Dick Hubbard: Mt Eden facelift a win for everyone

Dick Hubbard

In the archives of Auckland City Council there is some film footage taken in the 1950s. A big bulldozer ploughs into a mountain of scoria while the narrator proclaims that Auckland's volcanic cones provide an almost inexhaustible supply of scoria, which is ideal for building roads and pavements.

How times have moved on - or have they?

Maungawhau, or Mt Eden, is of huge symbolic importance. It is the highest of Auckland's volcanic cones and occupies a strategic position overlooking the CBD. It is visited by 1 million people a year; more than half of those are overseas tourists.

Maungawhau means "mountain of the whau", which is a small native tree. Maori valued the wood of this tree because of its low specific gravity and used it for the construction of fishing floats and boats.

Because of Maungawhau's prominent position it was an important pa site and in pre-European times up to 5000 people lived on its slopes at any one time. But by the time Europeans arrived the mountain was largely uninhabited.

Today it is covered in terraces and is rich in significant archaeological sites.

Over the past couple of years, as I have taken my regular walks up the mountain, I have become increasingly alarmed - the mountain is tired and tatty.

As custodians of this iconic volcanic cone, we should take immediate steps to stop the deterioration.

I am putting in place an urgent plan so that over the next two years we pull out every stop imaginable to give Maungawhau a makeover - to deliver it back to the people and protect it for future generations.

There is a palpable air of frustration about the lack of action - and understandably so. Groups such as the Friends of Maungawhau, the Maungawhau Advisory Group and the Eden Albert Community Board have been trying to get something done for many years, to no avail.

A 1986 management plan drawn up by the Mt Eden Borough Council contains some marvellous rhetoric but little sign of action. Since then, the mountain has deteriorated.

I have therefore asked the council to draw up a management and conservation plan that will provide more protection and provide it as fast as we can. I want this plan finalised by early next year.

Action brings with it a cost. Our council has set up a targeted rate to provide funding for the protection of volcanic cones.

Issues we need to address urgently include bus and car access to the summit, protection and sign-posting of archaeological sites, grass, weed and tree control, walkways and boundary control.

 

There is no doubt buses will have to come off the top of the mountain. The crater rim carpark has become a traffic bottleneck.

The crater rim is a disgrace. It does not give a good first impression of Auckland, or New Zealand - and there is no sense of Maori heritage.

The summit is not an edifying site. It is dirty, the trig station is tired and the notice board is rotting and illegible.

I favour turning Langtons (the restaurant that lies half way up the mountain) into a first-class visitors' centre that contains information on the nature and importance of Maungawhau.

Buses could drop off visitors at the centre and from there they could either walk to the top or be taken up by a rubberised-wheel "train".

There is a strong case for restricting car access to the summit. Naturally, it would be important to have alternative access such as good walkways and wheeled transport.

All of this needs discussion with the various parties involved - that is a given. But we must resolve this issue - it is key to the mountain's health.

Grass and tree management has to be addressed urgently. There is no doubt that the cattle used for grass control are causing damage to the light, friable soils and steep slopes. The mountain has to be planted in grasses that don't rely on cattle (or sheep) for vegetation control.

Tree management also has to be addressed. At the moment there are a large number of exotic trees on the mountain including major privet infestation on the western flanks. Such trees should not have a long-term future on the mountain and should be replaced with strategic plantings - natives such as pohutukawa - that respect known archaeological sites and help erosion-prone areas.

We have an obligation as Aucklanders to preserve Maungawhau.

Its preservation will be a win for the people of Auckland who can have a mountain they are proud of once again. It will be a win for the visitors who will have more than just a view of Auckland. It will be a win for Ngati Whatua who will see their important Maori heritage protected. It will be a win for government, as it may become a world heritage site that we are nationally proud of.

This is not just a dream. It has to happen and it has to happen soon. As Mayor of Auckland City I will be delighted if one of my legacies is leaving to the people of Auckland a valued and treasured Maungawhau.

* Dick Hubbard is Mayor of Auckland.