Battle to turn natural gem into Auckland's next regional park

By WAYNE THOMPSON

The Uruamo Headland is a green blur in the left-hand corner of the windscreen as you cross the harbour bridge to go to the North Shore.

It's a bushy backdrop for a sugar refinery painted in pink and blue and is big enough to hide the Navy's armament depot from harbour-hugging homes.

But for those who see the Auckland of the future, the headland at the edge of Birkenhead is the city's lung, a tranquil refuge and an ecological treasure chest, the home of 50 varieties of native and exotic birds.

Two local conservation groups, the Chelsea Regional Park Association and the Uruamo Ecological Society, are doing their best to keep it that way.

The first group, concerned at the possible sale of land on the headland, is lobbying to create a central regional park there.

The second wants to build a predator-proof fence to help plants and animals thrive and allow reintroduction of birds that have disappeared from the North Shore.

Chelsea Regional Park Association chairman Michael Elliot said the headland was the last big piece of unspoiled coastline on the inner Waitemata. If it was left undeveloped as a regional park, it would become increasingly important to generations of citizens.

The population of Auckland was likely to double in 50 years to two million and as urban sprawl devoured green belts and traffic, crowds and noise increased, the need for public open space would be even greater. "As apartments go up and people live in that sort of environment, the ability to get out into a public space and breathe is so important.

"It's the lung of Auckland - as a biggish area with vegetation it contributes to cleaning up the air."

But in the way of achieving the dream is the fact that only 35 per cent of the 260ha headland is North Shore City Council reserves. The rest includes the Defence-owned Naval Armament Depot, the Chelsea Sugar Refinery and residential land bordering the larger blocks of vegetation.

Although the association acts as a planning watchdog against development threats, a trust is quietly raising money for the day when the New Zealand Sugar Company offers land for sale.

The refinery has operated within its park-like grounds for 120 years and is still expanding.

The company allows public access to areas containing its water supply lakes, bush and walkways linking to the adjoining Chatswood Reserve and Kauri Point Centennial Park.

"Chelsea is one of Auckland's oldest industries and the longer it keeps operating profitably the better it is for the people," said Mr Elliot.

"Chelsea has been generous in allowing public access but it's the future that worries us."

The association is mindful that in the 1960s the company declared a chunk of its estate surplus to requirements, resulting in the Chatswood subdivision.

A further worry is that if the Navy shifts from its Devonport base, Defence will sell what the Navy calls the "most picturesque armament depot in the world". Park promoters would have to compete with developers over prime real estate with harbour and city views.

To make sure the headland is not simply treated as a mosaic of properties, the ecological society has organised a voluntary agreement with land owners and community groups to look after the area.

Society chairman Mel Galbraith said willing staff at the armament depot didn't mind colleagues teasing them for being "tree-huggers" for helping to plant native bush and get rid of possums and weeds.

The society hoped to test its long-term plan for a predator-proof fence by modifying the depot's security fence at a cost of $2000.

Mr Galbraith said the sanctuary could supply species to other reserves within the city.

"I know we can achieve a lot on the headland because it has the variety of habitats and it has the size."

But the accord no longer includes New Zealand Sugar.

Company commercial manager John Ellis said this was because of the need to have control over who came on to its property when volunteers were involved.

"We will pay for and manage our own ecology," he said.

The company spends about $100,000 a year in environmental property care and maintenance on the 53ha site.