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GUARDIANS OF PĀUATAHANUI INLET INC
ANNUAL REPORT
JUNE 2022
Note: The Financial Report can be downloaded here.
Introduction
On behalf of the Guardians of Pāuatahanui Inlet Management Committee it is my pleasure to report on the activities undertaken by the management team and members in our reporting period - 1 April 2021 to March 31 2022.
Officers and Management Committee
The following officers and members comprised the Management Committee for 2020-21:
Chairperson Lindsay Gow
Secretary Marion Rosner, Jessica Taylor
Treasurer Stephen O’Neil
Membership Secretary Janet Ryan
Newsletter Editor & Webmaster Michael Waldron
Committee John McKoy
Andre van Haldere
Christine Stanley
Alistair Webb
Activities
Annual Inlet Clean Up
This was held on November 28th. Only 18 people turned up plus five Committee members, a much smaller number than our usual 50. Nevertheless, the clean up continued and included support from Conservation Volunteers and Philip and Janet Reidy from Rotary who provided the sausage sizzle. Despite the fewer participants, a creditable amount of rubbish was collected including the usual cups, bottles, cans, cigarette buts, bottle tops, paper bags, polystyrene packaging and even some hubcaps.
Thanks are due to Janet and Ray Ryan for providing the organisational and logistical support needed for this event.
Inlet Photo Competition and Related Prize Giving
As with the clean-up we had fewer participants this year. We were disappointed that we didn’t have enough registrations to run our Youth Workshop but, due to the cancellation of last year’s competition, we allowed the use of images previously taken in 2020 for submission for the 2021 competition. As a result we only had a few youth and junior entrants this time but a couple of them gathered most or all the awards for their age group using photos taken during last year’s workshop.
The prizegiving was followed by a public showing of the winning photographs at the Porirua Library, Palmers Lifestyle Centre, Lighthouse Cafe and Cinema and Whitby New World Mall.
Thanks are due to Janet and Ray Ryan and Michael Waldron for organising the photo competition and the logistics of the related displays.
With low interest and COVID affecting the community, we decided not to hold a competition this year.
Website
This continues to be a popular and well regarded communications channel. It contains a wealth of information used to inform and educate the public about the Pāuatahanui Inlet environment and its geological, geographical and human history, together with current events and issues.
Newsletters
We produced three newsletters for members and also sent them to associated organisations. These are very highly regarded and we receive a number of compliments about the quality of the articles, especially the feature articles.
Our webmaster and producer of the Newsletter, Michael Waldron, deserves credit for his work on these important communication channels and, especially, for his diligent research on, and production of, the feature articles.
Presented an illustrated talk to a local community group
Lindsay Gow compiled and presented a PowerPoint-based talk to the Paremata Socius Group. This is available for presentations to other interested groups.
Submissions
During the year we made a number of submissions, in most cases jointly with the Porirua Harbour and Catchments Community Trust. These are available on our website and are as follows:
- Greater Wellington and Porirua City Long Term Plans
- Porirua City Climate Change proposals
- Porirua City Proposed District Plan
- Porirua City By Laws affecting stormwater
- Plan Change for Plimmerton Farm Development
- Greater Wellington Navigation and Safety By Laws
- The environmental exceedances caused by the Transmission Gully motorway construction.
- Porirua City Climate Change Adaptation proposals
We have had a number of successes with our submissions. Helped by us and others Porirua City and Greater Wellington decided to put more resources into harbour related programmes. The Plimmerton Farm development can only proceed subject to strict environmental requirements designed to protect the catchment from sediment and contaminants. The hearings for the Proposed Porirua District Plan are underway and we have had considerable support for our submissions from Porirua City planners reporting to the Hearing Panel.
As part of the underpinning work that is necessary to keep us informed about current and future issues, we have maintained continual communications with local authority members and officers on environmental and related issues affecting the Pāuatahanui Inlet.
Inlet Planting Project
The purpose of this project is to:
- Bring back shoreline plants such as Sea Rush that underpin the Inlet ecosystem by providing the nutrients that fuel the Inlet food chain and its variety of sea life; and
- As the shoreline habitat improves, increase bird life.
This new activity has resulted in hundreds of sea rush (wiwi) plantings around the Inlet. We held a successful planting event on Motukaraka Point. Together with Porirua City Council, Ngati Toa Rangatira and other community organisations, thousands of wiwi, makaka and oioi have been planted around the Inlet’s edge.
We have also purchased a number of A24 traps. These are self-resetting traps, powered with a CO2 gas cannister, and they contain a non-toxic lure.
We are aiming to reduce the pest animals - stoats, weasels and rats that prey on our local bird populations and especially on their eggs and fledglings.
Greater Wellington Regional Council maintains a number of pest animal traps around the Inlet and we are supporting and strengthening this network by installing a series of the self-resetting A24 traps.
Our contribution is along the Inlet margins — from Golden Gate, Camborne Walkway, Grays Road, Motukaraka Point through to Horokiri Estuary and Ration Point.
Andre van Halderen has managed the Inlet Restoration Project and Al Webb has arranged for the A24 traps and their distribution. Thanks are due to them for their commitment to achieving the successes recorded above. Thanks are also due to Porirua City Council, and especially Nigel Clarke and Rachel McClellan, who provided unending support for our activities and who went well beyond the call of duty in helping organise plants and planting.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I again thank the Management Committee for their hard work and commitment in sustaining our Guardians’ objectives and in supporting the years’ activities.
Finally, I once again want to thank all members for their continuing support.
Lindsay Gow
Chairperson
June 23rd, 2022
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