Otago Rail Trail wins international award
10 Sep 2010
New Zealand’s Department of Conservation (DOC) has picked up a major international conservation award.
DOC won the Parks Forum’s ‘economic award’ at a conference in Sydney for its role in building and developing the famous Otago Central Rail Trail.
The organisation also received recognition from the Parks Forum for the large-scale pest eradication project on Auckland’s iconic Rangitoto and Motutapu islands.
Parks Forum is an international body for park management organisations, such as DOC, with members in New Zealand, the UK and Australia. The ‘economic award’ looks at the economic and environmental benefits of conservation projects for the local community.
Rail Trail positive for community
DOC general manager of research and development Kevin O’Connor says that the Otago Central Rail Trail shows the value that positive partnerships with local businesses bring to conservation projects.
"The Otago Central Rail Trail is a great example of how investing in conservation programmes results in a real economic spin-off for the whole community.
"By stepping out with the community, we’ve helped turn a disused rail line into a popular bike trail - we’ve conserved a community asset and also added real economic value to many local businesses and communities along the way," said O’Connor.
Pest eradication gets the tick
DOC’s large-scale pest eradication project on Auckland’s Rangitoto and Motutapu islands also received a big nod.
The ambitious programme aimed to remove all international ‘visitors’ of the pest variety from the islands, creating a vast sanctuary for New Zealand’s native birds and plants. It is one of the largest and most complex pest eradication programmes undertaken by DOC.
"These islands provide the breathing space for our biggest city - we know what this project is worth to Auckland and it is very satisfying to see our peers overseas recognise that as well," said O’Connor.
The NZ$3.5m investment has already seen rare native birds return to both the islands, providing a platform for a range of eco-tourism activities, such as multi-sport events and eco-tours.
Background: Otago Central Rail Trail
The Otago Central Rail Trail is a 150km cycleway following the path of the former Otago Central Railway. The trail goes from Middlemarch to Clyde in the South Island’s Central Otago region - and is a living history of farming communities and gold mining in New Zealand.
The rail trail - developed by DOC in conjunction with the Otago Central Rail Trail Trust - was built for walkers, cyclists and horse riders. More than 60 of the original bridges along the old railway have been restored, and the trail has become New Zealand's most popular cycleway.
There are many historical sites as well as beautiful scenery to see along the way, including the Golden Progress mine and other gold mining relics near Oturehua, the historic workers’ camps at Poolburn Gorge, country pubs in trailside towns and extensive views of Central Otago’s ‘big sky’ landscape.
Background: Rangitoto and Motutapu islands
Rangitoto and Motutapu islands are joined by a causeway built in WWII. The islands collectively provide 3800 hectares of land that supports some of New Zealand’s rarest native birds, including the kaka, kiwi and takahe. The island sanctuary also contains the world’s largest pohutukawa forest.
The project aims to remove all pests from the island - including rats, mice, stoats, feral cats, rabbits and hedgehogs. Possums and wallabies were removed from both islands in the 1990s. When the project is complete, it will create one of New Zealand's biggest pest-free island sanctuaries, and the biggest in the Hauraki Gulf.
Rangitoto Island is the biggest and also the youngest volcanic crater in Auckland - although it is now extinct. The volcano erupted from the sea more than 600 years ago and is a public reserve managed by DOC.
Motutapu Island is next to Rangitoto and is also much older. The island is slowly regenerating to forest and DOC is also gradually restoring wetlands areas as part of a major community project.
More information
Breathing life into NZ’s island sanctuaries
Cycling the Otago Central Rail Trail
Cycleway trails in the South Island
These topics may also be of interest to you
|
