The second planting season for the Rangiuru Business Park Stormwater Pond Wetlands had drawn to an end, leaving in its wake the enduring beginnings of a kūkūwai (wetland) set to flourish for generations into the future.
The project is functional, environmental and cultural. The stormwater pond is required to treat and handle runoff from the industrial-zoned land. As water meanders through the pond – which is a kilometre long by half a kilometre wide – the native plants filter and treat the quality of it. By taking a practical need and looking at it from a more holistic perspective, it has opened the door for wider opportunities and ultimately provided a catalyst for strengthening the relationship between Tapuika Iwi Authority and Quayside.
For the close-knit planting team, many of whom whakapapa to Tapuika, the wetlands project holds a strong sense of collective pride and personal nourishment. With Rangiuru to the west and Kaituna to the east, the Rangiuru Business Park wetland lies between the tūpuna maunga and awa of Tapuika iwi. Ancestrally, the Rangiuru Business Park occupies an area that was once a wetland lying within the vast swamp that spanned the region from the coast to the hills. In the 1820s, the flax trade brought industry to the area. During colonisation, the whenua was drained and converted to farmland. It has been used for agriculture ever since.
The Wetlands project marks the revitalisation and restoration of a piece of cultural and environmental whakapapa. For the planting team, the long-term project has been hard mahi, but it is mahi that is deeply rewarding. Planting their own whenua, between their awa and maunga, the team have created something to be nurtured by and for the mokopuna of the future.
Over 360,000 plants have been planted over the past two seasons. Remarkably, there has been minimal plant loss, a rare achievement in wetland construction attributed to the fertile land and deep local mātauranga (knowledge) guiding the project. The new arrival of diverse birdlife attests to transformative growth, strongly indicating that ecological health is well underway, even as construction continues nearby. From monocultural farmland to bustling wetland, the planting team have returned biodiversity to the whenua.
A particularly special visual feature that evolved throughout the project was the raised tree island, which has been planted in the design of an infinity sign, or a number 8. When the bush matures, it will provide an immersive experience and a historical connection to the whenua.
The wetland is more than just a stormwater solution — it’s a living testament to what can be achieved when community, mana whenua, ecology, and enterprise align. We mihi to the exceptional effort, mahi and knowledge of the Tapuika planting team.
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