About the project

The Mangeroa Gully Restoration is a bold 30-year plan to create the first green corridor from Maungatautari Sanctuary Mountain to the Waikato River. The strategy gives Ngāti Koroki Kahukura whānau and the local community opportunities to restore the Mangeroa Gully and participate in activities to create a thriving ecosystem for our wildlife, hapū, iwi, and local communities.

Honehau Dargaville (age 9) reconnecting to the whenua at the first wānanga

The project team is made up of three boisterous gals forever changing the landscape of home, one plant at a time! This transformation has our people at the centre and a key outcome of the project is reconnecting whānau to the whenua.

The project has a strong research component that involves collating kōrero and historical texts on the significance of the gully including historical and tikanga-based practices within the gully area. The research will create opportunities to build a Mātauranga Māori approach to the management of the stream and other whānau-based projects. Kaumātua and tohunga will be at the forefront in providing knowledge.

The project will ultimately see 8.4 ha of land retired and replanted, protecting and enhancing 1.1 km of stream/riparian environment surrounding Maungatautari Maunga.

Progress to date

  • 80,075 native rākau funded by multiple funders across the country
  • 12,475 native rākau planted along the first of six blocks
  • Cultural Heritage and Archaeological assessment of the various blocks involved in this stage of the Mangeroa Gully completed
  • First completed video interviews of Kaumātua highlighting historical traditions of the gully and surrounding area
  • Translation of historical texts and cultural research underway
  • Two wānanga held to reconnect whānau to the whenua, with a third set to take place to connect whanau and the local community in a community planting day held 10th July 2022
  • Support provided to the marae to help restore their area of the gully
  • New connections made with local schools and communities to undertake planting days involving tamariki and whānau

Featured image at top of page: The Mangeroa Gully Restoration planting crew returning for lunch to Maungatautari Marae