An Iconic River

The Ruakituri River is located 35 kilometers north of Wairoa and traverses vastly different landscapes over its length. The headwaters of the river are rugged wilderness areas with several limestone gorges to the middle and lower reaches of the river which are predominantly surrounded by native bush and farmland area. The Ruakituri River is a contributor of sediment to the Wairoa River along with other tributaries. By addressing well-known sources of erosion, the group hopes that their effort will contribute to the enhancement of the water quality in the Wairoa basin over time.  

The Ruakituri is hugely significant to tangata whenua and local farmers and is regarded as an iconic river.  Already considered a world-renowned trout fishing destination, the Ruakituri was placed in ‘Group 1’ of the government’s list of rivers and lakes deserving protection for its exceptional scenery, fishing, recreational, wildlife, and wilderness qualities. It has also been given World Heritage Status.

The Guardians of the Ruakituri

Ruakituri farmers and landowners have always respected their river. Over the decades, a number of isolated environmental projects have been delivered on several farms in the catchment. In 2020, this strong community decided to come together to work as a united body towards a common vision.

This led to the creation in February 2021 of “The Guardians of the Ruakituri River Inc” a unified group of Maori and Pakeha landowners, tangata whenua, and school representatives.

The Guardians of the Ruakituri Chair, Nuku Hadfield says “the group has been operating in an informal basis for a while, but recently decided to come together for efficiency gain and to increase the chances of us leveraging more funding”.

 Nuku Hadfield (Chair) states “we are in a unique position because many of the guardians are integrated into the values and aspirations of Te Ao Maori due to 2/3 of the land area being in Maori ownership through trusts incorporations and owner/operators”.

Peter MacCarthy, local farmer is excited by this large environmental project. Pete has already retired several steep hills above the river on his own farm but sees the benefits of a community approach. “We want to involve not only our landowners but also the Ruakituri school who is already an enviro school”

Peter McCarthy (Executive Committee member) explains :  “This work is a legacy we want to gift to our kids and the generations to come, they will be the next Guardians of the Ruakituri ”.

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