Wainui Beach Catchment Group
Photo Credit - Liam Clayton
News / Media
Wainui Beach Catchment Group korero
The Wainui Beach Catchment Group (WBCG) is a community-led initiative aiming to restore the ecological health of the streams, wetlands, and coastal catchment hills. The network consists of over 120 community members, including tangata whenua, beach settlement residents, farmers, Wainui Beach School, Wainui Surf Life Saving Club and other groups.
Stretching along SH35’s gateway to the Tairāwhiti East Cape, the catchment is known for its coastal hills, iconic sandy beach, nationally significant surf breaks, fishing, reef kai, and beautiful vistas. Its 1,468 hectares include the sub-catchments of Wainui and Hamanatua streams.
Our dual aim: To restore the ecological health of our streams and enhance the intergenerational wellbeing of our coastal community through deepening our connections with te taiao and each other.
Our Vision: Intergenerational wellbeing/ora of our taiao and community is sustained and enhanced.
Together, we will achieve this vision by cherishing wisdom, honouring history, learning from the past, embracing diversity, and restoring the environment to build a more sustainable and positive future for our community and catchments.
The health and wellbeing of our friendly community will be enhanced by collectively restoring and valuing our streams and wetlands, thus nurturing a legacy with and for the next generation.
Our five goals are:
• Wai Ora - to improve water quality by lowering E. coli levels, sediment thus phosphorus loads, and water temperature - to restore freshwater habitats for native fauna and flora and for children to play and swim safely, and eventually all to eat and drink from.
• Recloaking Papatūānuku - to reduce erosion on steep hills and streambanks (through strategic fencing, weed eradication, retirement, native planting and reversion, removal of slash/woody debris, pest control etc.)
• Collaborative decision-making - to deepen community and stakeholder involvement in project planning and implementation throughout the sub-catchments.
• Awareness and Education - to increase opportunities for community education and upskilling in environmental restoration, local history, well-being, freshwater quality and biomonitoring, erosion control, sustainable development etc.
• Resource Mobilisation - to use the strengths, diverse skills and resources already available within the Catchment’s community, and to secure additional in-kind support, expert advice, and funding to implement prioritised action projects.
Research has shown high sediment levels are a major driver of poor ecological health in our Catchment’s waterways, and that riparian planting and wetland restoration or reconstruction - to slow runoff, filter and reduce sediment, contaminants and rising water temperatures will significantly improve and restore the ecological health of our smaller waterways.
Our action priorities, are to develop interlinked projects which focus on:
• Restoring remnant wetlands
• Planting riparian corridors and vulnerable gullies and hills
• Freshwater quality and biomonitoring
• Community education and intergenerational upskilling
Leading from the Land -
Project Grant
Purpose
To create a Hamanatua Stream Restoration Plan as a next step in implementing the Wainui Beach Catchment Group’s overarching vision, goals and priority areas for action.
Objective
To develop a Strategic and 5-10 year prioritised and costed Action Plan for restoration activities along the Hamanatua Stream.
Key Activities and Milestones
o Walks from hill tops along stream to beach with GDC land management advisors and other experts in biodiversity, weed control, freshwater ecology (including wetlands), and restoration practices.
o Record observations and potential restoration priorities, broken into 25 zones.
o Define best practice solutions with landowners, community members, and experts.
o Draft task-orientated spreadsheets listing actions to implement solutions.
o Prioritised tasks, phased into 5+ year Action Plan, with costings and timeframes required.
Project Collaborators
Wainui Beach Catchment Project Steering Group, Landowners and Residents along Hamanatua Stream, Iwi and hapu, wider Wainui-Okitu community, GDC, Mountains to Sea.
Project Learnings
o Strategic priorities to set in the community-led Hamanatua Stream Restoration Plan that is accessible, workable and agreeable to landowners and the WBCG.
o WBCG and community landowners will engage with each other and expert advisors to identify and learn about best practice ways to solve issues and apply restoration treatments (which will be recorded and available to inform subsequent planning and actions in similar areas along the Hamanatua, Te Rimu & Wainui Streams).
o From which sites along the stream to collect additional baseline & ongoing monitoring data (eDNA, sediment, phosphorous, temperature, etc) to record ecological changes: to inform the monitoring & evaluation subsection of the 5-10 year Hamanatua Action Plan.
o Integrating biodiversity with farming.
o Working with East Coast soil structure and erosion to maintain the integrity of the coastal catchment and farming practices.
o Use this Project’s Strategic and Action Plan as a template for the wider Hamanatua sub-catchment area, including Te Rimu Stream.
o Use the Project’s spreadsheets, documents and systems to inform action plans for the Wainui Stream sub-catchment area.
Project Start and End Dates
1 April 2026 - 30 November 2026
Historical Milestones and Events
Developing an overarching Wainui Beach Catchment Community Action Plan, through three facilitated community hui (2024/25)
Formation of a Core Group to coordinate community implementation of the Action Plan (2025)
Community working bees and workshops, including to plant native plants provided by Gisborne District Council, Haumanu Tū Ora, Rural Support Trust, Women's Native Tree Project Trust, and Trees That Count - many each year.
Additional eDNA testing at two locations (thanks to EPA & WilderLab for testing kits & results)
Supporting farmers to implement their Erosion Control Plans
Repo Wetlands community seminar led by Dr Rebecca Eivers (August 2026)
Development of a 5-10 Year Hamanatua Stream Restoration Action Plan (thanks to LFTL Project Grant in 2026).
Contact
Fostering the collective well-being of Tairāwhiti Catchments
