Porirua Harbour Trust

Background

• The Porirua Harbour and Catchment Community Trust was formally established on the 11th March 2011.

• The need for the trust was identified in the initial Pauatahanui Inlet Community Trust (PICT) Action Plan in 2000 and significant work was then carried out by Porirua City Council, Greater Wellington Regional Council, Wellington City Council and Ngati Toa Rangatira

• As a result the parties recognized the value of having an independent advocate for the Porirua Harbour and its catchment and the Porirua Harbour and Catchment Community Trust was formed.

Our RoleTo promote the sustainable management of the Porirua Harbour and its catchment by:

• Advocating for sustainable management

• Fostering understanding of ecological and environmental issues

• Coordinating input from community groups

• Supporting, promoting and contributing to programmes and projects aimed to improve the harbour and catchments.

So what is our Catchment• The area where natural

drainage of water occurs through a water course to the sea.

• The Porirua Harbour has three main catchments– Pauatahanui Inlet (470ha)

– Onepoto Arm (240ha)

– Harbour Entrance

Pauatahanui InletIncludes:• Kakaho Stream

• Horokiri Stream

• Pauatahanui Stream

• Duck Creek

Onepoto ArmIncludes:• Kenepuru Stream• Titahi Bay catchment• Takapuwahai Stream• Porirua Stream– Mitchell Stream– Stebbings Stream– Takapu Stream

Taupo Swamp CatchmentIncludes:• The streams from Pukerua

Bay that flow through Taupo Swamp and flow into the Outer Harbour.

• The run-off from farmland in the area

The LagoonsOkowai lagoon

Aotea Lagoon

Papakowhai Lagoon

The Lakes

Aotea Lake

NZ Police College Lake

Whitby Lake

Some FactsThe Harbour is the largest estuarine harbour in the lower North Island and is the main nursery for over 30 different fish species.

It is the only one with any significant sea grass cover and also includes significant wetlands.

The population in the catchment includes about 51000 from Porirua City and a further 33000 from Wellington City.

The Big Three Issues

• Sediment– All estuaries accumulate sediment over time. The two broad

sources are terrestrial from erosion of rural land, streambanks and development.

• Pollution– Heavy metals, pesticides, excess nutrients, vehicle emissions

and pathogens all find there way into the harbour.• Ecology

– Modification to harbour and stream edges and impacts on offshore and near shore fisheries. Seagrass habitat is slowly reducing as are the salt marshes.

Our PHT Action PlanThe Trust will integrate four strategies of• advocacy, • education, • communication and • facilitation

to deliver a work-plan that reflects the skills, interests and experience of Trustees and the objectives of the Trust.

The work-plan must be realistic and achievable, and make a significant contribution to the Porirua Harbour Strategy.

Advocacy • Trustees are building our own knowledge of the harbour and

catchment issues• We are creating an “annual scorecard” for the harbour and each

of the catchments to show how well local bodies have delivered against the strategy.

• taking opportunities to promote our priorities for the Harbour, • Being a “watchdog” organisation to monitor delivery of the

Harbour Strategy.

• How - attending public meetings and consultations, regular contact with officials, participating in consultation processes eg writing submissions.

Communication

• promoting issues and events about the Harbour to a range of audiences,

• raising awareness with a view to encourage participation by members of the public and interest groups,

• helping to keep people informed on issues and developments, promoting the efforts of others.

• How – through our website, e-newsletters, presentations to groups, media releases

Education

• Producing an on-line teaching resource for teachers in the catchment based on the Living Waters DVD documentaries.

• Including a full resource kit and teacher workshops and promoting these across all schools in the catchment.

• How - Living Waters resource for schools, participate in Harbour Education network

Facilitation

• Bringing people together in the interest of Harbour recovery, being an independent voice, enabling people to participate in action.

• Regular clean-ups of the harbour, currently concentrating on the Porirua Stream mouth and Onepoto Arm

• Extending into the stream catchments and lagoons with other groups

• Re-vegetation planting programmes in estuarine areas• Drains to stream plaques• Recreational access to the harbour and catchments

Current Trustees

• Grant Baker (Chair)• Ngaire Best (WCC); Jenny Brash (GWRC); Reina

Solomon (Ngati Toa); (PCC).• Wendy Barry, George Elkington, Lindsay Gow,

Daryl Hayes, James King, John Morrison, Peter Sherwin, Christine Stanley, Larissa Toelupe, John Wells, Barrie Shute.

Other relevant links

• For more information go to the Porirua Harbour Trust website

• http://www.poriruaharbourtrust.org.nz