Replanting Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park

Have your say about the future of the park

We are planning to remove trees from Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park in five stages over the next 20+ years. We will replant the forest with a mix of exotic and native trees and shrubs.

Why we're replanting

Almost all the trees in Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park are conifers listed as pest species in the Canterbury Regional Pest Management Plan (CRPMP). These trees are prone to producing wilding conifers, also known as wilding pines. Removing wilding conifers costs taxpayers millions of dollars each year. You can find out more about the wilding conifer problem at the Prevent the Spread website

As the managers of Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park, we at Environment Canterbury are responsible for removing these pest species under the CRPMP regulations.

We know the park is valued by the local community and visitors to Takapō, as it provides opportunities to walk, mountain bike, go orienteering and have a picnic, all in a sheltered forest. By removing the wilding conifers in five stages and replanting the forest with exotic and native trees and shrubs, we will protect these recreation opportunities and maintain soil conservation values.

Working in partnership with Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua, who are mana whenua for Takapō, we created a replanting plan that reintroduces native plants to the park and enhances the area's biodiversity.

To stay informed about the project, please enter your email address and click on the "subscribe" button on the righthand side of the page.


Have your say about the future of the park

We are planning to remove trees from Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park in five stages over the next 20+ years. We will replant the forest with a mix of exotic and native trees and shrubs.

Why we're replanting

Almost all the trees in Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park are conifers listed as pest species in the Canterbury Regional Pest Management Plan (CRPMP). These trees are prone to producing wilding conifers, also known as wilding pines. Removing wilding conifers costs taxpayers millions of dollars each year. You can find out more about the wilding conifer problem at the Prevent the Spread website

As the managers of Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park, we at Environment Canterbury are responsible for removing these pest species under the CRPMP regulations.

We know the park is valued by the local community and visitors to Takapō, as it provides opportunities to walk, mountain bike, go orienteering and have a picnic, all in a sheltered forest. By removing the wilding conifers in five stages and replanting the forest with exotic and native trees and shrubs, we will protect these recreation opportunities and maintain soil conservation values.

Working in partnership with Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua, who are mana whenua for Takapō, we created a replanting plan that reintroduces native plants to the park and enhances the area's biodiversity.

To stay informed about the project, please enter your email address and click on the "subscribe" button on the righthand side of the page.


  • Reporting back update

    Thank you for your interest and feedback in the future of Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park.

    • The harvest of Stage 1 of the park will begin on approximately 29 May and continue for about three months, weather permitting.
    • We have taken community/stakeholder feedback into account in our harvest and replanting plans, and our forestry team is taking all practical steps to protect and retain healthy non-pest trees in the park. You can read more about our responses to community feedback in the 'Summary of feedback and questions from the Have Your Say site' article on this page.
    • We're committed to reviewing future harvest/replanting plans (as it affects the overall project timeline) after Stage 1.
    • Council decisions during the next Long Term Plan process will determine the concentration of native planting (5%, 7.5%, or 10%) in the park.
    • An updated management plan for the park is in progress. The plan won’t be published until Council makes decisions about replanting.
    • This Have Your Say page will stay live throughout the harvest of Stage 1. You can ask questions about the project via this website or by emailing duty.ranger@ecan.govt.nz
  • Summary of feedback and questions from the Have Your Say site

    Thank you to everyone who attended one of our meetings, visited the Have Your Say site, filled in a survey or asked a question. We appreciate your interest in the future of the Takapō Regional Park. We read every response and question and took them into account in our planning.

    The Have Your Say page received 357 visits.
    26 feedback surveys were completed on the page.
    16 questions were asked on the page.

    You can find all the questions asked (and our answers) on the ‘questions & answers’ tab on this webpage.

    The most common topics we saw coming through the feedback forms and questions were:

    • replanting

    • recreation values, aesthetics and wildlife

    • harvesting

    • the need for a cautious approach

    • soil conservation and wind risk

    • fire mitigation

    • consultation/engagement process

    • other feedback

    Below is a summary of the themes we heard from your feedback and questions, and our response to each of the topics. We haven’t responded directly to each piece of feedback, but please be assured that we have taken all feedback into account.

