Brook Waimarama Sanctuary
An enduring wildlife Sanctuary led by the community for the community.
Vision
To be an eco-sanctuary nationally recognised for its exemplary conservation practices, where wildlife, education, and research flourish.
Mission
To restore a predator-free mature native forest, enabling people to engage with the natural world in a way that promotes environmental responsibility and our community's health and wellbeing, and contributes to the recovery of our local and national ecosystems.
To be an eco-sanctuary nationally recognised for its exemplary conservation practices, where wildlife, education, and research flourish.
Area
The Sanctuary covers 690 hectares, much of which is mature beech forest with occasional podocarps.
Organisations involved
The Sanctuary is administered by a charitable trust with a board of nine trustees including iwi and Nelson City Council representatives.
Management history
After considerable fundraising, a 14.4 km pest fence was built around the Sanctuary's perimeter, completed in 2016. Increased birdsong and flourishing flora has been noticeable since the fence was completed and predators eliminated. In 2019 The Loop Track – the main visitor walkway – was completed following construction of a bridge across the main front dam. The Loop is fully accessible for wheels chairs and mobility scooters. In total, 15 km of walking tracks are available for visitors to enjoy, while another 120 km of tracks are used operationally (mainly for pest management), all created by volunteers. Many thousands of visitors enjoy the Sanctuary each year, including school children via an education outreach programme. The Sanctuary was delighted to be in a position to reintroduce its first species – South Island tīeke – in April 2021