Landscape-scale wilding pine control in Marlborough’s Branch Leatham
Support from the local community to elevate an ambitious environmental project in Marlborough’s Branch Leatham, means there is now a robust plan in place to demonstrate that restoration of the area is possible.
The South Marlborough Landscape Restoration Trust (SMLRT) has been working to raise awareness about the Branch Leatham, a 52,000 hectare conservation area with the worst and most complex wilding pine infestation in the country.
For years, the problem was considered too extensive, but now the landscape-scale project is able to be considered for inclusion in the National Wilding Conifer Control Programme.
The Branch Leatham/ Lost Valley borders Nelson National Park, Rainbow Range and Waihopai Valley. If not contained, there are fears wilding pines in the area - both Pinus contorta and Douglas fir - could make their way into Nelson Lakes National Park and spread as far south as Kaikōura.
Seed rain poses a significant risk; The Trust says there is evidence of the seed travelling upwards of 20 kilometres in major wind events. The threat to water could have a major impact on the region’s hydroelectric, agriculture and viticulture industries, while volunteers have already been working for several years to address biodiversity loss in the area.
“South Marlborough is one of five centres in New Zealand where unique species, plant, or animal are found only in that specific geographic area and nowhere else in the world,” says SMLRT Chair John Oswald.
“At least 29 nationally threatened or at risk plants species occur in the Branch Leatham, of which nine are endemic to South Marlborough. The Branch Leatham has always been at the heart of this concern because it’s a ticking time bomb of compounding seed-rain dispersal.
“Without commitment to a plan to eradicate, these trees will replace the indigenous biodiversity and tussock in the mountain landscapes of South Marlborough, all the way to Kaikōura.”
While Ministry for Primary Industries funding has focused on eradicating trees from the adjoining Rangitahi/Molesworth areas, seed-rain reinfestation from the Branch Leatham is compromising efforts.
A three-year, $450,000 grant from Rātā Foundation under the South Island funder’s Strategic Environment pou is supporting the operational efforts of SMLRT and volunteers on the ground in the Branch Leatham, and has allowed the Trust to raise awareness about the issue with local and central government. A 10-year operational plan and budget has been developed by the Trust, to demonstrate the feasibility and time frame of possible control options in the Branch Leatham.
“South Marlborough Landscape Restoration Trust in partnership with the local community, has invested significant time and energy in their efforts to raise awareness about the threat of wilding pines to the environment and the economy in the Marlborough region,” says Rātā Chief Executive Leighton Evans.
“This aligns with the Rātā aim to support environmental resilience through collaborative approaches which support environmental planning and prioritisation at a landscape-scale”.
If a pilot programme in Lost Valley is anything to go by, there are positive signs for the future of the Branch Leatham project. The efforts of volunteers to eradicate wilding pines has resulted in the return of native bush, but environmentalists know this is only the beginning of the long-term approach that is required to protect the indigenous biodiversity of the area.
To find out more about this ambitious, landscape-scale project, visit South Marlborough Landscape Restoration Trust
About South Marlborough Landscape Restoration Trust
The South Marlborough Landscape Restoration Trust (Trust) was primarily formed in 2016 by concerned local environmentalists, becoming aware of the risks posed by wilding pines. The Trust rohe/area is 870,000 hectares spanning from the foothills behind Blenheim in the north to Rangitahi/Molesworth in the south. The Trust has cleared wilding pines in approx. 134,000 hectares in the Awatere, Ferny Gair/Black Birch and Lower Wairau areas.