Deep in Pureora Forest Park, a sprawling 78,000-hectare native forest just west of Tāupo, multiple murders are being investigated.
That is what local iwi are calling the illegal felling of ancient trees, some predating the arrival of humans on these islands.
“It’s incredulous, it really is disgusting,” said Matt Davis, a compliance officer for the Department of Conservation (DoC).
He took 1News to several sites that had been targeted by tree poachers. All were accessible by vehicle on dirt tracks, but far enough off the beaten track that there will be little to no chance of people passing by on a regular basis. He explained that the trees would often be cut, left for some time to season, then taken away on the back of a truck.
Felling native trees in conservation land like this is a crime that could land someone in prison.
But it was incredibly hard to police.
“This has been an ongoing problem in the central North Island for a long time, but it is something that has become more obvious in recent years,” Davis said.
At this first location, Davis explained he initially came to the site after a report that a rimu had been cut down.
“It was all intact when I came,” he said, pointing out a section of forest it had crushed when it fell.
Hoping to catch the poachers coming back to retrieve the tree, he set up a surveillance camera.
But when he returned, the tree was gone.
And there was nothing on the camera – the criminals had found it and wiped the SD card.
“How can people do this to the trees, something that high, just to make a few dollars.”
But there were quite a few dollars to be made – thousands potentially. He said there was an underground black market for native timber and firewood.
“The suspicion is that [this tree] has been taken for illegal sawmilling – rimu is a really good valuable wood for furniture and that sort of thing.”
There have been instances of illegal tree felling throughout New Zealand – often of relatively small natives in towns and cities.
But this is something else – huge natives, dozens of metres high, some more than half a century old.
Totara can live up to 2000 years old.
At another site where trees had been taken, Department of Conservation ranger Howard Matthew explained these trees were so big they supported multiple ecosystems.
“They contribute in a big way to all the different species that are around, like kōkako that come in and perch on their limbs... Kākā move in around the bark and the branches and collect invertebrates and fruit in the trees. Kākā also nest in the trees – they nest in the hollow cavities in the trees,” he said.
“They’re also very important for humans – a tree breathes for us, it creates oxygen. One of [these] trees can supply oxygen for four people through photosynthesis."
Matthew showed 1News what remained of a matai that had been illegally cut – all that was left was the stump and some of the top of the tree. There were still signs of life on some of the branches, but much of it was rapidly dying.
“It was growing on the edge of the forest but was still part of the forest. There are epiphytes in there – there would have been all sorts of invertebrates, all sorts of lizards and all sorts of creatures living in there.”
“With this taken out now it has created a bit of a vacuum...it’s now taken out so the whole edge of the forest takes a step back. We can’t afford to take many steps back because there is so much of the forest missing now.”
About a five-minute walk up the track was another discovery – an abandoned camp set up by the people the authorities strongly suspect were behind the trees.
They had erected several structures and looked to be installing some sort of plumbing system. More trees were cut down nearby and the track had been widened – a truck could make it up to the camp.
What remained of some native trees had been cut up and stacked in a structure built out of pellets.
DoC had nailed a notice to the structure saying it had been erected illegally and would be taken down by the authorities.
These trees were a loss that local mana whenua spokesperson Wiari Rauhina felt keenly.
His interview below is translated.
“I feel unhappy about this. Why? Because we’ve lost another one in the forest. A child of Tāne Māhuta. Back in the days when Tauiwi (Pākeha) arrived here... they exploited our customary rights and sold off our assets. Now we are in a position of protecting our ‘Whanaunga’ (relation}. We’re connected to these trees.”
“Ki aku whakaaro kei te tino aroha atu. He aha ai? Kua ngaro atu tētahi [rākau] o te ngahere. Koirā tētahi o ngā tamariki ō Tāne Māhuta. I ngā wā o mua, i te taenga mai o tauiwi. Koinā i hokona atu. Ko o mātou tikanga me te kawa. Me tiaki i tō mātou whanaunga. Ko te rākau nei kei te ngahere he whanaunga ki a mātou. Ana! Kua hinga te rākau.”
Rauhina also spoke of the other life lost when the tree was cut down, such as the bird life that called these titans of the forest home.
“Right now, I'm not angry... but I’m feeling disappointed ...because they're ignorant enough for not having the understanding of lore of the forest.”
“I tēnei wā kāore ahau i te pukuriri. Ki ahau nei kei te aroha atu ki a rātou, e kore ai e mōhiotia i te tikanga hei tiaki I te ngāhere.”
There was some good news that had come out of this – one of the trees that was cut down was spotted, rescued and handed to local iwi before the poachers could return.
But authorities admitted they had to rely on reports from members of the public to help catch the criminals.
“Normally we are finding the evidence of it having happened, so therefore we rely on the public to help us identify when it happened,” said Davis.
“If someone is out and about in conservation area, we would ask them to keep their eyes and ears open to what’s going on, to look out for any utes towing trailers with firewood in it or logs, or trucks where they not supposed to be.
“If it feels wrong, it probably is wrong.”
Any sightings could be reported to 0800 DOC HOT.
Meanwhile Rauhina had a simple message to those cutting down the trees.
“Stop. Go away. Stop. You don't need this anymore,” he said.
“If you want some firewood, go cut down some pine trees, there are plenty of those.”
- additional reporting by Taroi Black
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