For Terry Wearmouth being part of restoring Kaipara Moana is much more than business, it’s personal. As a director at Kauri Park nurseries he’s involved in supplying the plants required to return the largest estuarine water body in the country to health. But his connection to the harbour goes right back to childhood. We tell his story on World Wetlands Day today.

“My great-grandfather grew up in this area, I was born and bred here,” says Wearmouth. “I turned 45 this year and in my lifetime I’ve seen the harbour degrade in a huge way. We used to swim off the end of our property, now the channels are disappearing and the mangroves and banks are pretty much touching. Where we used to get oysters it’s just mud. The scallops have disappeared. Where locals used to set their nets it’s just mud.

“So in less than half a century the harbour has gone backwards in an incredibly visible way. If we carry on like this we’re going to have a dead harbour. That’s what drives me.”

Kaipara straddles Auckland and Northland regions. It’s facing severe environmental degradation, mainly due to sediment - around 700,000 tonnes is deposited into the harbour each year. That’s about seven times the amount before human settlement.

The Government recognises the harbour’s global ecological and biological significance and it’s “profound” importance to Māori and recreational users (it’s the most important snapper nursery area for the west coast of the North Island).

After 20 years of lobbying by locals the Government announced $100 million multi-year Kaipara Moana Remediation funding from the Ministry for the Environment’s Job for Nature purse in 2020. It’ll contribute to a total project cost of $200 million for the first six years of an anticipated ten-year programme with co-funding from councils, landowners, industry and others.