At the Waikato Regional Council’s annual Earthworks Industry Breakfast the WRC present their awards for best Environmentally Controlled sites.

Fulton Hogan received a Special Recognition Award for work the team undertook on a site at Whatawhata on SH23. Rather than simply cleaning out the drain and completing the associated work, the team took the time to set Gee minnow traps prior to, and during the construction period. As a result, black mudfish were captured within the drain, particularly during the weekend through staff taking a personal interest.

Thanks to the work of Rick Gardner and his team, 16 shortfin eels and 38 mudfish were successfully re-located from the drain where the culvert installation emergency works were being carried out, to unaffected sections of the drain upstream or downstream of the works.

The NZ Freshwater Fish Database held no previous records of the species at this location, so this new population of black mudfish is an important find, for this at risk, endemic species.

Well done all those involved in going the extra mile.