Strong Voices

For 10 years some environmental warriors have been battling to protect the Castlecliff sand dunes at Whanganui.

A team of around eight people from IDEA Services turn up on Tuesdays to plant and care for native species on the grassed areas of the ‘back’ dunes with Graham Pearson, Coordinator of Castlecliff Coast Care.

The Castlecliff coast is part of the longest unbroken dune system in Aotearoa, stretching from Pātea in South Taranaki to Paraparaumu on the Kāpiti Coast north of Wellington – “and then it kind of extends inland”, Graham says.

The rear sand dunes are tall and run north-west to south-east. The Castlecliff Coast Care group has been planting in the dunes since 2007, replacing invasive weed species, such as the Australian wattle, on the back dunes with eco-sourced native plants common to the region.

Castlecliff Coast Care volunteers are also planting the ‘foredunes’ with the native sand-binding species spinifex and pingao. These do the best job of growing low, rounded sand dunes by binding the sand and rebuilding the dunes after a storm. They also stabilise dunes degraded by human damage.

The IDEA Services volunteers work along the back dunes with Graham, planting larger native trees. In winter – the planting season – it’s Graham’s job to keep one step ahead of them by digging 15 to 20 holes a week, ready for the new plants. The volunteers add wet newspaper, mulch and fertiliser tablets and then plant the trees.

“We have help from all sorts of community groups, firms, schools, kura and guides. Most are one-offs, but IDEA Services has been terrific at helping on a regular basis,” Graham says. “They come most weeks unless the weather is horrible,” he says.

Sam Fiso Luamanuvae and Stuart Mitchell have been volunteering longer than just about anyone else. “People like Sam and Stu are great at planting, having taken on what needs to be done, and get busy straight away,” Graham says. “Others just seem to enjoy being out and about, but always greet me happily.”

IDEA Services Support Worker Ben Ander is often out with the volunteers. “We try to go every Tuesday. In wintertime, obviously, it’s weather dependent. In the winter months, we go in the afternoons once the grass has dried out.”

Ben says the group doesn’t work directly in the dunes, but in several grassed areas between the reserve and rear dunes that are easier underfoot.

Stuart is not sure how long he has been volunteering, but he’s been involved from the start. He lives in an IDEA Services residence in central Whanganui and walks the 2.5 kilometres to volunteer each week. Ben says they always give him a lift home.

The work also involves weeding around the plants and picking up rubbish. Stuart says he enjoys picking up the rubbish.

Shyla Richardson-Joyce has been volunteering for two or three years. For her the enjoyment is more about being near the sea. “I have walked up the hill. I like planting up there and standing up there too. There are all kinds of different places you can look at while you are standing up there.” She says she enjoys looking at the sea most.

By the time National Volunteer Week came around in June, these IDEA Services volunteers had clocked up 1694 volunteer hours worked since August 2013.


Caption: Craig Nichol, Roger Wallace, Sam Fiso Luamanuvae and Shyla Richardson-Joyce.
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