Awaruku Stream in Long Bay is part of the NZILA 'Sponge Project' tour

Boffa Miskell's landscape architecture and ecology provided the right balance between efficient use of land, and enhancement of the natural environment.

Awaruku stream and wetland was one of five sites on the New Zealand Institute of Landscape Architects Tuia Pito Ora (NZILA) recent Sponge Project tour. The Auckland branch event involved a group of landscape architects and students viewing five exemplary ‘Sponge City’ project sites, with a short talk-and-walk at each one. Alfred Chan represented Boffa Miskell at the Long Bay/Awaruku stop, on the North Shore.

Awaruku stream is part of the Long Bay development, which involved the urbanisation of a large-scale landholding in a sensitive natural environment. Landscape architecture and ecology formed the basis of a master planning approach which aimed to strike the right balance between efficient use of land, and enhancement of the site ecology and sustainability.

Sound catchment management was an essential element of the project, presenting opportunities to integrate ecological functionality within the new urban environment. Significant landform changes were needed to provide civil infrastructure, in particular the creation of a large wetland within the existing flood-affected area. Rain gardens and other natural water quality treatments are integrated within the streetscape and open space network, improving stormwater treatment of the Awaruku catchment.

These outcomes have enhanced key ecological functions within the Long Bay development area. Streams that previously had no riparian planting, or were damaged, are now benefiting; with thriving numbers of native fish, including the banded kokopu. The overall goal of the project was to provide an integrated urban form, ecological framework and landscape framework that demonstrates on a large scale how a ‘green infrastructure’ can be layered throughout a new urban development.

The five projects featured on the tour were: Daldy Street Linear Park, Vaughan’s Creek Wetland, Awaruku Stream and Wetland, Hooton Reserve and Te Kaitaka, Greenslade Reserve.

Photos by Alfred Chan