Kauri dieback: National treasure on the brink of extinction

Thursday, 21 December 2017

For 1000 years, Auntie Agatha has stood as a reminder of our primordial past.

The graceful kauri was a sapling as Māori populated these islands, managed to avoid the logging of European colonists and has stood in recent decades as a beloved symbol for Aucklanders of the wild west coast, nestled in Cascade Park within the Waitākere Ranges.

But now all that history and grace has ended.

The mighty tree succumbed to kauri dieback.

**READ MORE:

* Five years on and treated kauri are growing

* Why we shouldn't bring moa and other extinct species back

* Our bush is boring, our birds are dull. Why save them?**

In December, kaumātua taking part in a rāhui ceremony, a desperate attempt to stop other kauri dying from the disease, filed past the tree as if in a funeral procession, stopping momentarily to bless it and whisper goodbyes. 

Auntie Agatha, slowly dying, stands now as a jarring totem to the disturbing gap between self-congratulatory Kiwi rhetoric of our proud commitment to a green, natural environment and the complacent reality that we refuse to do enough to save even such an iconic species as the kauri.

A new report shows the spread of kauri dieback is largely the fault of humans - all those who profess affinity with our native bush and go for tramps in the Waitākere Ranges, but refuse to clean their boots and transfer the disease to ever more stands of trees. 

Nor is the impending loss of the kauri isolated - kauri nurture 17 other species in the forest ecosystem and as they die, the rest of the bush suffers.

While Auntie Agatha dies, Auckland groups who should be committed to saving kauri instead squabble over strategy and costs.

Just before Christmas, the Government finally acknowledged urgent action was needed.

Forestry Minister Shane Jones described the Kauri Dieback Programme, which has been in place since 2009, as 'an unmitigated disaster.'

KAURI KILLER 

Auckland's Waitakere Ranges is one of the key battlegrounds in the fight to save kauri.

Phytophthora agathidicida was discovered in a cluster of kauri on the Maungaroa Ridge track in the Waitākere Ranges in 2006, and it was formally identified in 2008. Since its discovery thousands of kauri trees have died throughout the ranges. 

The pathogen spreads microscopic spores through soil that attach themselves onto kauri roots and leach nutrients from the trees so they starve to death. There is no known cure for dieback although there have been mixed results from injecting phosphite into infected trees.

Humans are the main culprit for spreading dieback with movement of contaminated soil spreading the disease through the ranges. Wild pigs are also thought to be responsible for the spread.

Campaigns to get the public on board with taking the necessary measures to stop the spread have largely failed. This was most apparent in a 2016 report which found 83 per cent of visitors to the ranges were not scrubbing their footwear at cleaning stations before entering tracks, went off track and were using closed tracks. For whatever reason the message was not getting through to the public.

The council promised they'd step up the efforts over this summer, but refused calls to close the ranges altogether.

There are some who are critical of the decision to keep the ranges open. Dr Mels Barton of the Tree Council was devastated by the council's decision not to close the ranges. For her it's the only decision that will make any difference to the future of kauri. She often describes kauri dieback as being similar to HIV, that it spreads easily but if the right precautions are used other trees can be protected. In her view the only problem is the right precautions haven't been taken.

A panel of scientists, including Dr Nick Waipara whose research into kauri dieback has been pivotal, told the Environment and Community Committee meeting drastic measures needed to be taken to ensure the future of kauri. After the meeting Waipara was visibly upset the council was not closing the park.

ENGAGING THE CROWN

Te Kawerau o Maki spokesperson Edward Ashby has one word to describe the response to dieback: bungled. 

'The Crown has never engaged with us about dieback in the Waitākeres, we've tried several times and have only been met with silence.' 

Ashby said iwi were never told or consulted that the Government would be reviewing the response to dieback but hoped it was a step in the right direction. 

'If there's the political will to address this I think something could be done but so far there hasn't been.' 

Ashby said iwi feel there's been a lot of finger pointing between the different agencies involved in managing dieback but while blame is being directed all over the place they're left picking up the pieces. 

'The Crown chopped kauri down in the 19th and 20th century and now they won't save the remaining ones.'

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? 

The Ministry for Primary Industry is responsible for the national programme and each regional council for the management in their area. The Waitākere Ranges fall under the watch of Auckland Council who have a task force to manage dieback.

