Punakaiki Marine Reserve

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Punakaiki Marine Reserve
Beach at Punakaiki.jpg
Punakaiki Marine Reserve coastline
NZ-SI plain map.png
Disc Plain red.svg
Location Punakaiki, Buller District, New Zealand
Coordinates 42°06′50″S171°19′22″E / 42.113933°S 171.3228833°E / -42.113933; 171.3228833
Area3,520 hectares (8,700 acres)
Established2014
Governing body Department of Conservation

Punakaiki Marine Reserve is a marine reserve administered by the Department of Conservation. The reserve includes the area of sea surrounding the pancake rocks and blowholes at Dolomite Point, at Punakaiki on the West Coast Region of New Zealand's South Island. It also includes most of the coastline on the western edge of Paparoa National Park. [1]

Contents

The reserve covers an area of 3,520 hectares (8,700 acres) and was established in 2014. [2] [3]

Geography

Punakaiki Marine Reserve extends approximately 10.8 kilometres (6.7 mi) from Perpendicular Point south to Maher Swamp, and about 3.7 kilometres (2.3 mi) offshore. It includes natural coastlines and catchments within Paparoa National Park. The reserve does not include two inshore areas around the Pororari River beach and Punakaiki River beach. [4]

Within the reserve there are natural examples of six habitat types, including rocky, gravel and cobble shore habitats reaching out to sandy seabed areas about 20 metres (66 ft). [4] [5] The array of bird and marine life includes tāiko, weka, fur seal and the Hector's dolphin. [6] Little blue penguins also nest in the area. [7]

Several species within the reserve are under potential threat, including waterfowl and indigenous waders, such as white-fronted tern, Westland petrel, sooty shearwater, fairy prion and banded dotterel, as well as red-billed gulls. [7]

History

History before establishment

The landscape of the reserve has formed over millions of years. The pancake rocks began forming 30 million years, when lime-rich fragments of dead marine shells started to collect on the sea floor. These were layered with soft mud and clay, and plant sediments. The rocks were raised by earthquakes and then etched out by the sea. [8] [9] [6]

The reserve was one of five recommended in 2012 by the West Coast Marine Protection Forum, a group of representations of Ngāi Tahu, commercial and recreational fishers, conservationists, tourism operators and local councils. The Minister of Conservation, Nick Smith, approved the reserve in March 2013, [10] and it was gazetted later that year. [11]

History since establishment

The reserve came into existence on 7 September 2014. [1] [2] [3]

A gold mining operation already operating in the area were allowed to continue on existing scale and extent. Farmers were allowed to continue driving cattle and sheep with dogs and using vehicles on the foreshore. The owner or occupier of land next to Hibernia Creek were also allowed to continue using construction vehicles and non-motorised handheld tools to open the outlet. [1]

In 2015, the Ministry for Primary Industries proposed a regulatory change to prohibit mobile, bottom-impacting commercial fishing methods in the river mouths enclosed by the reserve. [12]

A German tourist was caught taking mussels from the reserve in January 2015. [13] The Department of Conservation investigated reports of kontiki longline fishing from beaches within the reserve in April 2016. [14] By October 2016, no other major breaches had been reported. [15]

In 2020 the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, the Department of Conservation and the University of Canterbury used drones to map the plants and animals in the marine reserve, including large kelp beds off the coast. [16]

Recreation

A range of activities are banned in the marine reserve, including fishing, taking or killing marine life, and moving or removing any marine life or materials. People must not feed fish as it disturbs their natural behaviour, and they must take care when anchoring to avoid damaging the sea floor. [1]

There are two areas at river mouths enclosed by the marine reserve, where eeling, whitebaiting and recreational fishing are allowed. Quad bikes and horses are allowed, and small stones, shells, driftwood, sand and gravel can also be carried out of the site. Certain Ngāi Tahu members are allowed to collect pounamu in accordance with tradition. [1]

