A new study shows that harakeke has healing properties, successfully removing chemicals from contaminated water.
The Waipapa Taumata Rau study found that chemically treated fibres from harakeke successfully removed some chemicals from contaminated water in lab tests.
The findings suggest a taonga species could help address one of the world’s most persistent environmental contaminants, linked to cancer and fertility issues.
“It is a tradition of mātauranga Māori that harakeke can remove negative elements [and] other things from our water,” says kairaranga Ahi Nyx.
“So this developed research is really exciting.”
Harakeke fibres were traditionally used for baskets, ropes, clothes, mats, bird snares and fishing nets, the nectar as a sweetener, dried flower stalks for rafts, the sap as a medicine and root juice as a disinfectant.
“It’s a connection to life force. So Hineteiwaiwa - [she] is the atua of birth and the harakeke plant,” Nyx says.
“Every time I weave something, I’m pregnant with it, I give birth to it, and it’s out there in the world living its own life.”
Known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), these chemicals are one of the biggest environmental challenges today. PFAS are in the blood of humans and animals around the world.
He rongoā i te ao Māori, i te ao pūtaiao
The project was inspired by wānanga outside the science lab - in Professor David Barker’s community.
While sitting on the board of trustees at his child’s school, Barker says there was backlash when a gardener culled a harakeke plant at the school, to which parents objected.
“We had this learning session, and what we talked about was the value of harakeke to Māori, to the community, to my school.”
Barker began researching the plant and found that treated harakeke fibre removed five PFAS from water, including three ‘short chain’ PFAS, the most difficult ones to remove.
“They call them forever chemicals because they just don’t degrade,” he explains.
Barker says these chemicals are also present in everyday items like clothing, kitchenware and cosmetics.
“When we wash them off, or they break down, they get eaten by fish, we eat the fish, they bioaccumulate, and they get into our bodies,” he adds.
“When they get to a certain level, they can have really harmful effects.”
He rautaki anō hei patu i ngā matū
Other kairangahau say harakeke may be a cost-effective solution to harmful chemicals like PFAS.
“Our research findings suggest there is a potential for developing a cost-effective PFAS treatment approach based on this native plant,” says Dr Lokesh Padhye.
“There is more work to be done, but the sustainability and availability of the material make it particularly promising.”
