Thumbs-up for parks and forests
Almost everyone (96%) who visits regional parks and forests is happy with what they provide while 81% are aware of Greater Wellington’s network of nine parks and forests.
These findings come from visitor satisfaction surveys, conducted by Greater Wellington. Altogether, we manage 50,000 hectares of regional parks, forests and water collection areas. In 2005/06, we spent $1.12 million monitoring, protecting and enhancing the recreation and heritage facilities of these areas to ensure visitors can have a safe and enjoyable experience.
This activity includes pest control, ranger services, monitoring the condition of assets and carrying out capital works such as providing a toilet block at the summit of the Rimutaka Rail Trail and building new rangers’ offices at Queen Elizabeth Park, East Harbour Regional Park and Whitireia Park.
One of the ways we encourage the community to enjoy regional parks is through our annual Regional Outdoors Programme. This year’s programme, which ran from January to April, was a great success, attracting record attendance levels and some excellent feedback. The 52 events ranged from educational outings to bush walks and hosting sports events.
Our community groups continue to be actively involved in our parks and forests, particularly through our environmental enhancement projects. Nine of these projects were carried out, as planned.
This year, the Government assisted Greater Wellington in the purchase of Waitangirua Farm from Landcorp so it could be included in the regional parks network.