Clandestine tree killers cost $1 million damage

Bruce is among Opoutere residents wanting DOC to keep the pines that he says are sheltering a regenerating native forest for birds. Photo / Alison Smith

Hundreds of exotic pines that were secretly poisoned on Opoutere dunes will be removed at a cost of $1 million over the next 10 years.

The removal of pines drilled and poisoned secretly and illegally is a risky task for tree contractors and could potentially damage rare birds, archaeological and ancient burial grounds in the forest, a report says.

Consulting ecologists have recommended keeping as many pines as possible to continue providing shelter for native forest that the trees have helped get established on the dunes.

DoC staff, in consultation with iwi representatives, Heritage New Zealand and consulting ecologists have come up with a plan to remove the poisoned pines from 22ha of back dunes that separate the Coromandel settlement from the beach.

The reserve has moved to a co-governance structure between the Crown (DoC) and iwi under Treaty Settlement and DoC must remove the dangerous trees that it says are "an accident waiting to happen".

Government funding is still being sought for the removal.

While relieved a solution has been reached, some locals are frustrated that the perpetrators will not be held to account.

An early European farming family planted the pines decades ago for erosion control and as a windbreak.

DoC has reported the vandalism on the reserve to Police and said finding the culprit or culprits was "not a priority" for the department.

It described sectors of the Opoutere community as "overzealous".

Opoutere has two active conservation volunteer groups and a small population of permanent residents.

"There are people wanting to do something for the land but have very different ideas on what to do and haven't come to DoC for direction," said Avi Holzapfel. "We're trying to develop shared values."

More pines have been poisoned on a nearby Ruahiwihiwi Pā at the small settlement and traps have been illegally laid with more poison on public land.

"It was brought to our attention that poison for pest control was being laid and we've acted on that," confirmed Mailee Stanbury of DoC.

"We've confiscated chemicals and removed hazards that we've seen, and met with people and got agreement so they are much clearer on both sides."

The damage from secret drilling and poisoning of the pines was first discovered in 2018 when a photograph from a drone camera showed the grey wood of hundreds of dead trees.

Risks from falling tree limbs have forced the closure of public tracks and the department says keeping people out while the trees continue to die is almost impossible.

"People are already disregarding the signs. We would have to shut it for 10 years plus and there's no effective way to do that," said Stanbury.

Signs in the Opoutere beach forest warn people of the dangers of falling branches from poisoned pines. Photo / Alison Smith

The southernmost pine removal area is a burial ground (urupā) for early Maori and a wildlife reserve for rare shorebirds. The total area of the scenic and burial ground reserves is 101ha.

Archaeologist Louise Furey reported the wider Opoutere Beach area as having the largest recorded and most unique midden on the Coromandel Peninsula, which dates from the Kaharoa eruption (c.1314).

The pine removal requires an authority from Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga to modify or destroy recorded and potential unrecorded archaeological sites.

Bruce Hoffman is among locals who thinks the dead trees should be left alone.

On a regular daily walk through the forest he points to the understorey of healthy native shrubs and trees with birds including kaka flying overhead.

"The birdlife in here is phenomenal. The tuis and kaka are everywhere, I watch the kaka eat the pine nuts, they're amazing, and if they cut it all down the birdlife is going to suffer."

He says Opoutere has a resident kaka population of 30 birds, fast rivalling the local resident population of between 40 and 50 people.

Knowing how difficult it is to establish native plants on the backdunes of New Zealand's coastline, Bruce says the pines have created shelter and helped the native plants during a drought-stricken summer and should stay.

"All of the native species that are there are from birds seeding from the seeds. They'll be destroying the undergrowth when they're doing the pine removals with all the machinery and it's going to take years for it to come back.

"There are some massive trees in here, how are they going to get them out without damaging the other native trees?"

A report to DoC by contractors confirmed felling the trees to waste will disturb dune land and cause the loss of ground cover plants to varying degrees depending on tree size and the amount and type of machinery and movements over the land.

It would also create large volume of wood on the ground, hindering pedestrian access until the wood decomposes.

There is also a period where fire risk may be heightened, Wood Marketing Services Limited advised.

A mature pine spraypainted with the words 'stop killing' in the Opoutere Beach forest. Photo / Alison Smith.

Options include using a mechanised 40 to 50 tonne excavator with a cab due to the risk from the size and weight of the trees to be felled.

Ecologist Meg Graeme recommended pine trees are only removed where there is a clear risk to public safety.

"In all other areas, the pine cover should be managed to provide shelter and accelerate native forest recovery," she reported in her Opoutere Scenic Reserve and Wharekawa Burial Ground Ecological Restoration Plan.

"We recommend excluding macrocarpa trees from annual felling plans unless there is a clear reason for their removal.

"Until native vegetation is well established, we recommend a wide buffer of existing pines is left standing along the seaward boundary. This buffer will provide important shelter for the re-establishing native vegetation in the cleared areas landward."

She said before pine felling occurs in any area, surveys were needed to confirm there are no bat roosts or kaka nests present.

Meanwhile rangers were being sent to watch for any more poisoning, though DoC could not safely send staff anywhere near dying trees.

Pines are considered a weed in New Zealand, part of DoC's management in some places.

"I feel we're building stronger relationships with the established [environmental] group there," said Mailee Stanbury. "We have rangers that go out there reasonably often but we do have a strong reliance on compliance."