Large Woody Debris Extraction | Te Karaka
Reducing a major catchment risk to protect landowners, whānau and the Te Karaka community.
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Challenge
A woody debris risk upstream of Te Karaka
Cyclone Gabrielle caused widespread damage across Te Tairāwhiti, with Te Karaka heavily flooded and the community evacuated and isolated from essential services.
Following the cyclone, approximately 35,642 m³ of large woody debris was identified within the Waingaromia and Waihora catchments. Accumulated on streambanks and river terraces upstream of Te Karaka, the material presented an extreme risk if remobilised during another high-flow event.
Addressing the risk required more than removing debris. The response needed to work across multiple properties and interests, combining landowner access and local knowledge with iwi and community leadership, technical planning, funding and coordinated delivery.
Solution
Turning catchment risk into a fundable extraction programme
Affected landowners were central to making the response possible, providing the access and local knowledge needed to plan and undertake the work.
Te Aitanga a Māhaki Iwi Trust, with the support of the wider Te Tairāwhiti iwi collective, engaged Rata Forest Management Ltd to help turn the identified risk into a practical and fundable programme.
Working alongside landowners, iwi and the community, Rata Forest Management Ltd developed the extraction plan, methodologies, costings and business case required to take the project from identified risk through to delivery. Rātā also coordinated landowner engagement, operational delivery and regular reporting through community hui.
Initial investment from Toitu Housing Ltd enabled extraction to begin in June 2023, focusing on the debris presenting the greatest risk. Further funding through MPI and Te Puni Kōkiri complemented the locally led response and enabled the wider programme to be completed.
Where practicable, recovered material was put to beneficial use, including chipping for landscaping associated with new housing and providing firewood to affected Te Karaka whānau.
Impact
Greater resilience through a locally led response
The project addressed a significant source of risk upstream of Te Karaka, providing greater confidence and resilience for landowners, whānau and the wider community.
It also demonstrated what can be achieved through a landowner-focused, locally led approach, bringing together iwi leadership, community knowledge, technical capability and complementary government and funding support.
By connecting these interests and turning an identified risk into a practical programme of work, Rata Forest Management Ltd helped deliver an outcome grounded in the needs of the whenua and the people connected to it.
