- Jodi Roebuck’s regenerative grazing block
WORKSHOPS to help block owners manage the environmental impact of their block start this year.
They're the result of an initiative started by the Nelson City Council. It wanted to encourage its vast numbers of block owners to look at their land as a key part of the environment, draw on expert advice, commit their understanding to paper, and then do the mahi (work).
Susan Moore-Lavo created the first workshops targeting block owners, who she says have a significant impact on the environment.
“For example, E. coli levels are high in some of our waterways. When we tracked it, we found the source was mixed, but largely sheep and ducks. Many small landowners have stock but don't understand the impact they collectively have on the environment.”
Susan pulled together a team of local experts from the New Zealand Landcare Trust and farm environmental consulting companies FuturEcology and LandVision. They created a range of workshops aimed at encouraging block owners to plant key areas of their land, such as wetlands.
“At the same time, (the workshops) were an opportunity to also discuss issues like fencing and management of critical source areas (the origin of a pollutant, eg manure, sediment). That's important, as water quality is a key priority for (the council).”
The workshops were so popular, the plan is to run them around the country.
The workshops cover:
• land management, including how to map important features, tree planting, and weed control;
• how to identify and mitigate critical source areas (CSAs);
• grazing;
• fertiliser use;
• where to site infrastructure;
• fire control.
WORKSHOPS IN 2021
The NZ Landcare Trust is running Farm Environment Plan workshops for lifestyle block owners in the Hawkes Bay and Waikato regions this summer, and more are planned.
Find contacts for regional coordinators in your area to express your interest in attending a Farm Environment Plan workshop. www.landcare.org.nz/regions-andpeople
ABOVE: Rob Fryer of FuturEcology checks one year old riparian plantings near the Wakapuaka River in Nelson. The trees are protected by EmGuards developed by his daughter Emma. They’re made of a coated cardboard, providing protection from wind and pests, and naturally biodegrade in place after a year or two (when the plants no longer need a guard). Emma developed the product after seeing large numbers of plastic plant guards clogging waterways.
Photo credit: FuturEcology