According to the Department of Conservation, weather and sea conditions can change rapidly on the coast, and people need to be aware of large waves when walking on the beach or rocky shore. It urges people to check weather forecasts, take adequate food, water, warm clothing and wet weather gear, and tell someone where they are going. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Coast Region</span> Region of New Zealand

The West Coast is a region of New Zealand on the west coast of the South Island. It is administered by the West Coast Regional Council, and is known co-officially as Te Tai Poutini. It comprises the territorial authorities of Buller District, Grey District and Westland District. The principal towns are Westport, Greymouth and Hokitika. The region, one of the more remote areas of the country, is also the most sparsely populated. With a population of just 32,900 people, the West Coast is the least populous region in New Zealand. The population in the region grew by 0.4% over the year to July 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paparoa National Park</span> National park in New Zealand

Paparoa National Park is on the west coast of the South Island of New Zealand. The park was established in 1987 and encompasses 430 km2 (170 sq mi). The park ranges from or near the coastline to the peaks of the Paparoa Range. A separate section of the park lies to the north and is centred at Ananui Creek. The park protects a limestone karst area. The park contains several caves, of which Metro Cave / Te Ananui Cave is a commercial tourist attraction. The majority of the park is forested with a wide variety of vegetation. The park was the site of the 1995 Cave Creek disaster where fourteen people died as a result of the collapse of a scenic viewing platform.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Punakaiki</span> Place in West Coast, New Zealand

Punakaiki is a small village on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located between Westport and Greymouth on State Highway 6, the only through-road on the West Coast. Punakaiki is immediately adjacent to Paparoa National Park, and is also the access point for a popular visitor attraction, the Pancake Rocks and Blowholes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine reserves of New Zealand</span>

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Hawea Marine Reserve is a marine reserve covering an area of 411 hectares in Hāwea / Bligh Sound, in Fiordland on New Zealand's South Island. It was established in 2005 and is administered by the Department of Conservation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hikurangi Marine Reserve</span> New Zealand marine reserve

Hikurangi Marine Reserve is a marine reserve off the coast of the Kaikōura District, in the Canterbury Region of New Zealand's South Island. It is the largest and deepest marine reserve in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waiau Glacier Coast Marine Reserve</span> Marine reserve in West Coast Region, New Zealand

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moutere Ihupuku / Campbell Island Marine Reserve</span>

Moutere Ihupuku / Campbell Island Marine Reserve or Campbell Island / Moutere Ihupuku Marine Reserve is a marine reserve around Campbell island in the New Zealand Subantarctic Islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kahurangi Marine Reserve</span>

Kahurangi Marine Reserve is a marine reserve administered by the Department of Conservation, covering 8,419 hectares offshore of Kahurangi National Park in the Buller District of New Zealand's West Coast Region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cave Creek / Kotihotiho</span> River in West Coast, New Zealand

Cave Creek / Kotihotiho is a small river within Paparoa National Park, on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tauparikākā Marine Reserve</span>

Tauparikākā Marine Reserve is a marine reserve located offshore about 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of Haast on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. It covers the area immediately offshore from Ship Creek, which is also known as Tauparikākā in Māori.

Kahukura Marine Reserve is a marine reserve covering an area of 464 hectares in Charles Sound, in Fiordland on New Zealand's South Island. It was established in 2005 and is administered by the Department of Conservation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taumoana (Five Finger Peninsula) Marine Reserve</span> Marine reserve in Fiordland on New Zealands South Island

Taumoana Marine Reserve is a marine reserve covering an area of 464 hectares in Fiordland on New Zealand's South Island. It was established in 2005 and is administered by the Department of Conservation. It is located next to the Five Fingers Peninsula, at the entrance to Tamatea / Dusky Sound.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Te Tapuwae o Hua (Long Sound) Marine Reserve</span>

Te Tapuwae o Hua Marine Reserve is a marine reserve covering an area of 3,672 hectares in Te Awaroa / Long Sound in Fiordland on New Zealand's South Island. It was established in 2005 and is administered by the Department of Conservation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piopiotahi (Milford Sound) Marine Reserve</span> Marine reserve in Fiordland, New Zealand

