In November 2017, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) obtained joint funding from GIFT and The Tindall Foundation, to establish a coordination mechanism for collective effort towards shellfish restoration goals in the Hauraki Gulf* .

Shellfish beds used to cover around 1,500 km of the Hauraki Gulf’s sea bed, providing enormous ecological benefits to the marine ecosystem. Unfortunately, most of these shellfish beds have been destroyed by dredging and habitat degradation. In recent years, many individuals and organisations have started actively restoring mussel beds, deploying around 150 tonnes of mussels into the Gulf. While important, these efforts have been fragmented, poorly-resourced and hampered by each group having to navigate local and national government regulations and legislation that are not designed to enable habitat restoration. A workable, sustainable mechanism for large-scale shellfish restoration is needed and that was the goal of this project.

The project took around 18 months, ending around 30 June 2019. Achievements are as follows:

• The Hauraki Gulf Shellfish Restoration Coordination Group (The Coordination Group) was established. Its aims are to support members, encourage co-operation and provide strategy and direction towards shared shellfish restoration goals. The group includes community group, iwi, academia, business, local and national government representatives. It has a Coordinator and is a non-legal entity (this may change in future).

• A three-year shared workplan and a strategy to finance this workplan have been developed.

• Iwi have been actively engaged in the development of The Coordination Group. An iwi leaders hui was convened in January 2019 to discuss iwi values, aspirations and challenges related to shellfish restoration in the Gulf.

• Foundation North and The Tindall Foundation’s combined grant of $48,000 has enabled TNC to leverage $400,000 for shellfish restoration in the Gulf - half from New Zealand government departments and half from the China Global Conservation Fund.

• Through the Doctoral work and related activities, best practice models will be developed for mussel reef conservation, restoration and integrated management, which combine traditional Māori knowledge/science and western science, and engage the public.

• TNC recently partnered with The University of Auckland to submit a successful major proposal to research how to overcome bottlenecks to mussel restoration. Experiences and learning about mussel restoration in New Zealand are being shared with other countries across the Asia-Pacific region, through regular contact with international TNC shellfish restoration practitioners.

TNC has learned that local iwi have multiple demands on their time and wish to be kept informed and invited to participate. More research is needed to build the evidence base to ensure successful mussel bed restoration and natural mussel bed reproduction and expansion. Future mussel deployments need to be scientifically designed and consistently monitored, so that their beneficial services can be documented and best practices developed. A strategic approach to future mussel deployment will be undertaken via The Coordination Group, to ensure that deployments have the best chances of success and resources are not wasted.

A major challenge is biosecurity risks and statutory processes making it costly to restore reefs and delaying progress. The Coordination Group is looking at options to achieve ‘blanket’ approval for issues such as biosecurity risks and mitigation, and Resource Management Act consent. Protecting new mussel beds is another factor the group is exploring, from threats such as boats dropping anchors onto the beds

In terms of next steps, TNC will remain an active member of The Coordination Group. TNC and this group will work collectively to:

• Progress research critical to answering questions about how to successfully restore shellfish at scale

• Support strategic mussel bed deployments

• Engage local, national and international potential funders so partners can restore shellfish populations at a scale never before witnessed in the Gulf

TNC is also exploring partnership opportunities to help build the capacity of local conservation leaders, community groups and enterprises involved in shellfish restoration using the Conservation Coaches Network (CCNet) training programme. CCNet is a pool of 700 coaches in 60 countries, who mentor project teams to develop, implement, evaluate, adapt and share effective strategies to achieve conservation results at scale. This new coordination group holds huge promise for the restoration of shellfish and the mauri of the Hauraki Gulf.