Ratepayer-funded Tūpuna Maunga Authority intends to fell around 2500 mature exotic trees across Auckland’s volcanic cones (maunga), including 345 at Ōwairaka /Mt Albert. Destroying nearly half of this maunga’s tree cover in a five week period will do great harm to this Special Ecological Area. Here are some of the many reasons we are fighting so hard to save the trees Ōwairaka and other maunga too.

“If we want to use forests as a weapon in the fight against climate change, then we must allow them to grow old, which is exactly what large conservation groups are asking us to do.”

— Peter WohlleBen, The Hidden Life of Trees

“If there were no trees around, we would suffocate…In the course of this particular pandemic that we're going through, I think people are discovering that they need the natural world for their very sanity. People who have never listened to a bird song, are suddenly thrilled, excited, supported, inspired by the natural world. And they realize they're not apart from it. They are part of it.”

- Sir David Attenborough

It’s a Climate Emergency - we need trees more than ever before

Auckland Council and the Central Government have both declared Climate Emergencies. It is a well-known fact that mature trees, of any types, are the best defense against Climate Change. Felling around 2500 healthy mature trees on Auckland’s volcanic cones will open those fragile micro-environments up to increased temperatures, wind exposure, soil erosion and run-off.

The Authority’s planned plantings may never sequester the same amount of carbon as the trees they plan to fell

Tūpuna Maunga Authority says it plans more than 9000 plantings to replace the 345 trees it intends to fell on Ōwairaka. What they don’t tell people is that the vast majority of those plantings will be low-growing species such as grasses, flaxes and sedges (like motorway plantings).

The trees to be planted will be young saplings, which will take decades - if not centuries - to replace the sequestered carbon lost by felling the exotic trees.

Harmful effects on nesting birds

Had Honour the Maunga not intervened in November 2019 then all of Ōwairaka’s trees would have been felled in a five-week period during bird nesting season!

A survey of native bird nests had been done before the intended felling start date and those trees roped off, but it was clear that the survey was cursory. For example, ruru (morepork) and kōtare (kingfisher) nest in cavities high up in trees - it would be impossible to spot their nests from the ground.

DoC officials were also concerned about this, stating that any nesting birds would be adversely affected by disturbance from chainsaws and helicopters nearby.

Felling nearly half the maunga’s trees will destroy food, shelter and homes for many birds and other life-forms

The Auckland Council’s own native forest restoration guide states: “Reptiles and invertebrates … thrive in forest fragments with low pest numbers and plenty of moist soil, rotting logs, and thick leaf litter.”

Destroying such a large amount of tree cover will create a much hotter, drier environment and significantly reduce the amount of leaf litter.

Furthermore, DoC officials have expressed concern that the Authority has not given regard to the value of the vegetation currently present in terms of its provisioning for native species. They note this is particularly important in urban environments where vegetation is limited. They also noted the length of time vegetation takes to become mature and the resulting effects of the trees’ removal in the intervening time.

Maintaining the exotic trees will give the native plantings the best chance of survival as they grow to maturity

DoC’s native forest restoration guidelines state: “the sudden removal of a nurse canopy may check the growth of desired plants by increasing exposure to sunlight, frost and weed growth. Remove exotic nurse plants only if necessary.”

It is costing Auckland ratepayers many millions of dollars to remove trees that don’t need removing at a time when Auckland Council is cutting back on essential services and laying off hundreds of staff

Auckland Council funds Tūpuna Maunga Authority’s activities. Honour The Maunga has obtained budget documents that show:

• Total budget allowances of around $650,000 for direct costs associated with felling Ōwairaka’s trees, including $30,000 to fell one particular tree (that’s the equivalent of 8.5 years worth of rates for an average house in the area). 

• This number swells to well over $1 million when the cost of specialist reports, resource consent and administrative costs are taken into account.

• A $360,000 revegetation budget for native plants on Ōwairaka. Experience on Ōwairaka and other maunga shows that most plantings die in the harsh environments, and need to be replaced. Guess who is paying for that!

Increased fire risk

Fires have become a big problem on Auckland’s maunga in recent years following the removal of grazing animals. It is no coincidence that the fires have occurred at the maunga whose exotic trees have already been felled - Mangere and Mt Wellington / Maungarei.

Removing nearly half of Ōwairaka’s tree cover will significantly increase the risk of fire because the long grass under trees that remains green throughout the summer, will instead dry off. This will not only put the new native plantings at risk, but also existing trees and life-forms - not to mention the properties that adjoin the maunga.

Herbicide use and resulting run-off into Ōwairaka’s aquifer

As an Auckland Regional Council native forest restoration guide states: “Competition from weeds is one of the biggest obstacles to successful restoration planting in Auckland’s mild climate.”

The shade from mature trees is an excellent weed suppressor. The Authority has planted some flaxes and low-growing species on open ground at Ōwairaka, spraying heavily with herbicide beforehand to kill kikuyu grass and other weeds. This will run-off into the aquifer that flows out towards Western Springs.

Retaining the mature exotic trees will significantly reduce the amount of weed control required.

Furthermore, we have received expert advice that a herbicide cocktail of glyphosate, metsulfuran and triclopyr will be needed to kill grass and (exotic) trees and to prevent regrowth from the stumps of felled trees. Such herbicide usage is likely to be required over many years, creating significant ecological issues on the maunga, in its soils, aquifer and surrounding areas.

Negative effects on people

Removing nearly half the maunga’s tree cover will have a negative effect on a huge number of people in the local community and beyond.

Ōwairaka / Mount Albert is used by many individuals and groups, most of whom greatly appreciate its thriving natural environment. The community’s love for this beautiful maunga and her thriving green space is demonstrated by our maintaining a daily tree-saving presence on the maunga since 11 November 2019.

But we’re not alone in knowing the value of green spaces to everyone’s health and well-being. The World Health Organisation states: “Urban green spaces, such as parks, playgrounds, and residential greenery, can promote mental and physical health, and reduce morbidity and mortality in urban residents by providing psychological relaxation and stress alleviation, stimulating social cohesion, supporting physical activity, and reducing exposure to air pollutants, noise and excessive heat.”

Lack of transparency

On multiple levels, the Authority and the Council failed to inform the public adequately about the scale, scope and speed of their plan.

The Authority claims to have consulted with the public about destroying all of the exotic trees on Auckland’s maunga. It has never consulted on this. In fact there’s no evidence that the specific intention to fell all exotic trees was even voted upon.

We were unsuccessful in getting the Authority to agree to a public meeting so that people can receive answers to their many questions. In fact all of the Authority’s “consultations” are one-way communication. Either they announce something, or they hold hui or “consultations” where people can say their piece but not ask questions.

We are calling on the Authority to engage with communities in the two-way sense of the word.

They are not going to “cloak” the maunga in trees

Many people mistakenly assume that Tūpuna Maunga Authority’s plantings will eventually result in Auckland’s maunga being cloaked in lush green forest.

A look at their planting plan shows that there will be no plantings at all in many of the areas to be cleared of exotic trees. See below for the planting plan diagram for Ōwairaka / Mount Albert. The effect will look something like a monk’s tonsure - bald on top and bottom, with a ring of vegetation around the middle.

What happens at Ōwairaka will affect the fate of around 2500 trees on Auckland’s maunga. Please help us save these trees!