Ōkakaraiti.

Project partner: Te Ara Kākāriki.

Ōkakaraiti is a six-hectare site on Aldersley farm, featuring a pond at the end of a water race and a glacial moraine running through the middle — creating diverse microhabitats and strong restoration potential.

With a multi-year funding grant from the by Central Plains Water Limited Environmental Management Fund (EMF), Te Ara Kākāriki Greenway Canterbury Trust (TAK) has led community planting days at the site and supplied over 4,000 native plants to support restoration efforts, to date a total of 30,000 plants will have been established.

A well-used public walking track now loops through the planting area, offering access and panoramic views over Springfield and out to the Southern Alps — combining ecological restoration with community connection to place.

This project also contributes to a broader landscape-scale initiative supported by the Department of Conservation’s Jobs for Nature programme, which enabled TAK to employ five FTEs to deliver large-scale Greendot planting and landowner engagement across the Otahuna area.

Impact.

Short Term: 

• Native planting at scale with community involvement.
• Improved site biodiversity and vegetation cover.
• Public access to restored landscape.

Long Term:

• Functioning native forest system with high habitat value.
• Increased native bird presence and ecological connectivity.
• Long-term learning and recreation opportunities for the community.

With a multi-year funding grant from the EMF, TAK is delivering large-scale restoration and public access at Ōkakaraiti — helping realise CPWL’s mountains to the sea strategy.