    1. replanting

    Themes included:
    -begin planting natives asap, so they are large enough when the conifers are removed

    -plant native trees, not shrubs

    -replant with other types of exotics, not just conifers

    -provide water drums so locals can water trees

    -native plants will be difficult to establish and slow growing

    -bring in a part-time park ranger to care for the plants

    Response:
    Although we don’t have a ranger based in the park, we now have two staff members regularly visiting the park. They will be at the park even more often during the harvest, replanting, and replanting-maintenance phases of the project.

    The native and exotic plants in our replanting plan have been carefully chosen to balance aesthetic, recreational, soil conservation, biodiversity, and cultural values. We have incorporated native species suggested by mana whenua and exotic species suggested by the Lake Tekapo Recreational Park Society into our replanting plan.

    We are aware of the harsh environment and soil conditions, and the risk this may pose to survivability of native and exotic plantings. Our planting and maintenance specifications have taken these factors into account and include contingency plans such as watering if necessary.

    2. recreation values, aesthetics, and wildlife

    Themes included:
    -protect trails and tracks

    -concern that forestry machinery will be noisy

    -concern that the harvest area will be messy/weedy

    -provide habitat for wildlife and birds


    Response:
    We are committed to protecting tracks and trails in the park and restoring any tracks that are disturbed during the harvest process.

    The native species we plant will provide increased habitat for indigenous birds, invertebrates and reptiles.

    We will be taking steps to ensure that all left over material and slash is chipped or removed from site. The post-harvest will be left as tidy as possible post-harvest, and emerging weeds controlled as part of our plant maintenance programme.

    Forestry machinery will create noise in the park during the harvest phases of the project (approximately 3 months every five years). For Stage 1, we don’t expect the noise to travel far outside the park due to the remaining forest surrounding Stage 1 acting as a buffer. We have also restricted crew working hours to ensure no work occurs before 7am on weekdays and that no work occurs on weekends.

    3. harvesting

    Themes included:
    -concern about the ‘clear felling’ approach

    -use ‘selective felling’ to fell trees more gradually

    -leave a border of trees/ shelter belt to provide shelter to new planting

    -retain mature trees on the west side of the Lilybank Rd

    -important to get rid of the spread of wildings

    -wilding spread from the park is not extensive

    -protect the non-pest species

    -keep the existing trees

    -keep the larch trees

    Response:
    Identified pest species, including larch, will be removed from the park as part of this project, as is required as part of the National Wilding Conifer Control Programme.

    We are taking steps, including GPS marking and identification with harvest crews, to ensure non-pest trees are preserved as much as possible.

    The approach of harvesting in stages was chosen as it is more economically viable than harvesting selected trees gradually. It allows us to target the removal of key pest conifer species first (contorta pine). While each stage will be “clear felled, some trees that aren’t listed as pests on the Canterbury Regional Pest Management Plan will remain throughout the harvest.

    4. the need for a cautious approach

    Themes included:
    - need for review after Stage One

    - requests for examples of similar projects

    - need for a ‘trial first’ approach

    - consult ecologists with local knowledge

    Response:
    We have committed to reviewing the results of the Stage One harvesting/replanting, and adjusting timelines, harvest methods, and replanting species if required. Ecologists have been involved in the planning of this project and will continue to be involved throughout the duration.

    5. soil conservation and wind risk
    Themes included:
    -concerns about the risk of soil erosion
    -risk that wind will take out trees that have grown up sheltered by others

    Response:
    Soil conservation has been a priority throughout the planning of this project. Our staged harvest and replanting plan takes into account both soil erosion and wind risk. You can read more about soil conservation in ‘Soil Ecology and Conservation’ story on this page.

    6. fire mitigation

    Themes included:
    -Improve access for fire/emergency response
    -Improve couplings on current water tanks
    -Introduce new fire break

    Response:
    Thank you for these suggestions. We will continue to work with FENZ to improve fire mitigation within the park.

