Pearl on the world map. New responsibilities were applied for tourists

RotomaiRewhenua, also known as Blue Lake, is a small lake located in the Nelson Lakes National Park on the island of Southern New Zealand.

His waters are characterized by unprecedented transparency, achieving visibility from 70 to 80 meters, which makes them the cleanest natural tank of fresh water in the world.

For comparison, distilled water has a visibility of about 80 meters. This unique clarity of the lake owes its power supply by underground sources from the nearby Lake Constance, which filter water from almost all suspensions.

Cultural importance for Maori

For the local NGāti tribe, the Rotomivewhenua lake is of great spiritual and cultural importance. It was traditionally used during the cleansing ceremony of the dice, enabling them to start a trip to Hawaiki, the mythical homeland of the Maori.

The lake waters are considered to be tapthat is, the saint, and its name in the Maori language means “Lake of peaceful lands”.

Man and algae

Currently, RotomiaRewhenua faces a serious threat from the invasive algae Lindavia Intermedia.
This microscopic algae produces a sticky substance known as lake snowwhich can significantly reduce water transparency.

Lindavia was first identified in New Zealand in 2002 and since then she spread to several lakes in the regions of Otago, Canterbury and Waikato.

In the northern part of the southern island, the presence of Lindavia was recorded in the lakes of Rotoiti, Rotoroa and Tennyson, as well as in the Buller River and the Maitai reservoir near Nelson.

Lindavia’s spread occurs mainly through human activity. Microscopic algae cells can be transferred in drops of water on water equipment, clothing, footwear or even water bottles.

The introduction of Lindavia to RotomiaRewhenua could irreversibly affect its unique transparency and ecosystem.

Protective activities and education of tourists

To prevent the introduction of Lindavia to RotomyRewhenua, the Department of Nature Conservation of New Zealand (DOC) in cooperation with NGāti APA Ki te Rā Tō Trust and TE ARAROA TRUST implemented a number of protective measures.

The key points of tourist routes installed footwear and equipment cleaning stations that allow tourists to disinfect before entering the lake area.

Information boards educate visitors about the importance of these activities and encourage them to follow them.
In addition, tourists are recommended to avoid direct contact with the lake waters to protect its “holiness and purity.”

Increase in tourist traffic and its consequences

Since the publication of the exceptional transparency of Rotomiarwhenua in 2011, the lake gained international fame. This contributed to the increase in the number of tourists.

Melissa Griffin, an older guardian for biodiversity at Nelson Lakes in the DOC, noticed that giving the lake of the purest title in the world and publicity in social media significantly increased his popularity.
Earlier it was a beautiful place, although not very frequented, but after getting this name, the number of tourists began to grow rapidly.

Increased tourist traffic carries the risk of randomly introducing Lindavia to the lake.
That is why it is so important for visitors to follow cleaning and disinfection procedures and to avoid direct contact with water.

Consciousness and responsible behavior of tourists are crucial for maintaining unique purity and spiritual meaning of Rotomiarwhenua.