Environment
The inlet is highly man-modified, with three embayments at the inlets of historic streams having been lost along the northern shore, to a significant degree for use as landfills, and a loss of tidal inundation to the Hopua volcanic crater forming the Onehunga Basin further west. Ann’s Creek in the north-east still has a short section of open stream remaining in the north-east. Land reclamation in the 1960s for the Westfield Rail Yards also reduced the inlet in the east, while the southern shore is less modified.
The area is generally known for relatively muddy, sedimented waters, which seem to predate human occupation of the area. Mangrove swamp fringes are present around most of the shoreline, becoming less common west of Mangere Bridge.
For many years the many industries, from meatworks and abattoirs, to phosphate fertiliser works and other factories located here were discharging large amounts of untreated waste into the Manukau Harbour. This had a detrimential effect on the ecology of the harbour which at the turn of the 20th century had been a popular and attractive place to swim, sail, fish and gather shellfish. During the 1950s, the decomposition of organic wastes (including from residential areas and facilities like Middlemore Hospital into the mud flats led to sulphate reduction under anaerobic conditions - leading to complaints about hydrogen sulphide smells, and blackening of lead paint in the areas around the inlet. From 1962, the Mangere sewage works removed many of the household and industrial wastes that were previously discharged and led to significant improvements. As of 2008, a number of coastal protection zones had been established around the shores of the inlet.
However, industrial sewage mixed with stormwater overflows, and other contamination still leads to above-average traces of toxins like pesticides, insecticides, PCBs and copper in the mussels and oysters sampled by testing.
In the discussions around Stadium New Zealand, constructing the new venue over the eastern shoreline of the inlet was mooted by several architects as a potential alternative to the Auckland CBD location. They considered that the site would be far enough away from residential areas to suit the need for a large and busy multi-use stadium, but would also be able to be accessed easily by public transport (trains) and cars, more so than the CBD location. However, the idea failed to get public traction.
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