Australasian Coasts & Ports 2021 Conference, Christchurch
A public open space on the Tāmaki Makaurau waterfront known as ‘Te Wānanga’ has been constructed as part of a wider transformation of the Tāmaki Makaurau downtown area. The project constitutes a tidal shelf of interconnected spaces, a coastal forest, and apertures to the sea below. Green-lipped mussel (kūtai) restoration is incorporated into the design, with the aim of re-establishing ‘living’ systems in the Tāmaki Makaurau urban marine environment. Show more…Māori knowledge and philosophy have strongly influenced the co-design process. Green-lipped mussels were once abundant in the Hauraki Gulf, before overfishing and pollution caused stocks to collapse in the mid-1900s. Successful translocations of mussels have been undertaken as part of the ‘Revive our Gulf’ project, but have not previously been attempted in the Tāmaki Makaurau city centre. Trials of pile wraps and a novel floating buoy system seeded with mussels were deployed in June 2020, to inform the final deployment in May 2021. Success criteria include survival and growth rates of mussels, and establishment of other native and non- native species, with the aim of providing targeted substrate and systems to enhance native biodiversity. So far, the mussels are holding their own, and attracting other native species even in this heavily impacted environment. However, as seen in other urban marine environments, there is competition from invasive species such as Undaria and the Mediterranean fanworm. Given its location in the heart of the city the project provides an excellent opportunity to educate the general public about pollution and invasive species, and to showcase the cultural and ecological benefits of shellfish restoration through a co-design process.Show less…
