OUR AMBITION
To reinstate and protect the te ao tūroa (natural order) and mauri (life force) of our land, air and water for future generations.
OUR GOALS
Restore the health of our wai
The health of our water is directly reflected in the health of our ecosystems and our communities. By restoring the health of our water, we can improve the health of our natural ecosystems and the future prosperity of the people who depend on them.
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Establishing and implementing the Priority Project Fund to support projects that benefit the health of the water bodies in the catchment.
Collecting water samples in each of the sub-catchments and gathering long term data.
Enabling and supporting land guardians and community to:
Plant the right erosion control species on hills and near streams to reduce sediment load into the awa and keep soils on the land.
Protect remnant bush on hills and near streams to reduce sediment load into the awa.
Shade streams and rivers by planting riparian species to help reduce water temperatures and minimise evaporation. This will also reduce aquatic weed growth and ensure optimum conditions for aquatic species.
Fence off and plant streams and waterways to reduce direct e coli contamination from livestock.
Protect and restore wetlands to filter and slow water entering the awa.
Monitor, control and remove invasive species or pests that destroy ngahere (bush), native ngāi kīrehe (fauna) and reduce biodiversity.
Improve soil conservation and health
Healthy soil functions as a living ecosystem, sustaining plant, animal and human health. By improving and conserving our soil health we can help support important ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling, carbon storage, water filtration and storage, food production and biodiversity.
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Enabling informed decision making specific to location through sub-catchment management plans.
Encouraging correct erosion control through research-based land use and stabilisation.
Partnering with organisations to support best practice land management.
Support land guardians in the protection of highly erodible soils.
Reverse the decline in biodiversity
Biodiversity supports resources and processes for all living things, such as clean air, clean water, fertile soils, pollution control, flood control and erosion control. By improving biodiversity, we can provide life supporting services that enable all organisms, including humans, to thrive.
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Working alongside organisations such as HBRC and QE11 to prioritise the protection of highly valuable remnant bush.
Planting locally eco-sourced native species back into the catchment to enhance bird, insect and aquatic life.
Encouraging the preservation of the catchment’s limited remaining biodiversity by fencing, enhancing and protecting our remnant bush.
Enable the creation of green corridors by planting native species.
Safeguard our taonga and mahi
Pest plants, weeds and animals are the biggest threat to our native biodiversity. By effectively managing invasive species that destroy ngahere (bush) and native ngāi kīrehe (fauna) we can safeguard our remnant bush, honour the work already done and ensure the success of future projects.
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Actively control pests and predators (rodents, possums, mustelids and feral cats) in sites of high biodiversity and significant natural importance.
Monitoring, controlling and removing invasive species in sites of high biodiversity and significant natural importance. This includes wilding pine and pampas.
Looking to tohu indicators to help us understand the effectiveness of our work.
Providing traps, bait and support to completed Priority Project areas to help ensure the project’s success.
Enabling land guardians to actively control pests and predators by providing traps and subsidised bait.
Providing information and support on weed management. (Spraying etc).
Encouraging active pest control by our community through communications, competitions and resources. Pest photo competition. Best hare/deer/rabbit sausage or patties competition.
Foster community engagement
A community with a common goal has the collective power to create change. By empowering and enabling our ropū (groups); Ngāti Kere as mana whenua, land guardians (farmers) and the wider community, we can help ensure the future prosperity of all.
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Providing our community with the tools and assistance to create change.
Delivering information, tools and support to enable land guardians to take action specific to their location.
Supporting the development of farm management to enable individual land guardians to take better action on farm.
Responding to the needs of community when it arises. This could be in the form of droughts, floods, economic downturn or cyclones.
Encouraging greater community and mana whenua engagement.
Enabling and encouraging knowledge and idea sharing and participation (community get-togethers).
Supporting local initiatives to enhance public areas through the planting of native spices eg, coastal walkways, village to estuary planting.
Inspiring tamariki and whānau
Young people and families are the heart of our community. They are what makes it special and what drives it forwards. By inspiring and passing knowledge to the families in our community, we can nurture, educate and mentor our tamariki and rangatahi (younger generation) to help create the next generation of kaitiaki.
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Encouraging hands-on environmental learning by partnering with Flemington and Pōrangahau schools.
Engaging with local iwi and hāpu.
Communicating and sharing generational knowledge.
Having fun together with active learning and participation – eco-sourcing seeds, growing native species, pest hunting competitions, community planting days and school trips.
