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Historical Notes: The waterfall in the quarry reserve is called "Te Mimi O Tuanehe" (roughly translated to mean a man having a pee). After heavy rain, the waterfall spouts out away from the cliff and was very visible when the hill was only clad in fern and scrub. Te Karaka Stream flows from this waterfall. There were remains of kumera (sweet potato) storage pits on the slope east across this creek and they were associated with the gardens of Tuaneke. The dam above the waterfall was built by early quarry workers and supplied all the water needed for the quarry workings as well as being used by the neighbouring farm troughs, cowshed and the homestead. This farm was owned later by Stan and Kath Harper and has now been subdivded. Gold was searched for in these hills - Bob Munro and Davie Borrell were two of those who fossicked - unsuccessfully it is believed. The rock in this quarry is a rhyolite material which is generally regarded as poor quality and did not satisfy specifications for good quality crushed base course road metal by the National Roads Board (or the present Transit New Zealand). However, being the only type of metal available in the district, it was used extensively as sub-base and base course material for roading works in the area west and south of Tauranga. For a long period the County Council operated a small crushing plant at this site to provide for the local needs which included the old Tauranga-Waihi highway. After World War Two, from 1945 onwards, output from the quarry increased and supplied crushed metal for County roads and for the reconstruction of State Highway Two. Large quantities of stone were also used for bridge approach embankments in the general area of Tauranga, for the Strand reclamation, for breakwaters built on the foreshore and for farm tracks. At first the quarry was worked by the County Council employing labour. As circumstances permitted, this was phased out in favour of private contractors who paid royalties on quantities produced for sale, with the Council having prior right of being supplied. Large quantities of rock have been extracted over the many years of operation. By the late 1970's operations ceased as the demand for this type of material diminished. 575,000 tons of rhyolite rock was removed during the time of operation - over a 50 year period. In 1989 the Western Bay of Plenty District Council planted 60 hectares of the quarry reserve in pine trees in an effort to control noxious weeds and to provide a future asset. Then in 1992 the Council looked at the possibility of re-opening the quarry or of selling it. These proposals were met with some opposition from local residents, now increased in numbers owing to the subdivisions of adjacent farms. The use of land for quarrying was also considered not environmentally acceptable. The visual impact of the quarry during its 20 years of closure was an ugly scar in the Minden hills, very visible from the State Highway and used as a navigation point from the sea. During those 20 years natural regrowth of noxious weeds of every description, pine and wattle trees as well as extensive regrowth of ponga and manuka has gradually hidden the scar. In 1993 The Te Puna Quarry Park Society was formed thanks largely to
the efforts of Shirley Sparks, a local resident. Three years of planning
and negotiation followed before the status of the reserve was finally
changed to "Quarry Reserve Community Use" in November 1996,
and work on the development could commence. |
