Uretara Estuary Managers (UEM) formed in 2004 to protect habitat and birdlife around the Uretara estuary. Our scope of work expanded rapidly after gaining Sustainable Management funding in 2006 for catchment restoration projects, followed by other grants 2008-2011 to extend the boundaries of that work.

After receiving core funding for the ‘Katikati Hills to Ocean (H20) Improvement Project’ from Ministry for Environment’s (MFE) Freshwater Improvement Fund in 2018, UEM have been working with Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Western Bay of Plenty District Council and local landowners to create comprehensive management plans that address a range of water quality and biodiversity issues. The vision of a thriving northern Tauranga Harbour, with habitat restoration and sustainable land use practice being embraced by catchment communities from Aongatete to Athenree, was behind a successful application to MFE’s Jobs for Nature fund in 2021.

UEM became a charitable trust in 2006 and works closely with and other groups and organisations to achieve common goals. In the second half of 2020, UEM implemented a fully updated constitution and the board agreed to adopt Project Parore as the new name for the activities of the society.