An area in Christchurch, New Zealand – decimated by an earthquake in 2011 – could be about to get a major new attraction inspired and backed by the UK’s Eden Project.
The scheme, proposed by the Water For Life Trust, has been modelled on
the Eden project in Cornwall, England, which uses a large area of land converted into a sustainable, green, nature-focused tourist attraction and research centre.
The Eden Project houses the world's largest biodome rainforest and also has gardens, art displays, music events, an ice rink, restaurants and cafés, attracting more than a million visitors a year.
The proposed attraction, tentatively named ‘Eden NZ: Mountains to Sea – Ki Uta Ki Tai’ could be built in the ‘Red Zone’ – a public exclusion area in the Christchurch Central City implemented after the 22 February 2011 Christchurch earthquake – which still has many individual buildings cordoned off because they have been deemed unstable by the authorities.
Since the 2011 earthquake, Christchurch has lost an estimated NZ$180m (US$164.3m, €113.8m, £90.4m) from the local economy, for which tourism had previously been estimated as generating around 12 per cent of all employment for the city.
“We are really excited about what we have seen,” said Sir Tim Smit, founder of the original Eden Project. “The project can be not just a tourism destination but also a place that celebrates the culture of Maori and the environmental movement that is coming out of New Zealand. There is something very symbolically powerful that is coming out of
the ruins of the dreadful earthquakes.”
“We have a vision that, after 10 years of successful operation, we feel ready to share with a few selected partners around the world to grow and build new and culturally distinct iconic centres, that will each make their own unique contributions.”
Over the next two months, Eden NZ will develop core themes for the project, work on integrating it into the recovery strategy for greater Christchurch, identify and agree final land options and undertake a project feasibility study.
