Raukokore water plan to boost hapū earnings

There’s a sense of hope and optimism in Te Whānau ā Apanui with the news the provincial growth fund is stumping up $780,000 to investigate water storage and irrigation prospects for up to 640ha of land at Raukokore.

Shareholder Willie Te Aho says the hapū and land blocks in the area have already done a lot of work to prepare for the opportunity.

He says there are better uses for the land than pastoral farming.

"Some of these lands were genenating $150 a hectare. With a switch to kiwifruit gold and other horticultural activities we can increase it by up to $80,000 a hectare so it's a no-brainer that we enter this process of designing an irrigation scheme that suits us," he says.

Other investments in the region announced today include almost $20 million to develop a sustainable mussel farming operation in Opotiki, $1.3 million to improve digital connectivity in Eastern Bay of Plenty, $91,000 for planning work on four Ngāti Awa projects, and $99,000 to create a full time position connecting workers, contractors and pack houses in the kiwifruit sector.

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