Working on tracks to save kauri

Published on 22 May 2024

Council Parks teams are working to keep kauri dieback disease out of the reserves around central Whangārei.

The Dobbie Track on Parihaka will be closed on Wednesday 22 May 2024 while materials are delivered, and then for a full two weeks starting Monday 27 May 2024. The Ross Track will be a good alternative for walkers to use.

The Elizabeth Track at AH Reid Memorial Park will be closed for resurfacing in June.

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has provided $300,000 to upgrade tracks using a special system that will help to prevent any spores from the disease lingering on the surface of tracks risking being spread further by walkers.

The system involves a surface layer of 75 millimetre deep "geoweb" that opens out into pockets that are then filled with a free-draining aggregate and bark mix (bam) that is mixed and bagged in sterile conditions before being laid.

An aggregate layer then goes over the top to form a hard layer less likely to stick to boots and shoes. The mix in the cells drains away any water containing spores of the disease.

We already have stations where people can clean their shoes at the entries to the reserves around Parihaka, AH Reid and Pukenui Forest (Barge Park).

This new track surface is an extra safety measure for when people forget to clean their shoes, or when the disease is still present on shoes after cleaning.

Work has already begun on a boardwalk to keep people off the ground around two kauri trees in Pukenui Forest.