Manawa-aa-whenua

Sustainability

At Ruakura Superhub, our dedication to sustainability extends beyond mere statistics and reports. We are actively working to reduce our carbon footprint and emissions, enhance ecological values, and harness clean energy sources to create a more sustainable and eco-friendly future for our community and the nation. Join us on this journey towards a greener tomorrow.

Environmental improvements

We have designed a range of environmental improvements and mitigations for the construction and operation of Ruakura Superhub. At a high level, these benefits are summarised in

A report by infrastructure consultant Castalia shows that the modal shift from road to rail afforded by the Ruakura Inland Port will remove an estimated 65,000 long-haul truck journeys per year when the port is at operating capacity. Carbon emissions are estimated to reduce by 600 tonnes per year.  This reduction in the burning of transport fuels (diesel) is a significant step towards the future decarbonisation of the nation’s supply chain.

Ecology

Our commitment to sustainability isn't just limited to reducing carbon emissions. We are also dedicated to improving ecological values at Ruakura Superhub. Using a modified version of the GBCA Ecological Value Calculator, Beca has also modelled an overall 10% improvement in ecological values within the Ruakura Superhub area after 20-30 years. These improvements include:

  • Low-value pastoral vegetation improved by replacement with high-value indigenous vegetation along swales and in wetland development (up to 1.5 million plants in stage 1).
  • Increased quality of native fish habitat in comparison with existing environment. This includes the replacement of 21km of farm drain habitat with 23km of enhanced swale habitat with almost double the amount of high-quality native fish habitat (22.9kms up from 12.9km).
  • For resident native bats, the provision of 30-40 more roost trees for every potential roost tree removed.

Solar

Engineering consultancy Beca has modelled the environmental impact of installing up to 5MW of solar photovoltaics at Ruakura Superhub, which is an active part of our energy planning to reduce carbon footprint.

  1. Ruakura Superhub
  2. Sustainability