Whangawehi celebrates the Pacific International River Awards

The Whangawehi community is celebrating this Award received in Sydney in October 2018. A big thank you to the whole team and the wider community. This award celebrates the commitment of a dedicated community that has delivered some key milestones over the past 4 years. Well done to you all. Pai the Mahi.

 

WCMG wins the Pacific International River Awards

Representatives of the Whangawehi who attended the Asia Pacific International River Prize awards dinner last Tuesday evening in Sydney were ecstatic to win the Pacific category.  The group was grateful just to have been chosen as a finalist but was blown out of the water when they were announced as winners. The judges were very impressed with just how well the group collaborated with tangata whenua, the community and it’s sponsors along with it’s on the ground work which is diligently monitored.

This Awards has allowed the group to be part of the Alumni network, a network of river practitioners who operate all around the world. This will certainly help the group raise its profile and extend its ability to operate at a higher level.

As the winner of the Awards, the WCMG has also been encouraged by the International River Foundation to develop a relationship with a sister project in a foreign country. Passing on the knowledge was a consistent theme during the evening ceremony and several twin projects were presented during the symposium.  This support offers an opportunity for the WCMG to influence one of it’s pacific neighbours.

A big thank you to all involved.

Media release :

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A big thank you to all who have been involved, it is a wonderful achievement.

 

Whangawehi bridge enhancement

On Saturday the 8th of October, a small group of hard core Whangawehi members gathered at the Whangawehi bridge to finish off building the new railing fence which was started on the day of the working bee. The work involved digging several holes in solid hard ground and it’s no wonder that the beer afterwards was well received. Well done to you all and thank you for your commitment.

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Catchment update

As you can see from the photo’s-all our trees have grown a lot over the winter period. They are flourishing and there is nothing stopping them now. Water is flowing very clear in the Whangawehi stream but algae are already starting to pop up at Mamangu which is a bit early.

A new tree species-the Poroporo-is now growing along the river which has been self-introduced by birds. Poroporo is a native tree already present in the DOC reserve. A small scrub-the Poroporo is traditionally a very valuable plant to Maori because of it’s itch relief properties. It’s a delightful looking plant that is known to grow extremely fast.

It is great to see that the cycle of nature is taking place and allowing the diversification of our local biodiversity.

 

Whangawehi AGM

On Saturday the 8th of October, The Whangawehi Catchment Management Group held its Annual General Meeting. The attendees have re elected the same people as the head of the Committee.

Pat O’Brien : Chairperson

Rae Te Nahu : Secretary

Peter Manosn : Treasurer

Pat in his annual speech thanked everybody for their contribution and hard work. He also stated that he is looking forward to  new projects which are due to take place over the next few months. Thank you all for your input.