Explaining where the new native plants are to go at the Bullock Creek Wetland Restoration project in Wanaka are (from left) Queenstown Lakes deputy mayor Calum McLeod, volunteer Roger Gardiner (background), Te Kakano nursery manager Andrew Penniket, Fish and Game officer Paul van Klink and volunteer John Parr (raking).
Fifteen volunteers and three arborists removed the last of the pussy willows in the morning and planted 50 native plants from Te Kakano nursery in the afternoon.
Mr van Klink, Te Kakano Aotearoa Trust members and volunteers began the restoration project near the former Fish and Game hatchery last year.
"It’s very much a long-term project but a worthwhile one. It’s about the only wetland in the Upper Clutha as many of New Zealand’s wetlands have been drained for farming or have simply disappeared, so it’s fantastic to have one in Wanaka and so close to the town centre," Mr Penniket said.
