D.U.N.E is now in its third year of Greater Wellington funding and has built good community support for its project to restore natural dunes along Paraparaumu Beach south of the Waikanae Estuary. The marram dominated sand dunes along this stretch of the beach suffer from ongoing erosion and the group are working to find solutions to this problem. Members of the group monitor the progress of trial plots of the native "sand-binder" kowhangatara ( Spinifex sericeus). The trials were established with the help of leading coastal plant expert David Bergin from the Forest Research Institute, following a field trip to the site during the Coastal Dune Vegetation Network Conference in 2004. The plants are making impressive growth and have noticeably helped reduce erosion at the trial sites. D.U.N.E. members have held several community planting days and planted a range of hardy native coastal plants to enhance biodiversity and prevent erosion in back dune areas. They regularly maintain these plantings to keep them free from invasive weeds while the young plants get established. They have also installed beachcare signs to educate and inform beach users about ways they can help to look after the dunes. | 
