MU-C2 Onekaka to Parapara Operational Plan

Project De-Vine Environmental Trust’s (PDVET’s) long-term plan is to eradicate all invasive pest plants and trees in Golden Bay.

The medium-term focus is:
Expanding and joining up existing areas of invasive plant and tree control and working close to National Park boundaries.
Old Man’s Beard (OMB) and Banana Passion Vine (BPV) high-level control on properties in MU-C2: Onekaka to Parapara to Milnthorpe Reserve properties (see Figure 1 and 2) not covered by existing funded control work.

Control to a high-level Climbing asparagus, Woolly nightshade, Yellow Jasmine and Purple pampas grass, which are threatening (either or all) Riparian plantings, Covenants, Wetlands and Kahurangi National Park.
Watch out for and control less common pest plants that might be found in small numbers.

Proposed work: this work would include selected sites to control specific infestations of pest plants in or near to the Halo around Kahurangi National Park adding to the biodiversity value of the funding application, as well as working towards clearing the Golden Bay coastal areas of invasive pest plants on a large scale. This stage will join up the MU-C1 area to the east, which has already been assessed and has had a successful WWFCF grant in 2019 and a DOCCF grant in 2020, with the MU-B & MU-A areas to the west, which has had some funded control work carried out in the past and last year. A re-assessment will be made this summer of the MU-B and A areas to focus on Climbing asparagus as well as the historic sites of OMB and BPV so that an application for control work can be submitted next year. This will, in a few years, create a complete block of OMB and BPV controlled properties from the Takaka River to the western coastal boundary of Golden Bay and join up with control work already well established in eastern Golden Bay.

The holders of the Aorere River prize have agreed to fund the assessment work and thus help to secure other sources of funding – from the WWFCF, GBCT and DOC Community Funds.

For applications to the various funders, PDVET needs to develop projects that can appeal:

a/ proximity to KNP

b/ provide clarity of the invasive plant and tree control work required and the associated expenses. This preferably requires having assessments carried out in advance and create a control phase budget based on the data to make a confident application.

Two local businesses have agreed to fund raise towards this project. Living Light Candles has donated candle seconds to Pohutakawa Gallery, in Takaka, who have sold them to the public. $2000 has been raised and donated to PDVET for this project.

Objectives

• Determine boundaries for the assessment of invasive plants and trees. This is set as from “The Lookout”, on State Highway 60, to Parapara, ending at the western end of Milnthorpe Reserve referred to as the western half of MU-C, MU-C2, as defined by Project De-Vine Environmental Trust and covers the area between: See Figure 1.
• a/ The sea, along the coastal strip from 943 Takaka-Collingwood Highway. Including the various settlements of Onekaka, Tukurua and Parapara, to the western end of Milnthorpe Reserve
• b/ Following property boundaries along the edge of Kahurangi National Park from 943 Takaka-Collingwood Highway to the western end of the Parapara area, with the most westerly property being 1901 Takaka-Collingwood Highway, opposite Milnthorpe Reserve
• Assess properties for invasive plants and trees in management unit MU-C2.
• Prepare assessment of invasive plant and tree control reports from the assessment data for the WWF Community Fund round in approx. September 2020, Golden Bay Community Trust in October 2020 and DOC Community Fund, with a much larger number of properties assessed, to apply in Feb 2021.
• Prepare Project Proposal with budget for invasive plant and tree control based on the assessment data.
• Determine the amount the DOC Community Fund can provide to fix the funding application amount.
• Successful WWF Community Fund (maximum grant is $15k), Golden Bay Community Trust (maximum grant is $5k) and DOC Community Fund 2020 (maximum grant is approx. $90k) applications.