History and Maps

Supporting this website are some images that give an overview of the expansion of urban growth on the Heretaunga Plains.

To obtain more accurate datasets and historic aerial imagery that may have helped generate greater accuracy in the numbers, was well out of our expertise and capabilities, however for the purposes of the figures, it should go without saying these are approximate only. However, despite this, these images produce bold assumptions and approximations as to what was pre/post WW2. This was particularly the case at Bay View and Taradale. C.1940s aerial imagery for those places was challenging to source, so we have simply amalgamated all of what might’ve been 1940s Taradale and Bay View into Napier’s post WW2 figures.

These images clearly depict how urban sprawl has gradually crept over the Heretaunga Plains in the last almost 100 years and as we move forward in time, to cater for our ever increasing population, the pace of this urban sprawl, unless terminated, will gather in pace at an unprecedented and alarming pace covering even more of our fertile soils at a faster rate year on year.

We consider what has happened in the past is a degradation of duty by our elected Councils who have paid scant regard to our sustainability and the plight of future generations and as a result have been responsible for this permanent blight on our landscape. It is NOT too late to rein in on this reckless policy of sacrificing the one scarce commodity that is “non renewable” and that is our fertile soils.

Soil Map of the Heretaunga Plains

Total area of Heretaunga Plains: 34,660 ha
Total area of Class 1 soils on Heretaunga Plains: 7,736 ha.
Total area of Class 2 soils on Heretaunga Plains: 10,270 ha.
Total area of Class 3 soils on Heretaunga Plains: 12,341 ha.
Total area of Class 1, 2 and 3 soils on Heretaunga Plains: 30,347 ha or 87%.
Total area of Class 4, 5c, 6, 7 and River soils on Heretaunga Plains: 4,313 ha or 13%.

Napier, Hastings, Havelock North and Bayview pre and post WWII