Planting day at Te Puna a Maru

By Vic Forrest | Posted: Friday October 21, 2022

12 students from O.I.S joined students from Fenwick, Te Pākihi o Maru and Waitaki Girls' High School today to support Moeraki Runaka with their restoration project.

Riparian wetlands and shingle river beds in the Waitaki Valley have been damaged and destroyed; those that remain are overgrown with invasive plants and overrun with predator species, endangering the habitat of native birds, fish and invertebrates. Moeraki Runaka are restoring the cultural landscape of Te Puna a Maru by clearing areas of scrub, establishing areas for native planting and monitoring traps.

Our Kāhui Ako today supported Te Runaka o Moeraki by helping them with their native planting. The students heard stories about the migration of Tuna ( Longfin eels) and the process undertaken to trap predators in the region.

The 12 students today represented our school well.