A message from our Chair

Pipiri – June

Ko Te Reo Kākāriki tēnei e mihi ana ki a koutou e noho whānui ana ki te ao. Tēnei te tuku pānui atu kia mōhio koutou mō ngā mahi e kawea nei ki muri, ki mua rānei mō te tupu rākau ki runga i o tātou whenua. Nō reira ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa.

Ki a rātou kua whetūrangi, e kemokemo mai rā i te rangi, kei te tika ngā kupu e kī a nei, “He tātai tangata ki te whenua, ka ngaro. He tātai tangata ki te whenua, ka ngaro. He tātai whetū ki te rangi, mau tonu, mau tonu”.

Nō reira moe mai koutou, okioki atu. Ka hoki mai ki a tātou e noho nei i te ao marama me te kī.

Tēnā koutou, tēnā rā tātou katoa.

Welcome to our June edition of Te Reo Kākāriki

In this edition we bring you an update on the completion of salvage work in our forest post-Gabrielle, outline our Hīrangi Marae wānanga for those of our whānau who received an education grant or scholarships from the Trust, talk about changes in forestry access for owners, and more.

We have extended the deadline for aplications to our Manupiri Kaitiaki programme until 15 July. This is a great opportunity to gain valuable governance experience and participate alongside Trustees in deciding the future of the Trust. Further information can be found below.

We’re always interested in what you have to say or what you’d like us to cover in our panui, so please let us know what you think.

On behalf of us all at the Forest Trust, I extend to you all our warmest regards as we look to the rising of Puanga and Matariki heralding the dawn of the new year. 

Mauri ora! 

Binky Ellis, Chairperson

Puanga - Matariki

Ko Puanga te whetū taki tau

Ko Puanga te whetū kahurangi 

Ko Puanga Nui o te Rangi te pua tāwhiwhi ki te Tuke o Tautoru

He tau roa te tau o Puanga, ka tīmata ki te Haki-Haratua, ka rua ki Puangahori ki te Kāhui o Takurua, ka toru ko Whakaahu me te puanga mai o te Tahei Poananga

It is the season to acknowledge the chiefly blue star of Puanga, the seed-bloom of Tautoru, and also Puangahori in the cluster of Takurua, finally to Whakaahu and the springtime garlands of the Poananga flowers.

Ko te Whare a Puanga i te Pō, Ko Puanga nui ka rewa ki te pae tika tonu ki Taumata-Kūkū ka rere te huahua, ka puta ko Matariki ki te Mātahi o te Tau.

The House of Puanga is seen in the evening, Puanga nui rises at dawn, proceed to Taumata-Kūkū the red star of the kūkū harvest rising in Pouākai, and thence to Matariki.

Mānawatia a Matariki.

Replanting has started following the salvage of fallen trees.

Massive salvage wraps up

Much of the past year has been overshadowed by the widespread damage Cyclone Gabrielle wrought on our forests and beyond and the huge salvage effort by NZ Forest Managers. 

We lost 4200ha of trees, mostly aged 20 years and over, to windthrow damage. As a result, an estimated 2.2 million m³ of logs needed to be picked up and processed by harvesting crews, then sold.  At its peak this meant 40 harvesting crews were working in our forests with a five-fold increase in trucks on our roads.  

The recovery has been a massive undertaking, and we want to especially acknowledge the huge effort of the NZFM team over the past 12 months.

While the salvage has now been completed, the challenges don't go away. The fallen trees amounted to almost half of what we had planned to harvest over the next decade. Our models show that it will take until around 2032 before the annual harvest returns to the levels we had expected pre-cyclone. This means less work for our harvesting and trucking crews, and less income for the Trust.  Many of our owners will be feeling this.

At the same time, we have a larger area to replant than we had expected.

In the aftermath of this challenge, we stay guided by our mission ‘Ka mahi tahi tatou ki a Papatūānuku kia whai angitu’. We acknowledge the stress this event may have caused to individuals, whānau and communities residing near our forests and seek your understanding as we work to bring things back into balance.

NZFM has worked with ITPV-Production to document the journey that was, and still is, our response to this major weather event. 

The student wānanga will be held at Hīrangi Marae.

Education focus of wānanga 

Ko te manu e kai ana i te miro nōna te ngahere

Ko te manu e kai ana i te mātauranga nōna te ao

The bird that consumes the miro owns the forest

The bird that consumes knowledge owns the world

The Trust is hosting this year’s education grant recipients at a student wānanga at Hīrangi Marae on 25-27 June.

The wānanga will bring our students together and provide an opportunity for them to learn more about the mahi of the Trust.

A forest visit is planned, learning local history, and connecting with several of the Trust's internship providers.

The wānanga is a great opportunity for students from campuses and educational institutes across the country to connect with each other and to the whenua.

64 students helped with grants

Lake Taupō Forest Trust offers education grants to students every year. 

This year we supported 64 students from our whānau with a grant of $1000 each. There is a wide range of subjects being supported this year, including Environmental Planning, Law, Health Sciences, Te Reo Māori, Engineering, Indigenous Studies, and Business.

We wish all of these students well in their studies and we encourage you to keep an eye on our social media channels and on your emails for invitations to attend our student wānanga next year, 2025!

Seeking associate trustees

The trust wants to appoint two Manupiri Kaitiaki (associate trustees) as a way of introducing them to the world of governance.

This initiative aims to empower rangatahi to become future leaders within LTFT and other Tūwharetoa organisations.

Eligible candidates must be an owner or descendant of an owner, commit to a full term of one year, and preferably aged between 25 and 35.

Don’t miss this opportunity to shape the future of governance within our community. Express your interest today by contacting manupiri@ltft.co.nz Applications close 15 July.

Wider access to our whenua

We have reopened sections of forest to hunting and recreation which had been off-limits during the cyclone recovery operations.

Owner access was severely disrupted by Cyclone Gabrielle and the subsequent harvesting work but after recent discussions with NZ Forest Managers the following was agreed:

• Owner access has resumed in the Mission Bay Road area south to Kiko Road.
• Kiko Road public access to Kaimanawa Forest park has reopened.
• Owner access from Kiko Road south will remain closed while work there continues.

Pulse check - survey out soon

It’s 55 years since the Trust was formed – with the amalgamation of 65 land blocks and development into a major forestry operation.

We want to know more about our owners and what they think about the Trust, its work and its business model.

In the next couple of months we will be sending out a survey – open to all but with a focus on our owners and their uri.

Keep an eye out for that survey.

Key dates ahead

25-27 June: Grants recipients’ wānanga, Hīrangi Marae.

15 July: Manupiri Kaitiaki (associate trustees) applications close. 

Explore our socials to find out more