The project aims to give Lake Horowhenua's fishery a boost while at the same time growing Muaupoko knowledge and skills in rearing eels and gathering information through monitoring, research and analysis.
Robert Warrington has been working on the project since its inception, often working seven days a week, and said the first season did not go without its glitches.
"More than 120 tuna [eels] died in one day. Death is often the nature of aquaculture."
At the end of the season just half of the original 5000 eels survived but it was still an impressive number considering 95 per cent die in the wild, he said.
"The tuna have grown well and are now at 'elver' stage.
"Two hundred were released [on Monday] and the remainder will continue to be grown over an 18-month period to be tagged with GPS for further research and study," he said.
Before the tuna were released Muaupoko kaumatua Maricopa Wiremu-Matakatea said a karakia to safeguard them as they transitioned from Muaupoko's care to the lake.
Mr Warrington said while the first season presented challenges, they have grown their understanding of rearing tuna.
"We are proud of ourselves, learning the ability to react to the aquacultures quickly changing environment," he said.
"I know now how healthy an eel is just by looking at it."
Mr Warrington said when the last earthquake hit the region, he went straight down to the aquaculture facility in Foxton to make sure the eels were unharmed.
He arrived at 2am to find the water had emptied from the tanks, the lids were off the sumps and the eels were stuck inside.
"I was desperately fishing the eels out from the sumps. The local security guard at the time stopped to help me fish them out. Luckily we only lost 30-40 tuna."
Mr Warrington said he is a lot more confident heading into the next season with the knowledge and experience he has gained but emphasised the fragility of aquaculture.
"You almost have to be a fortune teller to figure out what is coming up that will cause them to die," he said.
However, he said they want Lake Horowhenua healthy again so their fisheries and mauri (life force) of the lake can be restored.
"We know the lake has been in a poor state for a number of years.
"Returning more eel to the lake is about holding onto hope for the future of the lake and its health."