The question of funding and where funds are spent is a contentious topic, some suggest there needs to be greater transparency about where MPI funding has been allocated. Poor track conditions throughout the Waitākeres are pointed to as evidence funding hasn't gone far enough. 

But John Sanson, national manager for recovery and pest management at MPI, describes the programme as a success and that they've come a long way in what they know about the disease. 

'These types of phythophthora are very hard to manage and no one has come up with a silver bullet yet.' 

From 2014 the Government allocated $26.5 million over four years to support the management of dieback. MPI received about $1.2 million per annum for science and research, national level communications and engagement, and staff resources to co-ordinate the project. 

The remaining $21.6 million is allocated to the Department of Conservation to reduce the risk of spreading the disease on DOC-administered land.   

Auckland Council Regional Parks Manager Rachel Kelleher describes dealing with dieback as complicated. She believes Auckland Council has made a lot of effort in take preventative measures to control the disease. 

'We will be reporting back to council in February about the progress that's been made on the directives and a more detailed analysis about what our options are.' 

Kelleher said they have stepped up their advocacy and efforts since a 2016 report on the state of dieback in the ranges. 

COMPLETE DISASTER 

Jack Craw, head of biosecurity at Auckland Council until 2014, admits given the time and amount of research commissioned those questions should have been answered. Craw describes the national programme as a disaster. He believes from 2009 - 2014 the management plan worked well, there were successes in research, funding was good and they were making progress. The new programme launched in 2014 in Craw's eyes has suffered from a lack of funding, in-house decisions made by MPI and contracts slashed.

'MPI haven't produced any funding reports or minutes so it's hard to understand or know what has happened, I'm at a loss to explain where it's gone so wrong.'

After a decade of research there are two key questions that have not been answered: what else does dieback infect and how are the spores killed?

Craw said only around 10 per cent of the research questions posed during the first five years of management have been answered.

A Controlled Area Notice had been suggested but Ashby said the document required to set it in motion was never signed off by the council. 

Sanson said there have been lessons they've learned from the earlier programmes but on the whole they feel confident with how they've responded. 

'Decisions about the Waitākere Ranges have very much been up to Auckland Council over the years. Obviously no one wants to see what we see now.' 

Sanson points out there's not always something you can do to control pathogens like dieback. 

WHEN THE WHALE DIES IT'S A SIGNAL THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG

Two juvenile kauri are set in the middle of an Auckland Council Environment and Community Committee meeting.

Placed by iwi members they're an uncomfortable reminder of the topic for the main agenda item. The previous weekend te Kauwarau o maki placed a rāhui on the Waitākere Ranges in an attempt to keep people out of the area riddled with a pathogen killing kauri.

Addressing the committee kaumatua Te Warena Taua delivered a warning,

'If the kauri die, our people die with the kauri.'

After five hours of discussion and deliberation the council decided on targeted track closures, increasing protection measures across the park and to seek further funding through the council's 10-year budget.

Committee chair and Waitākere Ward Councillor Penny Hulse said the decision delivered a practical balance for the community and the health of the park.

For those who warned greater action needed to be taken the council decision came as a blow.

When Taua addressed the council he said he didn't want his mokopuna to only know what a kauri looked like in a report and it was time for action.

'In Māori mythology kauri are the whales of the forest and when whales start dying you know there's something wrong with the sea. It's the same in the forest.'

Taua said the rāhui will help the forest heal but only if people respect it and stay out of the Waitākeres. 

There's evidence members of the community are taking the situation seriously, AUT and Unitec have both contacted iwi to say they would stop using the forest. And the organiser of the annual Hilary Trail run cancelled the 2018 event to respect the rāhui. 

Meanwhile the Government has now told the Kauri Dieback Programme to develop a National Pest Management Plan.

Such plans have previously been used to combat major threats to the primary sector such as the kiwifruit disease PSA, bovine tuberculosis and American foulbrood - a bee disease.

'It is by far the strongest piece of regulation available and will ensure mandatory hygiene practices, consistent regulations that apply nationally, stronger governance and access to funding,' said Minister for Primary Industries Damien O'Connor. 

But for now, the kauri still die. And Auntie Agatha remains a poignant symbol of loss - a loss so far, without end.