    7. engagement process

    Themes included:
    -insufficient time
    -we were told what will happen rather than consulted
    -lack of information available


    Response:
    Because this is not a formal consultation (the kind we run as part of the Long-Term Plan process), there is no requirement for formal submissions and hearings. We wanted to inform and hear feedback from those most affected by this project, which is why we focused on advertising in local publications, hosting stakeholder and community meetings, and inviting feedback via the Have Your Say page. We added more detailed information to the Have Your Say page in response to questions that were asked at the community meetings and on the webpage.


    8. other feedback

    -current operative management plan being ignored
    -incorporate horse-riding trails
    -need for new toilet at entrance

    Response:
    A new management plan for the park is currently in progress and will be published later this year.

    We don’t have plans to incorporate horse riding trails into the park. There are horse riding trails available close to the regional park.

  • What to expect during harvest

    • The harvest of stage one will start in late autumn/winter 2023. It will last approximately three months.
    • Foresters will be working in the area between 7am and 7pm, Monday to Friday.
    • The park will remain open while the harvest takes place. The central area being harvested will be restricted to workers-only for the duration of the harvest.
    • Detours will be in place for Te Araroa Walkway, which runs through the stage one area.
    • All internal roads bordering stage one will be closed. Access will be blocked with signs and barriers to ensure park users' safety.
    • Lilybank Road will remain open, but traffic management will be in place while trees along the road edge are being felled.
    • Temporary signs will be placed throughout the park to mark detours.
    • There will be more noise than usual in the park . However, we expect minimal noise to travel beyond the park, as stage one is buffered by forest on all sides.
  • Native and exotic replanting

    Native planting

    Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua have gifted us the name 'Te Ipuraki o Motu Ariki' meaning 'the foodbowl of Motuariki', for this replanting project. Motuariki is the name for the small island in the middle of the lake. We have also been gifted the name 'te piripiri' (based on the word piri, which means 'to stick close together') for the native planting areas that will be established throughout Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park. Te piripiri will increase the biodiversity of the park and provide attractive, interesting displays for visitors. Signage next to each native planting area will provide information about the traditional uses of some of these plants.

    We are planning to create 25 to 30 of these native planting areas throughout the park. Each of te piripiri will include trees and shrubs that are indigenous to the area and suitable for the conditions. Some examples include dwarf kōwhai, koromiko, tōtara, tussock, and taramea.

    Exotic planting

    Most of the forest will gradually be replanted with fast-growing, non-spreading exotic trees.


  • Soil ecology and conservation

    Soil reports from Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research show the area around the regional park is predominantly made up of Humose Orthic Brown soils and Weathered Orthic Recent soils, deposited over time from glacial melt and river flows. These are generally well-draining soils due to the sandy/silty composition and have a variable water-holding capacity. Most of these soils have low vulnerability to water logging. The soils in the regional park are weakly structured and are very vulnerable to wind erosion if left bare – they have undergone significant erosion in the past and this was problematic for the soils themselves and for the adjacent highway, which often had poor visibility due to soil blown from the area that is now the regional park. The presence of vegetation was established to mitigate this wind erosion.

    This information was carefully considered when designing our replanting plan along with the topography/geography and ecological features of the area. The replanting of the established trees will be done in stages and will be managed to minimise soil disturbance as much as possible. The forest floor will be left intact as much as possible to ensure soil is not left vulnerable to erosion while new species are establishing, and replacement species will be planted within 18 months once the existing trees have been felled. This is to facilitate control of emerging seedlings and weeds present in the soil seed bank. This timeline will be reviewed after stage one planting along with the monitoring of soil erosion during this time.

    Data from Environment Canterbury’s soil monitoring programmes has shown that soil properties don’t differ markedly under exotic and indigenous forest, so we don’t expect that the replacement of pest conifers with indigenous and exotic species will have a substantial effect on soil quality. However, preliminary data suggests that soils under indigenous vegetation may have higher microbiological activity, so it is possible that the establishment of indigenous species may improve soil microbiological conditions. This in turn can lead to improvements in soil structure.

