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Mussel bed restoration in the Mahurangi Harbour
Te Au o Morunga is the overall marine strategy for the Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust and focuses on restoration, protection and enhancement of Te Moananui a Toi (Hauraki Gulf). Whakatō Kūtai was the name gifted by kaumatua for the first deployment of 150 tonnes of kūtai (mussels) across two sites south of Te Kawau Tūmaro o Toi (Kawau Island).
“Looking after Tangaroa’s children” is part of a wider concept that embraces protection and restoration.
The Revive Our Gulf project, a collaboration between The Nature Conservancy NZ, University of Auckland Institute of Marine Science, and the Mussel Reef Restoration Trust, plans a network of restoration sites across the Gulf to support the research on how to achieve mussel reef regeneration ‘at scale’. Kūtai reefs were extensive across Te Moananui ā Toi, until they were dredged into near-extinction. Without kūtai, the moana is a shadow of its former self.
Scientists refer to kūtai as “ecosystem engineers”. Reefs, with all their nooks and crannies, provide a home for invertebrates and a nursery habitat for juvenile fish. They provide a food source for crustaceans and larger species like tāmure (snapper). They also stabilise the seafloor, reducing wave energy and reducing suspended sediment. As filter feeders, kūtai are incredible water filters, removing suspended sediment and heavy metals from the water column. A single kūtai can filter an entire bathtub of seawater in a day. Commercial dredge fishing last century is thought to have removed over 600 square km of kūtai, which were all sold and eaten.
Peter van Kampen from The Nature Conservancy NZ/Revive Our Gulf says this will be the start of our largest series of kūtai drops to date. He says that working with treaty partners is a priority for them.
“We’ve worked alongside Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust on the kūtai restoration kaupapa since 2016, this tākoha to Tangaroa symbolises our commitment to improving the taiao.”
Ngāti Manuhiri were instrumental in helping to establish Aotearoa New Zealand’s first ever Marine Reserve at Te Hāwera-ā-Maki (Goat Island) in 1975. Current projects include waterways plantings to reduce sedimentation and a Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge project, Kohunga Kūtai, that aims to find natural products that can replace plastics used in aquaculture. On behalf of the Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust, I wish to acknowledge our project partners, whānau and community who have supported and attended our mussel drops over the past few months and look forward to what the future holds.
Mauri tū, mauri ora
