Protecting Oashore for Generations to Come

Fox and Associates are proud to have supported the long-term protection of Oashore, a 530-hectare property on Banks Peninsula that is now safeguarded in perpetuity through ownership by the CCC and a Banks Peninsula Conservation Trust (BPCT) covenant.

The project involved years of collaboration to ensure the land’s ecological and cultural significance would be preserved for the future. Below is a statement from the Banks Peninsula Conservation Trust, sharing more about the conservation significance and community value of Oashore.

Statement from Banks Peninsula Conservation Trust

Recently, the property of Oashore was covenanted with BPCT (Banks Peninsula Conservation Trust). The covenant covers the entire iconic property of Oashore in the Southern Bays and transferred ownership of it to the Christchurch City Council.

The stunning landscapes and rich ecological treasures will be protected and cared for by the Council and BPCT together. Three significant areas of this iconic property were already protected under conservation covenant, and now the entire 530ha area is legally protected in perpetuity.

The Trust, the Covenantor and Council are all most grateful for the significant land surveying work over the years by Fox and Associates to reach this milestone for the community. It has involved many intricate facets and critical timing for everything to come together. The generosity by Fox and Associates in doing the last addition on a pro bono basis has been an incredible plus in getting things over the line.

Oashore represents a key section in the Southern Bays biodiversity hub next to Te Oka Reserve, spreading like a green korowai or cloak across the landscape. It includes the remnant forest of Tokoroa, mixed dry shrub and grasslands of Forsyth Face, and regenerating forest gully and ridgeline at Hikuraki.

Oashore is a significant addition to BPCT’s conservation covenants programme because it contains many regionally and nationally important biodiversity values, and also cultural values. The site provides habitat for a diverse range of native invertebrates, lizards and birds. Predator control is being undertaken to protect native birds like kererū, fantails, and bellbirds, and also addresses mammalian pests. Landscape values are also highly significant with extensive vistas in all directions up and down the coast and inland to the mountains. The spectacular coastal headlands and cliffs also serve as valuable sanctuaries for a plethora of seabirds and other native flora and fauna.”