    The exotic replacement is a non-pest conifer that exhibits the same resilience and growth rate in Takapō as the pest species targeted for removal. We expect their success and growth rate to be at least as good as the established species, or potentially better as we will be applying two years of post-harvest maintenance that focusses on improving survivability and reducing pest regeneration. We currently have native plant reserves located in specific areas within the park best suited for those species. Native species composition will complement local genetic diversity, historical composition relevant to current and future climate and consequent survivability if planted in suitable areas. Native establishment will be supported with the use of mulch to both protect soil and provide organic matter to the soil. We expect a similar success rate to that achieved in our ongoing native planting activity (approximately 70%).

  • Our partner organisations

    We have worked with Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua, who are mana whenua for the area, to create a replanting plan that incorporates the indigenous biodiversity of the park.

    We have also worked with Mackenzie District Council, the Lake Tekapo Recreational Park Society, Wilding Free Mackenzie, and other stakeholders to ensure our plans meet the needs of the community, landowners and businesses.

  • Replanting species list

    The list below includes the native and exotic species that will be replanted in Lake Tekapo/Takapō Regional Park. This list is subject to change based on seed availability. The list of exotic species may change after consultation with Lake Tekapo Recreational Park Society.

    Native species

    Exposed - Sub-alpine tussock/shrub

    Sheltered -Shrub/montane forest

    Wet - Shrub/wetland

    Species

    Species

    Species

    Festuca novae-zelandiae

    Fuscospora cliffortioides

    Astroderia richardii

    Phormium cookianum

    Kunzea ericoides

    Carex secta

    Coprosma propinqua

    Pittosporum tenuifolium

    Coprosma dumosa

    Kunzea ericoides

    Phormium tenax

    Coprosma propinqua

    Carmichaelia australis

    Leptopsermum scoparium

    Coriaria arborea

    Leptospermum scoparium

    Coprosma propinqua

    Halocarpus budwillii

    Aciphylla spp

    Plagianthus regius

    Kunzea ericoides

    Astroderia richardii

    Podocarpus cunninghamii

    Leptopsermum scoparium

    Chionochloa rigida

    Sophora microphylla

    Ozothamnus leptophyllus

    Discaria toumatou

    Veronica salicifolia

    Phormium tenax

    Ozothamnus leptophyllus

    Griselinia littoralis

    Pittosporum tenuifolium

    Poa colensoi

    Aristotelia fruticosa

    Plagianthus regius

    Coprosma rugosa

    Hoheria lyallii

    Pteridium esculentum

    Coprosma dumosa

    Phyllocladus alpinus

    Typha orientalis

    Melicytus alpinus

    Pseudopanax crassifolius

    Veronica salicifolia

    Sophora prostrata

    Coprosma rugosa


    Veronica salicifolia

    Podocarpus totara


    Corokia cotoneaster

    Coprosma dumosa


    Muehlenbeckia axillaris

    Podocarpus nivalis


    Podocarpus cunninghamii

    Myrsine divaricata


    Halocarpus budwillii



    Oleria odorata



    Veronica pinguifolia



    Veronica odora




    Exotic species

    Pinus radiata x attenuata

    Quercus ellipsoidalis – Northern Pin Oak

    Quercus petraea x robur – Hybrid English Oak

    Quercus rubra – Northern Red Oak

    Ulmus x hollandica – Dutch Elm

    Populus euramericana – Veronese Poplar

    Fraxinus americana – White Ash

    Acer saccharum – Sugar Maple

    Fagus sylvatica – English and Copper Beech

    Sequoiadendron giganteum - Redwood

    Cedrus deodora - Himalayan Cedar

    Picea smithiana - Himalayan Spruce

    Picea jezoenisis - Japanese Spruce

    Picea glauca - White Spruce


  • Community meetings

    Community meetings were held on 21 and 22 February at Lake Tekapo Community Hall. Thanks to everyone who took the time to attend, ask questions, and discuss the future of the regional park.

    To view the slideshow shown at the community meetings, click on the 'slideshow' link on this page.

Page last updated: 04 May 2023, 01:22 PM