Mount Rochfort

Mount Rochfort
Mount Rochfort
	Mount Rochfort with Westport in foreground (painted 1872)
Highest point
Elevation	1,040 m (3,410 ft)[1]
Coordinates	41°46′44″S 171°44′24″E / 41.77882162°S 171.74004570°E[2]
Geography
	Mount Rochfort South Island, New Zealand
Region	West Coast
Topo map	NZMS260 K29

Mount Rochfort is a mountain peak 1,040 metres (3,410 ft) in elevation, located approximately 10 km east of Westport in the Buller District on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It rises above the south-west portion of the Denniston Plateau and overlooks the town of Westport and the plains of the Buller River.

Toponymy

Mount Rochfort was named after John Rochfort (1832–1893), who was a surveyor and engineer involved in mineral surveys in the Buller District.^[1] Rochfort was the first pākehā to climb the peak and Julius von Haast named it.^[2]

Mount Rochfort Conservation Area

In 2018, the Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage and Minister of Energy Resources Megan Woods declined an application to mine 12 hectares (30 acres) near Te Kuha, in the Mount Rochfort Conservation Area. The announcement including a statement about the conservation values of the area:^[3]

The Te Kuha area is one of the last two areas of intact, elevated Brunner coal measure ecosystems. It is an undisturbed area which is precious and unique and supports complex and diverse habitats for threatened plants and wildlife including great spotted kiwi, land snails and lizards.

The Mount Rochfort Conservation Area is land classified in the stewardship category by the Department of Conservation.^[4]

Mount Rochfort is one of two locations where the nationally critical moth Arctesthes avatar can be found.

Access

There is a 4WD access road from the Denniston Plateau to the summit of Mount Rochford, for servicing a transmission site on the peak.^[1]

There is a water supply reserve for the town of Westport on the slopes of Mount Rochfort.^[5]

There is a lake to the north west called Lake Rochfort.

References

^ ^a ^b "Mt Rochfort – Buller District". Nelson Trails. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
^ "Place name detail: Mount Rochfort". New Zealand Gazetteer. New Zealand Geographic Board. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
^ "Government declines application to mine conservation land at Te Kuha". The Beehive. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
^ "Forest & Bird Welcomes Critical Step Forward In New Zealand Conservation". Scoop. 27 May 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
^ McMahon, Brendon (9 May 2022). "Poutini Ngāi Tahu areas excluded from 'outstanding natural areas'". Stuff. Retrieved 24 June 2022.

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[:0-1] "Mt Rochfort – Buller District". Nelson Trails. Retrieved 24 June 2022.

[2] "Place name detail: Mount Rochfort". New Zealand Gazetteer. New Zealand Geographic Board. Retrieved 24 June 2022.

[3] "Government declines application to mine conservation land at Te Kuha". The Beehive. Retrieved 25 June 2022.

[4] "Forest & Bird Welcomes Critical Step Forward In New Zealand Conservation". Scoop. 27 May 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2022.

[5] McMahon, Brendon (9 May 2022). "Poutini Ngāi Tahu areas excluded from 'outstanding natural areas'". Stuff. Retrieved 24 June 2022.

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