Snells seawall saga P3 November 6, 2023
Warkworth Heritage Festival P15-26
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Greening North Shore Hospital P28&29
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Exhibition captures cement works story The story of an industry that put Warkworth on the map in the late 1880s is the subject of an extensive exhibition at the Warkworth Museum, which opened last week. The exhibition chronicles the history of the Wilson Cement Works, founded by Nathaniel Wilson, and the people who worked there, through archival material, photographs, original items and artworks. At the exhibition opening, museum president Brenda Yoxall thanked the volunteers for the months of work that had gone into the project, describing it as “an act of love”. She said the cement works played a critical role in laying the economic foundations of Warkworth and Nathaniel, and his brothers John and James, were true pioneers in the cement industry. “There was a lot of experimentation before they were able to commercially manufacture cement, which went on to become the Portland Cement Company,” she said. She thanked the Fletcher Trust, Auckland’s Maritime Museum and Golden Bay Cement for their support. The exhibition will be on show for about a year. The Fletcher Trust donated the print (above left) of Peggy Spicer’s painting of the cement works to the museum. The original is held by the trust. At the exhibition opening was trust chair Angus Fletcher and archivist Rachel Bell.
Further closures proposed for Pakiri beach Walkers on the national Te Araroa Trail will be looking for an alternative route between Te Arai and Pakiri following a decision by the landowners along the route to stop further access. About 1.5km of the beach is privately owned by the Pakiri G Ahu Whenua Trust, representing 173 Māori owners. Trust chair Wayne Greenwood says they were not consulted before the route along the beach from Te Arai to Pakiri was put in and, over the years, walkers have shown disrespect for the environment. He says this includes using the sand dunes as a toilet, littering, flying drones next to signs that say it is a no-fly zone for drones, and camping
inside fenced off bird nesting areas. “Birds see drones as predators – it can affect their breeding so that’s why people are asked not to fly them in the area,” Greenwood says. “We feel we have to make a stand because the problems are becoming more pronounced as the population increases. “We can’t see any middle ground – the beach must be closed to foot traffic.” As well as critically endangered tara iti, or fairy tern, the relatively undisturbed coastline provides shelter for a range of birds including godwits and oystercatchers. There are also urupa (burial grounds) and
middens along the beach, and some areas are tapu (sacred). “If we don’t protect this area, there will be nothing left. It’s already affected by sandmining. Sometimes the only way to care for nature is just to leave it alone,” Greenwood says. His views are echoed by a member of the trust, Annie Baines. She says that ever since Auckland Council opened the Pakiri Regional Park, at the southern end of the beach, there has been confusion around the where the park starts and finishes. Maps with incorrect information have not helped the situation. However, she says closing off the northern beach will not be a rāhui.
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“It is private land, so with the support of the Department of Conservation, we intend to put up signs and just ask people to keep off our land,” she said. “This may inconvenience some people, but I actually care more about the birds than I do about people going for a walk.” Te Araroa Trail executive director Matt Claridge says he hopes to meet with the trust soon. “I’d rather talk directly to the trust than comment through the media – that won’t help us build a relationship,” he said. He also did not want to comment on what continued page 2 WWW.RDCONSTRUCTION.CO.NZ
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