Groups join forces to clean Kaipara Harbour
Two respected environmental programmes are joining forces to fast-track efforts to restore the mauri of Auckland and Northland waterways flowing into Kaipara Harbour.
Kaipara Moana Remediation programme and Mountain to Sea Conservation Trust’s Wai Connection programme are finalising a partnership to better nurture the health of water in the Kaipara Moana catchment.
Both programmes have already worked together on community planting days alongside waterways in Paparoa and Parakai, and a soon-to-be-signed Memorandum of Understanding will formalise efforts towards more collaborations on boosting waterway health in Kaipara Moana.
The programmes already provide complementary backing for community groups, with Wai Connection supporting them at an earlier stage of their formation and development, while KMR co-invests in sediment remediation projects once groups are operational.
KMR pou tātaki Justine Daw and the trust’s Kim Jones – poutokomanawa/ co-director, freshwater lead, say: “Kaipara Moana Remediation and Wai Connection aim to bring people together in a common cause to protect and restore local waterways that are important to them.
“Ultimately, our projects help grow community connectivity, resilience and an appreciation that water is essential for our wellbeing in so many ways.”
The partnership aims to increase and accelerate support for both emerging and established community and catchment groups in the Kaipara Moana catchment, and better connect them to funding support for sediment-reduction projects.
“New Zealand communities care passionately about their local waterways and there’s a strong call for support to build understanding of catchment issues, through localised support and funding to take action on the ground,” the pair say.
Daw says: “I believe this partnership will result in earlier and more comprehensive reductions of sediment into the Kaipara Moana. KMR is already working with over 50 groups across the catchment. Since we began, a new group has joined KMR every fortnight on average. It will also create a greater understanding across the community of the benefits of taking action to protect local waterways.”
Jones says KMR and Wai Connection can build on their strong, existing networks in Auckland and Northland.
“The important aspect of this MOU is the fact two organisations with common goals are working together in the freshwater space for the good of our communities and the environment. We are both focused on community engagement and connecting people in targeted catchment restoration and freshwater remediation, enabled by good science.”
Together, KMR and Wai Connection will help groups in Kaipara Moana identify issues and find local solutions by providing advice, planning and grants for sediment-remediation.