Ohariu - Past, Present, and Future

Access was an issue for the first settlers to Ohariu Valley. The Old Road seen on the 1916 topographic map was the original road into and out of the valley.

"Ohariu is situated about six miles from Wellington, and immediately in the rear of the Town. The road to the village is over a mountain, is difficult and available only as a footpath, principally through bush." Wellington Independent, 31 August 1850.

The road that connects Ohariu Valley and Johnsonville was built in 1858. This provided easier access and opened up the valley to further settlement. An article from 1858 states the importance of access to development.

"Perhaps no stronger evidence of the value of roads, and of the utter worthlessness of the finest land until it is made accessible, could be adduced, than is afforded in the case of the Ohariu district. A valley almost equal in extent and in the fertility of its soil to the Hutt, at the same distance to Wellington, remains waste and unoccupied for some 17 years." Wellington Independent, 20 March 1858.

The arrival of European settlers signalled a rapid decline in forest cover across the region. Trees were logged for timber and land was cleared for agriculture.

The first settlers arrived in Johnsonville and Ohariu Valley around the 1850s. Within 40 years of European settlement almost all native forest had disappeared in the area.

"To-day the rolling uplands and downs that stretch from Porirua down to Makara, and from the Ohariu beach to the Kaukau and Johnsonville show scarcely a single native tree." New Zealand Mail, 14 December 1904.

There are multiple outcomes expected from the reforestation of this site. The main one which both the university and the council have in common is restoring indigenous biodiversity.

Victoria University expected outcomes

• Carbon sequestration
• Providing opportunities for students, staff, and alumni to plant trees
• Engaging with the city, both council and public
• Provide teaching and research opportunities

Wellington City Council expected outcomes

• Providing local communities access to extensive open areas characteristic of the Outer Green Belt
• Extension of the Outer Green Belt ecological corridor
• Local community engagement

An ecological corridor connects two significant ecological areas together. It allows species to move from one area to another allowing greater species and genetic diversity.

It is important to preserve species and genetic diversity as it allows species to survive and recover in the event of disasters, diseases, or pest infestations.

The Outer Green Belt will in the future act as an ecological corridor for many species.

Carbon sequestration is the process of capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it. In this case the trees take up carbon dioxide as they grow and convert it into biomass, meaning they store it within themselves.

As a forest grows it will store more carbon until it reaches equilibrium. Once a forest matures natural thinning and decay mean that the amount of carbon a forest absorbs and releases is equal.