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21 Jan 2026 0:45

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Northland's largest wetland has suffered significant damage after a landowner allowed livestock to enter, sprayed pesticides and illegally installed 600m of drains

Northland's largest wetland has suffered significant damage after a landowner allowed livestock to enter, sprayed pesticides and illegally installed 600m of drains

9 February 2025

The area damaged in the Kaimaumau-Motutangi Wetland is the size of 54 rugby fields.

The Environment Court has now ordered New Zealand Watermelon Distributors Limited and its director, Paul Martin Harvey, to undertake immediate remedial work.

The wetland is classified as a high-priority conservation area by both the Northland Regional Council and the Department of Conservation.

It's home to endangered species of plants, birds, reptiles, swamp kauri and some of the most expensive timber in the world.

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Other Environment News

20 Jan: A State of Emergency remains on the cards for other parts of Northland - after being declared for a week in Whangarei district - already pelted with heavy rain

20 Jan: NZTA says the damage at Waioweka Gorge on State Highway 2 - from the weekend's flooding, is extensive

20 Jan: Concerns over how the already soaked Northland will cope with more localised downpours

20 Jan: China ramps up crackdown on Christians amid global political pressures

19 Jan: Small Northland communities got the worst of the weekend's flooding, but more is to come

19 Jan: Biosecurity officials hunting Queensland fruit flies in Auckland - have found nothing after another weekend of precautions

19 Jan: Some people in Northland remain cut-off due to flooding - including a group at a DOC campsite in Puriri Bay, south-east of the Bay of Islands

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