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A plan to divert a marshy stream to create a wetland, which received resource consent from Auckland Council, has been undone by persistent protest from local environmental groups.
The stream, which flows into Karepiro Bay, was blocked with a substantial amount of infill by developer Williams Land in May.
Environmental watchdogs from Keep Okura Green, Friends of Okura Bush and the Long Bay Okura Great Park Society immediately protested, saying they had received a written assurance from Williams Land director Evan Williams back in 2007/8 that he would not dam the stream, which is known as Karepiro Beach central stream.
Keep Okura Green spokesperson Peter Townend says the group believes that the stream is part of the Long Bay Okura Marine Reserve and as such it should be fully protected. Mr Townend says that the stream is important to the local ecosystem and that the movement of water from it created a raised area where shorebirds can safely roost away from people.
He says since the stream was blocked, that raised area has been getting noticeably lower. Recently the godwits have arrived in Karepiro Bay and are roosting there, along with shore plovers, dotterels and many other seabirds.
However in a report to the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board last month, Auckland Council’s northern monitoring compliance team leader Kerry Flynn said that the stream is not part of the Coastal Marine Area and that gazetted maps identifying the Long Bay Marine Reserve do not contain the stream in question.
The report says that Williams Land undertook the work “in full compliance with resource consent requirements”.
Mr Townend says that although Council agrees with the developer that damming the stream was permitted, Keep Okura Green’s experts and legal team begged to differ.
“We threatened legal action and Williams Land agreed to clear the blockage,” he says. “The developer said he wanted to create a wetland but they’re actually taking a natural watercourse and destroying it for aesthetics.”
Mr Williams says he has agreed with the Okura groups to remove the diversion. “We are doing so even though we’re not obliged to and do not think it is the best thing to do,” he says. “We do not believe the issue should be fought over.”
The developer says the stream will be reinstated when it has confirmed that Council agrees to the change of plan, and when the area is firm enough after winter to bring in heavy machinery.
Keep Okura Green has produced a video and case study about the impact of development on the Long Bay Okura Marine Reserve.
