Volunteers clean up historic site

Tonnes of rubbish has been cleared from one of the oldest archeological sites in New Zealand.

Department of Conservation staff joined around 80 staff from wine company Yealands last Friday at the Wairau Bar and Rarangi beach in Marlborough to help rid the areas of rubbish.

Rusty metal, litter and plastic bottles made up most of the haul which weighed in at a hefty two tonnes.

DOC ranger Chris Wootten was on site to lend a hand.

‘‘DOC was pleased to support Yealands’ staff with a beach clean up at Rarangi and Wairau Bar last week,’’ he said.

‘‘The Wairau Bar and Rarangi coast is a special environment occupied for hundreds of years by Te Tau Ihu iwi.

‘‘People settled in this area because of its abundance of resources such as birds and fish.

‘‘Today’s Marlburians continue to value the Wairau River and coastal areas for its kai moana and whitebait or simply a place to enjoy the environment.’’

Over a four-hour period, volunteers collected more than two tonnes of rubbish off the coast

DOC also worked with Yealands’ staff and Rarangi residents to maintain Landcare plantings of coastal plant species.

Wootten said peoples’ awareness of the pervasive nature of plastics and their negative impact on marine and coastal environments was growing.

‘‘Research expeditions have skimmed ocean waters and in places have found concentrations of plastics as high as 9000 pieces every square kilometre. ‘Sediment samples in estuaries have been shown to contain tiny microplastic pieces.

‘‘Researchers have found the same thing from samples of the ocean floor, often hundreds of kilometres offshore.

‘‘Reducing the impact of plastic waste and rubbish starts at home and by taking responsibility for the waste we create and dispose of,’’ he said.

The Wairau Bar, or Te Pokohiwi, is a 19-hectare gravel bar formed where the Wairau River meets the sea in Cloudy Bay. Rubbish gets blown on to the beach and washed ashore, which gave everyone plenty of things to pick up.

‘‘We appreciate the efforts of Yealands working with us along our Marlborough coast,’’ Wootten said.

SCOTT HAMMOND/ STUFF Jason Radka was one of the volunteers from Yealands who spent more than four hours cleaning up.