“We’re really incredibly lucky to get this funding.”
Willow is a fast-growing introduced plant.
“They create a monoculture, so it’s really difficult for native flora and fauna to thrive.”
The removal work involved a mixture of aerial spot spraying where it was safe to do so, and ground control work close to the lake and Waimarino River.
Stakeholders included Te Kotahitanga o Ngati Tūwharetoa, Ngati Uenuku and Waikato Regional Council.
There have already been positive results, with threatened species of plants including yellow bladderwort and stalked adder’s tongue growing more freely in the area.
The wetland has also seen the return of the Australasian bittern/matuku-hūrepo, a bird classified as “threatened — nationally critical”.
Fewer than 1000 bittern were left in New Zealand, so their wetland habitats were considered a priority for conservation.
Marsh crakes/kotoreke, spotless crakes/pūweto and fernbirds/mātātā were also found in the area, all of which had nationally declining populations.
“Our work over 20 years has shown that controlling willows brings native species back.”
Protecting wetlands also had positive effects for humans, said Te Wano, because they were able to store large amounts of carbon and filter freshwater.
“Wetlands are like the kidneys for the lake, so it filters most of the incoming water to the southern edge of the lake,” Te Wano said.
