ARATU FORESTS LTD WAIMANU FOREST

Waimanu Forest

Aratu Forests Limited (Aratu) manages Waimanu Forest (2,075.5 ha), which is located in hill country approximately 8km northeast of Gisborne. Aratu is wanting to establish Waimanu Forest as an example of enhanced biodiversity within plantation forestry and have goals for the forest to be an iconic project which will encapsulate biodiversity, community, iwi narratives, settler families and sustainable forest harvest by 2028. To set project goals and visions, an ecological survey is required to assess the quality and values of the indigenous habitats present in Waimanu Forest.

Download our assessment here

Waimanu-Forest-Map.png

Challenge or Opportunity Statement

The challenge is that Aratu operates within a local and national context of anti-forestry, anti-exotic plantation narrative coupled with misinformation around foreign land ownership, carbon and the ETS in its current iteration. The political and media dialogue, at both the local and national levels, is more often harshly critical and repetitive thus amplifying harmful impacts of the industry.

In the last 2 years, through the development and implementation of the stakeholder engagement and communication strategies we can demonstrate a significant increase in how we are positively perceived and valued within the Gisborne region by a wide range of stakeholders. The opportunity for Aratu is that we can use this momentum and hard work to springboard us into a project that will anchor our social licence to operate for decades to come. This can be achieved by establishing Waimanu forest as an iconic example of enhanced biodiversity, a collective local community response to climate change and restoring the traditional narratives of local iwi and settler families, done within a sustainably harvested forest.

Strategic Goal –

Aratu will establish Waimanu Forest as an iconic project by 2028.

 Benefits

  • Demonstrates a transformational approach to forestry on the East Coast
  • Elevates Aratu beyond Social Licence to operate, planting our roots deep into the conscious of our community for the right reasons through enduring partnerships
  • Diversification and Land optimisation opportunities
  • Waimanu becomes a model of water-ways and bio-diversity protection and enhancement for the industry
  • Aratu tells the narrative, pushing back on the negative discourse
  • Waimanu grown wood when harvested is used exclusively to supply the local market and not exported (links to project 1)

Risks

  • Aratu continues to be characterised by the poor behaviour of others in the industry
  • Legacy issues from HFF continue to cast a shadow over the good work we are now doing
  • Aratu does not make use of the hard-won reputational value added to the business brand

 Approach

  • Maximise the location,15 minutes to Gisborne City
  • Rich in local Māori and early settler histories, connect and collaborate to restore these links
  • Understand, protect and enhance the areas of high value conservation biodiversity
  • Partner up with the two water catchment groups that Waimanu feeds into
  • Scale up our work with local and national recreational users
  • Engage with local education providers, Waimanu forest becomes a learning space accessible to all learners including those most at risk groups, leaners with disabilities and neuro diverse conditions.
  • eLandNZ partnership prioritises Waimanu riparian native planting zones
  • Aratu takes control of our narrative, our story, and pushes back against the negative discourse
  • March 2023 local and national media release outlining the project

 Potential partners

Key Deliverables

  • Baseline biodiversity data by January 2023
  • Scale up pest control to protect PMA & HVC areas
  • Waimanu Project media release presentation developed ready for presentation to external groups by March 2023

Resourcing

  • Waimanu Project presentation and media release developed with external support
  • Biodiversity baseline resourced internally, included in FY22 & FY23 as BAU across the estate
  • Pest control scale-up resourced internally

eLandNZ agreement in second year of operation, no additional costs