Background
Set in the rugged hill country of the northern part of Te Urewera National Park (212 673 ha) in New Zealand's Bay of Plenty, Te Urewera Mainland Island is an ecological restoration project with a twist. Here, we are not only interested in protecting and restoring the forest habitat but also with finding about how to do this restoration in better ways.
Project overview map
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As one of six Department of Conservation (DOC) Mainland Islands the project is guided by a set of eight management principles under the three themes of Learning, Biodiversity and Community. The three themes recognise not only the ecological challenges we face but the need to engage with the wider community, and importantly, that as restoration managers with limited funds, we have to learn how best to spend that money to get the best results.