 the "stench" from rotting vegetation and the lack of birdlife convinced me that something had to be done to rejuvenate this valuable area and return it to a vibrant working wetland.

After five years of careful research it was decided that the only proven way to turn the clock back was to completely remove the willows, raupo, rushes and silt, then build several islands which would be planted in aquatic vegetation such as flaxes and pampas, along with taxodium and nyssa sylvatica trees, the roots of which act as giant sponges soaking up undesirable nutrients.

The islands of course would also serve as a valuable predator-free environment where birdlife could thrive and breed undisturbed.

Over a 30-year period with lots of hard work and enthusiasm, I've finally managed to complete this work.

We now have a healthy wetland supporting large numbers of healthy eels, smelt and bullies.

The birdlife has returned in great numbers, with many species living and thriving happily together – even royal spoonbills.

The "smelly eyesore" has been transformed into an attractive entrance to our wonderful village, while discharging lovely clean water in the Tutaekuri River – a win-win situation.

Most surprising of all is the whole area has now become an educational source where even nurserymen come for planting advice.

What have I learnt from all this?

I've discovered that no two wetlands are alike – depending on their locality, some need far more care and maintenance than others to function properly.

When situated on a flood plain sedimentation builds up and requires regular maintenance and will require a major makeover every 40 to 60 years. Being next to a main road and a village, the bottles, cans, shopping bags and polystyrene food boxes, etc, need clearing from the shoreline on a regular basis and taken for recycling.

I just hope for the sake of this community that common sense prevails in 60 years and this wetland is allowed to be reinvigorated again.

• Roger Alexander is a Puketapu farmer, farm forester and conservationist.