Piopiotahi Marine Reserve is a marine reserve covering an area of 690 hectares in the Milford Sound / Piopiotahi, in Fiordland on New Zealand's South Island. It was established in 1993 and is administered by the Department of Conservation.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Te Awaatu Channel (The Gut) Marine Reserve</span>

Te Awaatu Channel Marine Reserve is a marine reserve covering an area of 93 hectares in Fiordland on New Zealand's South Island. It was established in 1993 and is administered by the Department of Conservation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barrytown Flats</span> Coastal plain in New Zealand

The Barrytown Flats are a 17 km (11 mi) coastal plain north of Greymouth on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. A series of postglacial shorelines and dunes backed by a former sea cliff, they was originally covered with wetland and lowland forest, including numerous nīkau palms. The sands were extensively sluiced and dredged for gold from the 1860s, centred on the small settlement of Barrytown. The drier areas of the flats have been converted into pasture, but significant areas of forest remain, including Nikau Scenic Reserve. The flats are bordered by Paparoa National Park and the only breeding site of the Westland petrel. There are significant deposits of ilmenite in the Barrytown sands, and there have been several mining proposals, but the possible environmental consequences have been contentious.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Truman Track</span>

The Truman Track is a short, easy walking track located north of Punakaiki, in the coastal Paparoa National Park in the South Island of New Zealand. Although only 600 m (2,000 ft) long, it has been described as "one of the most delightful and interesting short walks on the West Coast". The track passes through lowland coastal forest of podocarps, rātā trees and nīkau palms, with dense understorey vegetation. It finishes at the coastline, where there is a viewing platform providing views along the coast, with surrounding cliffs, rock overhangs, and a waterfall that cascades directly onto the beach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pancake Rocks and Blowholes</span> Coastal rock formation in New Zealand

The Pancake Rocks and Blowholes are a coastal rock formation at Punakaiki on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand. They are a popular visitor attraction.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Punakaiki Marine Reserve". doc.govt.nz. Department of Conservation.
  2. 1 2 Hutching, Gerard. "Marine protected areas". Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Ministry for Culture and Heritage.
  3. 1 2 "Marine Reserve (Punakaiki) Order 2014". legislation.govt.nz. New Zealand Government.
  4. 1 2 "Background: West Coast marine reserve sites" (PDF). beehive.govt.nz. New Zealand Government.
  5. ↑ Alestra, Tommaso (June 2018). Community composition of the rocky intertidal shores within and outside the Punakaiki Marine Reserve: baseline sampling. Prepared for the Department of Conservation. Christchurch: University of Canterbury.
  6. 1 2 "About Punakaiki, West Coast, New Zealand". punakaiki.co.nz. West Coast New Zealand.
  7. ↑ "Punakāiki Marine Reserve". aa.com. Automobile Association of New Zealand.
  8. ↑ "Pancake Rocks". atlasobscura.com. Atlas Obscura.
  9. ↑ "Five marine reserves for West Coast". The Christchurch Press . stuff.co.nz.
  10. ↑ "West Coast marine reserves approved". Radio New Zealand. 11 March 2013.
  11. ↑ "West Coast South Island: Proposed Marine Protected Areas (using fisheries regulations) Regulatory Impact Statement". mpi.govt.nz. Ministry for Primary Industries.
  12. ↑ Mills, Laura (17 January 2015). "Tourist caught breaking new marine rules". New Zealand Media and Entertainment. Greymouth Star.
  13. ↑ "Reports kontikis used in marine reserve". New Zealand Media and Entertainment. Greymouth Star. 6 April 2015.
  14. ↑ Mills, Laura (12 October 2016). "First serious breach in West Coast marine reserve". Allied Press. Otago Daily Times.
  15. ↑ "NIWA drones going where people can't on the West Coast". New Zealand Government. National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research. 13 January 2021.
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