Kaitiakitanga 

Our kaitiaki here at Russell-Orongo Bay Holiday Park are committed to sustainable and environmental practices and have been for many years.
We also want to provide our guests with the matauranga (knowledge) they need to continue their own journey in kaitiakitanga and conservation.
In Te Ao Māori we aim to represent ourselves as Totara, tall and strong, watching over and protecting our little piece of ngāhere (forest), to ensure that our Holiday Park is one to enjoy for future generations.
We are committed to:

  • Contributing to New Zealand’s reputation as a sustainable destination
  • Making positive changes that help our environment and community
  • Respecting the history and cultural heritage unique to this region
  • Protecting native flora, fauna, marine and wildlife

Sustainability initiatives 

  • 2022 TIA Sustainable Innovation Award winner
  • 2019 & 2021 Predator Free NZ Award winner

Accommodation
We use reclaimed or renewable building materials as much as possible. We provide recycling bins in all accommodation, use energy efficient lightbulbs and LED lighting in our new buildings. 

We are currently converting all exterior lighting to solar. We employ sustainable grey water disposal.  

Birds and wildlife
Russell – Orongo Bay Holiday Park is home to four of New Zealand’s rarest birds; the North Island brown kiwi, the North Island weka, fernbirds and the pateke/brown teal duck. We are set on 14 acres of Native New Zealand bush, home to 55 species of bird. We have been involved in predator management for over five years. We employ an expert Predator controller and also operate our own indoor and outdoor predator controlling system. More details about our Predator Control 

Our partners
We actively work to support the 100% Pure New Zealand brand, network with likeminded businesses and support local conservation groups. We are proud to be a Project Island Song Corporate Member 2023-2024 and we are members of Birding New Zealand. 

Our practices include: 

  • We use bio-degradable cleaning agents 
  • We wash and sun–dry our laundry 
  • We recycle and compost 
  • We mulch our gardens 
  • We plant native New Zealand including local flora. Our guests can also plant a tree to contribute to offsetting their carbon foot print and support toitū toirua (regeneration) of our park.
  • To protect our wildlife we plant and conserve habitat 
  • We employ local company Land & Habitat to track and bait animal pests 
  • We conserve water and electricity 
  • We use solar and/or natural gas water heating 
  • We purchase from local suppliers 
  • We encourage our guests and train our staff in sustainable practices 

 Ask our team about our initiatives, we welcome your feedback, suggestions and ideas for ways that can improve our operations. 

Thanks for your help. 

The team at Russell-Orongo Bay Holiday Park  

The Tiaki Promise 

Tiaki means to care for people, place and culture. New Zealand is precious, and everyone who lives and travels here has a responsibility to look after it. The Tiaki Promise is a commitment to care for New Zealand, for now and for future generations. Most of us are aware of the impact that we have on our environment and at Russell-Orongo Bay Holiday Park we are undertaking a number of actions to reduce environmental and social impacts in a way that can improve the sustainability of our place. Many of these you will not see but some you may notice. To help support the Tiaki promise and care for our little piece of New Zealand we ask you to: 

  • Turn off appliances at the power point and lights when not in use to help us to reduce the energy we use 
  • Separate and recycle your waste – paper, plastic, glass, aluminium, tin and food scraps in the appropriate bins helps to reduce landfill 
  • Recycle unwanted but edible food – we provide bins for that purpose 
  • Use water sparingly, turn off the tap when brushing your teeth, minimise shower time and use the plug when doing dishes and washing vegetables to conserve water. 
  • Protect our nature and wildlife.