In early August 2018 alongside the Sinclair Wetlands Trust and Te Rūnanga o Ōtākou, He Waka Kōtuia Trust were successful in an application to the Participatory Science Platform (PSP) funding to research and monitor the health and the health of the environment of the tuna at Te Nohoaka o Tukiauau - Sinclair Wetlands.
KHtR is a a series of mahika kai wānaka, engaging whānau with local mahika kai, cultural and environmental experts; providing development opportunities for rakatahi and their whānau to extend skills and knowledge of te ao tūroa, focus on greater environmental awareness that fosters kaitiakitaka – taking responsibility as guardians of our resources, providing for our whānau while ensuring sustainability and caring for our environment.
The project, which will be ongoing, examines the restoration of the wetlands and natural resources. Kaupapa will include: the lifecycle, whakapapa and origin stories of tuna and associated waiata tawhito, karakia and tikanga for harvesting tuna; mātauraka Māori – how the phases of the moon affect tuna and other species; constructing hīnaki and experimenting with other traditional methods of catching tuna; environmental factors that are impacting on the sustainable future harvest of tuna, monitoring water quality, climate change, the impact of dairy farming. Potential to undertake research around food properties and health benefits of eating tuna and the sustainable development of a ‘new product’ that can be marketed to provide economic and hauora benefits for whānau.
The Sinclair Wetlands is a tribal property returned to Ngāi Tahu in the Treaty of Waitangi Claim. It was compe
nsation for Lake Tatawai, a small lake that sat at the northern end of Lake Waipori (Waipouri). It was drained for farming in the 1920s. The wetlands is regenerating both as a native wetlands but also on the islands once used as a Fortified Pā by Tukiauau, a Kāti Māmoe chief, as a native forest .
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