As many Aucklanders know, the pohutukawa – like no other tree – has the ability to hold together clifftop edges and has provided a guarantee of stability to many coastal property owners bordering Auckland’s most-prized east coast beaches.
It was therefore quite noticeable during Cyclone Gabrielle on Auckland’s west coach beaches, Piha and Muriwai in particular, where the worst slips occurred, the absence of such trees along the clifftops.
And the reason, according to the Department of Conservation (DoC) – backed up by DoC’s inventory on weeds – on the west coast the pohutukawa is regarded as a weed and a pest.
Where on Earth’s name is the logic in that?
Gary Hollis
Mellons Bay
